Jewish Humor and History HIST 369W TTh 4:10-6pm Bentley 129 Instructor: Dr. Jarrod Tanny, Fall 2009

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1 Instructor: Dr. Jarrod Tanny Phone: (740) ; not after 9 pm tanny@ohio.edu Office: Bentley Annex Room # 411 Office hours: Tuesday, 1:30-3:00pm Thursday, 11-12:30pm Or by appointment I encourage you either to drop by my office or to get in touch with me as often as you like. I am ready to help you with any problems or questions that you may have pertaining to the course. If there are other personal or academic related problems that may be affecting your performance or your attendance, do not hesitate to contact me. If you qualify for accommodations because of a disability, please notify me in a timely manner with a letter from the Office for Disability Services so that we can make arrangements to address your needs. I am here to help you learn. About this Course Why are the Jews so funny? What is unique about Jewish humor? Why are so many comedians, satirical novelists, and film directors Jewish? And why do Jews ask so many questions? This course will explore the rich universe of Jewish humor. We will trace its evolution from the Yiddish culture of the 19 th -century shtetl all the way to 21 st -century cinema and television, where Woody Allen, Jerry Seinfeld, Mel Brooks, and others have made American humor Jewish, and Jewish humor American. We will probe the significance of the schlemiel, the schlimazel, and the schnorrer, and why these cultural archetypes which emerged centuries ago in Eastern Europe still have such resonance today. 1

2 Disclaimer some of the material covered in this course may be deemed racist, sexist, homophobic, excessively violent, sexually explicit, or politically incorrect. This material does not reflect the beliefs of the instructor or the teaching assistant. If you are uncomfortable reading about, watching, or discussing these things then this course may not be for you. Such is the nature of ethnically based humor. Neither Jewish humor nor its cultural historical context can be understood without a close look at all its facets. Required Readings Students are expected to come to class each week having done the assigned readings beforehand. Books for purchase The following required readings are available for purchase at The Little Professor, located on 65 S. Court Street. Jackie Mason, How to Talk Jewish. Sholem Aleichem, Tevye the Dairyman and The Railroad Stories. Philip Roth, Portnoy's Complaint. Joseph Telushkin, Jewish Humor: What the Best Jewish Jokes Say About the Jews. Laurence J. Epstein, Haunted Smile: The Story of Jewish Comedians in America* *Purchasing Epstein is optional; the required readings from this book will also be on Blackboard Readings and sound recordings on Blackboard The other required material will be available for download as pdf files (for readings) and MP3 files (for music and stand-up comedy) from Blackboard. Material available on Blackboard will be marked with an asterisk (*) 2

3 Grading Your final grade will be based on the following: Quizzes 10 % Essays and Response Paper 55 % Final Exam 20 % Class Participation 15 % Attendance: Attending all lectures, discussions, and films is mandatory. If you miss 10% of class time your final grade will be reduced by 5% for every subsequent unexcused absence. If you are having a serious issue that is affecting your ability to come to class, please come and speak with me. Note on flu related issues: In the event of a major campus emergency or other circumstances beyond the instructor s control, course requirements, deadlines, and grading percentages may be subject to change. It also may become necessary to revise the quarter calendar. Assignments: In order to pass the course, you need to complete every assignment. If you miss a quiz, paper, or exam you must come and speak with the Instructor. Failure to do so may lead to a failing grade in the course. Please retain an extra copy of each assignment until the instructor returns the one you submitted. Class participation and joke-telling: Aside from attending class, you are expected to participate in our discussions, which are based on the readings, movies, and other material. Every student will have to, at least once, present a Jewish joke to the class. You need not make up the joke, but it must come from a source outside of the assigned material. Yes this is your opportunity to be a Jewish stand-up comic! 3

