Course Assistants: Trevor Burrows Recitation 419 Karen Feiner Heavilon 209

Transcription

1 Introduction to Jewish Studies JWST 330 (=HIST 302D and POL 493A) TTR 12:00-1:15 WTHR 104 Dr. Alon Kantor SC 109 Office Hours: MWF 9:00-9:30 & by appointment Course Assistants: Trevor Burrows Recitation 419 Karen Feiner Heavilon 209 Live well. It is the greatest revenge. The Talmud This is a total syllabus. Everything that you need to know (and dare ask) about this course is to be found in this document. It is your absolute responsibility to know and be aware of everything written in this syllabus. Course Description The purpose of this course is to critically introduce students to the Jewish Experience, from its inception, in the Ancient Near East, to our present time. Using several disciplines religion, philosophy, history, literature, film, anthropology, sociology we will explore the ways and manners by which Judaism 1 manifests itself, as well as how we come to study Judaism academically. Thus, on the one hand, we will examine the internal (ontology) intricacies and complex textures of the core ideas which have created Judaism from within, that is, how a group of people created Judaism, in both reflexive and unreflexive fashion,in reference to their material and historical conditions. In other words, what is Judaism and what does it mean to be Jewish from the Jewish perspective which has always already been in reference to its locality. On the other hand, we will examine how Judaism has been studied externally, from without, (epistemology) by others, as well as by modern academic disciplines. For this external approach has also shaped and determined the ontological constitution of Judaism. What and how others think of us is eo ipso part and parcel of who we are. We must understand that these internal-external approaches are intimately intertwined. It is first and foremost practice that creates and sustains an idea/phenomenon, namely, it is 1 For now we will take the term Judaism in its most common, popular understanding.

2 a mutual venture between those who lead their lives by Judaism, Jews who bear it on their backs as it were, and those who react to and study how these people indeed bear it through their historical consciousness, faith, philosophy, and daily customs. In addition, this course is intended as a gateway to Jewish Studies major or minor at Purdue University, or for that matter, anywhere else. 2 As a general rule, its scope and methodological approaches will make it both worthwhile and necessary for any undergraduate student who wishes to do more in-depth work in Jewish Studies. Method The term Judaism is an abstract umbrella-like concept that covers underneath it many topics and subjects articulated by a myriad of sub-concepts: religion, philosophy, history, memory, imagination, peoplehood, culture, etc. In a manner of speaking, when we come to study Judaism, we come to study Western civilization. Thus how to study Judaism is a problem of its own. Therefore, in order to address this conundrum, we will impose an intellectual grid whose purpose is to construct our subject which will guide us through this difficulty. Note that we must remember that it is indeed an intellectual construct. By no means one should take it to be more than what it is: our framework for study. Course Framework Thematic Axis: Theology 3 : Bible (Tanakh 4 ), Talmud, Kabbalah Philosophy: Ancient: Philo Medieval:, Saadia, Yehuda Ha-Levi, Maimonides, Gersonides (and others) Modern: Spinoza, Mendelssohn, Rosenzweig, Buber, Heschel (and others) Historical Axis: Biblical (Mikra) 5 Ancient Medieval Modern Cultural 6 Axis: 2 See the program of Jewish Studies at Purdue: 3 It's essentially impossible to differentiate between Jewish theology and Jewish philosophy. We only apply it for organizational purpose Anything created by human beings may be termed Culture. Therefore, this list is very limited. 2

3 Daily Life Practices Economics Knowledge Religion The Arts Grading Method Weekly Contribution to Class Blog: Preparing for class sessions includes a weekly writing assignment in which you will share your insights regarding (1) that week s readings (2) key questions which were discussed in the previous week (3) unique contribution inspired by your own life experience, other classes or other sources not available to other participants (4) reactions to other contributors (respectfully, please!) creating an ongoing discussion. Blog entries must be posted every Tuesday by 10:00 AM and handed in as a hard copy at the beginning of Tuesday class. 25% All written, handed in assignments, must be typed written in a font of 12 pts. and double spaced. Attendance 5% It is absolutely required that you attend all classes. Failure of attending class will result in your failure to understand the material, which will doom your successful completion of this class. Therefore, regular attendance is MANDATORY. Attendance is monitored at the beginning of each class; lateness (more than 10 minutes) and early departure both count as absence. A maximum of three unquestioned absences is allowed. Subsequent absences may be excused on the basis of legitimate, written documentation; undocumented absences result in reduction of the course grade. Assuming attendance to be 5% of a course grade worth 100 points, undocumented absences have the following point values: 0-3 absences = 5 points; 4-9 absences = 2.5 points; 10+ absences = 0 points. Midterm: Two hour evening exam: T/F, multiple choice and essay questions. 25% Research Paper: 8 pages; no more, no less. The paper will represent a detailed investigation into a topic of your choice that grows out of your involvement with the material studied. 25% (Proposal 5%, Paper 20%) By the first class of week six (6) you are to hand in a two pages research proposal on a subject of your interest. You will schedule to meet with one of the assistants for approval. The proposal will outline the following points: subject 3