4 ***The final exam will take place on Monday, November 23, at 12:20 p.m..*** Weekly Breakdown Week 1 (Sept. 8-10) Readings for Week 1 Joseph Telushkin, Jewish Humor, pages Sarah Cohen, The Varieties of Jewish Humor (Blackboard*) Jay Boyer, The Schlemiezel (Blackboard*) Start reading Jackie Mason, How to Talk Jewish Tuesday, Sept. 8: Introduction: Who are the Jews? What is Jewish humor? o TV show Seinfeld, The Pen Thursday, Sept 10: Film The Frisco Kid Week 2 (Sept ) Required Readings for Week 2 Sholem Aleichem, Tevye the Dairyman, pages 3-52, , , Laurence J. Epstein, The Haunted Smile, pages (Blackboard*) Michael Wex, excerpt from Born to Kvetch (Blackboard*) Finish reading Jackie Mason, How to Talk Jewish Optional Readings for Week 2 Emanuel S. Goldsmith, Sholem Aleichem's humor of Affirmation and Survival (Blackboard*) 4

5 Solomon Simon, excerpt from The Wise Men of Chelm (Blackboard*) Tuesday, Sept. 15: Lecture and Discussion the Shtetl and Yiddish culture Thursday, Sept 17: Film Brighton Beach Memoirs Week 3 (Sept ) Readings for Week 3 Epstein, The Haunted Smile, pages 3-52 (Blackboard*) Leo Rosten, O Kaplan, My Kaplan! (Blackboard*) Music Mickey Katz, Greatest Shticks (Blackboard*) o Note includes the lyrics to Duvid Crocket (MS Word format) Assignment Vocabulary Quiz speaking Jewish Tuesday, Sept. 22: Lecture and Discussion Jewish humor in America: the early years o TV Show The Jack Benny Program Thursday, Sept. 24: Lecture and Discussion The American Dream in a Yiddish key o TV Show The Goldbergs Week 4 (Sept. 29-Oct. 1) Readings for Week 4 Lenny Bruce, How to Talk Dirty and influence People (Blackboard*) Lenny Bruce, The Jews (Blackboard*) Sanford Pinsker, Lenny Bruce (Blackboard*) 5

6 Sound Recording Lenny Bruce s stand-up comedy (Blackboard*) Sound Recording Jackie Mason s stand-up comedy (Blackboard*) Telushkin, Jewish Humor, pages Dan Greenberg, How to be a Jewish Mother (Blackboard*) Henry Spalding, Encyclopedia of Jewish Humor, pages (Blackboard*) New York Times, Bridget Loves Bernie Attacked, Feb. 7, 1973 (Blackboard*) New York Times, Some Jews are Mad at Bernie, Feb. 11, 1973 (Blackboard*) Start reading: Philip Roth s Portnoy s Complaint Tuesday, Sept. 29: Lecture and Discussion Breaking free the 1960s Revolution o TV Show All in the Family, Oh, My Aching Back o TV Show Bridget Loves Bernie Thursday, Oct. 1: Lecture and Discussion Meshpuchah: The Jewish Family o Short film Oedipus Wrecks o Due in class on Thursday Essay # 1 (3 pages) Week 5 (Oct. 6-8) Readings for Week 5 Sholem Aleichem Tevye the Dairyman, pages 69-82, , Telushkin, Jewish Humor, pages Spalding, Encyclopedia of Jewish Humor, pages , (Blackboard*) Kristina Grish, Boy Vey! The Shiksa s Guide to Dating Jewish Men (Blackboard*) Laurie Graff, The Shiksa Syndrome (Blackboard*) Continue reading: Portnoy s Complaint 6

7 Optional Readings for Week 5 Paul Lewis, Three Jews and a Blindfold: The Politics of Gallows Humor (Blackboard*) Bernard Saper, Since When is Jewish Humor not Anti-Semitic? (Blackboard*) David Harris, The Jokes of Oppression (Blackboard*) Tuesday, Oct. 6: Lecture and Discussion Jewish-Gentile Relations o TV show Seinfeld, The Serenity Now o TV show Curb Your Enthusiasm, Mary, Joseph and Larry Thursday, Oct. 8: Lecture and Discussion Anti-Semitism and Self-Hatred o TV show Curb Your Enthusiasm, The End Week 6 (Oct ) Readings for Week 6 Telushkin, Jewish Humor, pages Shalom Auslander, Prophet s Dilemma (Blackboard*) Gerald Mast, Woody Allen, The American Jew as Neurotic Clown (Blackboard*) Finish reading: Portnoy s Complaint Tuesday, Oct. 13: Film Annie Hall Thursday, Oct. 15: The neurotic and inadequate Jew o Discussion Annie Hall and Portnoy s Complaint o Due in class on Thursday Response paper: Portnoy s Complaint (2 pages) Week 7 (Oct ) 7

8 Readings for Week 7 Telushkin, Jewish Humor, pages Spalding, Encyclopedia of Jewish Humor, pages (Blackboard*) Spalding, Encyclopedia of Jewish Humor, pages (Blackboard*) Tuesday, Oct. 20: Lecture and Discussion Conversion: becoming Jewish and leaving Judaism o TV show Curb Your Enthusiasm, The Baptism o TV show Seinfeld, The Yada Yada Thursday, Oct. 22: The Use and Misuse of the Holocaust, Part I o Film Life is Beautiful Week 8 (Oct ) Readings for Week 8 S. Hanala Stadner, My Parents Went Through the Holocaust and all I got was this Lousy T-Shirt (Excerpts) (Blackboard*) Joan Rivers, The Life and Hard Times of Heidi Abramowitz (Blackboard*) (in 2 pdf files) Sarah Cohen, The Unkosher Comediennes (Blackboard*) Epstein, The Haunted Smile, pages (Blackboard*) Assignment Quiz Oy gevalt! How Jewish am I after 8 weeks? Tuesday, Oct. 27: Lecture and Discussion The Use and Misuse of the Holocaust (2) o TV show Curb Your Enthusiasm, The Survivor 8

9 Thursday, Oct. 29: Lecture and Discussion Female Jewish comics Week 9 (Nov. 3-5) Readings for Week 9 Telushkin, Jewish Humor, pages Eric Kimmel, The Adventures of Hershel of Ostropol (Blackboard*) Spalding, Encyclopedia of Jewish Humor, pages (Blackboard*) Tuesday, Nov. 3: Film The Producers Thursday, Nov. 5: Lecture and Discussion Jewish manipulation; the schnorrer o TV Show Curb Your Enthusiasm, The Ski Lift Week 10 (Nov ) Readings for Week 10 Isaac Babel, Odessa Stories (Blackboard*) Auslander, It Ain t Easy Bein Supremey (Blackboard*) Sholem Aleichem Tevye the Dairyman, pages , Epstein, The Haunted Smile, pages (Blackboard*) Telushkin, Jewish Humor, pages Tuesday, Nov. 10: Tough Jews Heroes and Gangsters o Film The Hebrew Hammer o Due in class on Tuesday Final Essay (4 pages) Thursday, Nov Lecture and Discussion Tough Jews; The future 9

10 Grading Standards A A B B B C C C D D D F 0-59 Work in the A range displays clear excellence and will make clear, cogent historical arguments that demonstrably engage all reading materials. Work in the B range displays solid effort and thoughtfulness if not clear excellence. It makes clear arguments that engage most if not all of the reading materials. Work in the C range is fair. It may make solid arguments, but suffers from a lack of engagement with reading materials and perhaps lack of context as well. Work in the D range is poor It has some redeeming features but suffers from lack of sustained effort, lack of context, and lack of most engagement with reading materials. Work in the F range is failing. It does not meet credit standards for a university level course. If you have a documented disability that requires an accommodation, please notify your instructor within the first week of the quarter. 10