4 rationale (why this subject?) thesis bibliography (you must use a minimum of 7 written sources) Due date: Second class of week 14. Comprehensive Final: T/F, multiple choice and essay questions. 20% Grades are recorded using the plus/minus option, as follows: A , A 94-96, A , B , B 84-86, B , C , C 74-76, C , D , D 64-66, D , F For more on grades and on the relation between plus/minus grades and GPA, see the updated University Regulations. No Incompletes or extensions are allowed for any reason. (You can always talk to me, but please don't hold your breath). Make-ups are allowed ONLY (a) with a signed medical excuse, AND (b) within three calendar days of the original test; you must ALSO (c) contact me either prior to or on the day of the exam to notify me of your absence. There are NO EXCEPTIONS to this rule. The penalty for missing the Final Exam is an "F" in the course. Cheating, plagiarism, and other forms of academic dishonesty as defined in the Purdue University Regulations are penalized with a grade of "F" in the course. While papers and tests will not be returned to you, you can arrange to see them by making appointments. Special Needs If you have disability-related needs that may affect your performance in class, please speak to me privately ASAP. Film Five film screenings will be scheduled for Tuesday 6:00-8:30 pm (Details TBA). One extra credit point will be given for every film screening attended. Required Books (Available at University Book Store) 7 Note: If you choose to get books from other bookstores try to get the correct editions. If you do have a book in different edition it is your responsibility to find out the exact pagination. All pagination refer to the following editions. Online course readings (to be found in the Class Schedule). 7 All books are on the reserve list in Hicks Library. 4

5 Leora Batnitzky, How Judaism Became A Religion, Princeton, 2011 Michael Brenner, A Short History of the Jews, Princeton, 2010 Joseph Dan, Kabbalah: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford, 2007 Norman Solomon, Judaism: A Very Short Introduction, Oxford, 2000 Yosef Haim Yerushalmi, Zakhor: Jewish History and Jewish Memory, University of Washington Press, 1982 Internet Required course materials must be downloaded from the course website, available via a link from the Blackboard homepage for this course. ALL linked texts are REQUIRED READING for the course. This means that you will be held accountable for them on all exams. Please make sure that you download and read them in advance of the class for which they are listed. You will also find maps, figures, key persons, major historical events and dates, study guides, and links to other material. The course schedule webpage may be updated with additional material during the semester, so please check it periodically. Class Schedule NOTE: In addition to the following readings for each class session you would also read Michael Brenner, A Short History of the Jews. Although the book will not be directly discussed in class I expect you to know its content. It is the backdrop on which we will pin, as it were, the rest of the readings and discussions. DATE DESCRIPTION REQUIRED Jan 14 Presentation & Orientation 8 8 The books listed represent a minute fraction of the vast literature available. 5

6 Jan 16 Jan 21 Constructing our Object Basic Concepts: Religion, Culture & Interpretation Constructing our Object Basic Concepts: Religion, Culture & Interpretation Norman Solomon, Judaism: A Very Short Introduction, NOTE: This is a very small book so don't get alarmed from the amount of pages; Shmueli, Seven Jewish Cultures, 1-64 Norman Solomon, Judaism: A Very Short Introduction, 1-135; Bourdieu, The Craft of Sociology, Part 2, Constructing the Object, 1991; Geertz, The Interpretation of Culture, 1977; Ricoeur, The Conflict of Interpretations, 2007 Bourdieu, Geertz,, Ricoeur Jan 23 The Book(s) 9 I: :(תנ"ך) Tanakh (תורה) Torah (נביאים) Nevi'im (כתובים) Ketuvim Shmueli, Seven Jewish Cultures 1-64 Coogen, The Old Testament : A Very Short Introduction. 10 Tanakh: The New JPS Translation According to the Traditional Hebrew Text, 1985; David M. Carr, The Formation of the Hebrew Bible: A New Reconstruction, 2011; Alan Levenson The Making of the Modern Jewish Bible: How Scholars in Germany, Israel, and America Transformed an Ancient Text, 2011; Seth D. Postell, Adam as Israel: Genesis 1-3 as the Introduction to the Torah and Tanakh, There are many other essential books like the Shulkhan Arukh, Mekhilta, The Siddur (Prayer book) etc. 10 The scare quotes around the word Old are my addition. As Martin Buber said somewhere there's nothing old about the old Testament. This is strictly a Christian description alluding to its unfortunate negative attitude towards Judaism. 6

7 Jan 28 Evening Film Screening The Book(s) II: Talmud = Mishna + Gemara (משנה, גמרא, תלמוד) Steinsaltz, The Essential Talmud, 3-9, ; Neusner, The Mishnah: An Introduction, 1-77, 37-39, Daniel Boyarin, Reading Sex in Talmudic Culture, 1993; David Weiss Halivni, The Formation of the Babylonian Talmud, 2013; Charlotte E. Fonrobert (Editor), Martin S. Jaffee (Editor), The Cambridge Companion to the Talmud and Rabbinic Literature, 2007; Norman Solomon, The Talmud: A Selection, 2009 Jan 30 On Midrash & Aggada (מדרש ואגדה) Heineman, The Nature of Aggada ; Kugel, Two Introductions to Midrash (Read pp , ) Hayyim Nahman Bialik, Book of Legends/Sefer Ha- Aggadah: Legends from the Talmud and Midrash, 1992; Shmuel Safrai, The Literature of the Sages, 2007; Ephraim E. Urbach, The Sages, 1975 Feb 4 On Midrash & Aggada (מדרש ואגדה) Heineman, The Nature of Aggada ; Kugel, Two Introductions to Midrash (Read pp , ) Hayyim Nahman Bialik, Book of Legends/Sefer Ha- Aggadah: Legends from the Talmud and Midrash, 1992 Shmuel Safrai, The Literature of the Sages, 2007; Selections Ephraim E. Urbach, The Sages,

8 Feb 6 The Book(s) III: :קבלה Kabbalah, On היכלות Hekhalot, Sefer Yetzirah, ספר יצירה The Book Bahhir, בהיר הזוהר Zohar, The Pardes Rimonim, פרדס רימונים Etz Hayim and the עץ Gates, Eight חיים ושמונה שערים Dan, Kabbalah, A Very Short Introduction, xi- 61, Gershom Scholem, On the Kabbalah and its Symbolism, 1996; Major Trends in Jewish Mysticism, 1995; The Messianic Idea in Judaism and other Essays, 1995; Origins of the Kabbalah, 1991 On the Mystical Shape of the Godhead: Basic Concepts in the Kabbalah, 1997 Feb 11 On Kabbalah Dan, Kabbalah, A Very Short Introduction, xi- 61, Feb 13 Evening Film Screening Feb 18 On Kabbalah Song of Songs as Paradigm of Cultural Change Dan, Kabbalah, A Very Short Introduction, xi- 61, Tanakh, Song of Songs; Shmueli, The Song of Songs: The World's First Great Love Poem, Ariel Bloch and Chana Bloch (Translators), 2006; Levi ben Gershom, (Gersonides), Commentary on Song of Songs, 1998 Feb 20 The Commandments (Mitzvot) Shmueli, ; Yeshayahu Leibowitz, Judaism, Human Values, and the Jewish State,

9 Feb 25 Feb 27 The Commandments (Mitzvot) Memory, History, Knowledge Shmueli, ; Yeshayahu Leibowitz, Judaism, Human Values, and the Jewish State, 3-29 Shmueli, Gersion Appel, A Philosophy of Mitzvot, 2008 Yeshayahu Leibowitz, Judaism, Human Values, and the Jewish State, 1995 Accepting the Yoke of Heaven: Commentary on the Weekly Torah Portion, 2006 Saul Friedlander, When Memory Comes, 2003; Maurice Halbwachs, On Collective Memory, 1992; Art Spiegelman, Maus I: A Survivor's Tale: My Father Bleeds History & II: A Survivor's Tale: And Here My Troubles Began, 1986 James E. Young, The Texture of Memory: Holocaust Memorials and Meaning, 1994 Mar 4 Evening Film Screening Memory, History, Knowledge Yerushalmi, 1-52 Saul Friedlander, When Memory Comes, 2003; Maurice Halbwachs, On Collective Memory, 1992; Art Spiegelman, Maus I: A Survivor's Tale: My Father Bleeds History & II: A Survivor's Tale: And Here My Troubles Began, 1986 James E. Young, The Texture of Memory: Holocaust Memorials and Meaning,

10 Mar 6 Memory, History, Knowledge Yerushalmi, Mar 11 No Class No Class No Class Mar 13 Review Midterm Review Midterm Review Midterm Mar 13 Midterm Evening Exam Midterm Evening Exam Midterm Evening Exam Mar Spring Break Spring Break Spring Break Mar 25 Jewish Philosophy: Maimonides & Spinoza Selected Excerpts Daniel H. Frank (Editor), Oliver Leaman (Editor), The Cambridge Companion to Medieval Jewish Philosophy, 2003 Joshua Parens, Maimonides and Spinoza: Their Conflicting Views of Human Nature, 2012 Kenneth Seeskin, The Cambridge Companion to Maimonides, 2005 Leo Strauss, Leo Strauss on Maimonides: The Complete Writings,

11 Mar 27 Jewish Philosophy: Maimonides & Spinoza Selected Excerpts Daniel H. Frank (Editor), Oliver Leaman (Editor), The Cambridge Companion to Medieval Jewish Philosophy, 2003 Joshua Parens, Maimonides and Spinoza: Their Conflicting Views of Human Nature, 2012 Kenneth Seeskin, The Cambridge Companion to Maimonides, 2005 Leo Strauss, Leo Strauss on Maimonides: The Complete Writings, 2013 Apr 1 Evening Film Screening Jewish Philosophy: Mendelssohn Selected Excerpts; Batnitzky, How Judaism Became A Religion, 1-31, Micha Gottleib, Faith and Freedom: Moses Mendelssohn's Theological- Political Thought, 2011 Shmuel Feiner, Moses Mendelssohn: Sage of Modernity, 2010 Apr 3 Jewish Philosophy: Buber Selected Excerpts; Batnitzky, Martin Buber: I-Thou, 1971 Eclipse of God, 1977 Mamre: Essays in Religion, 1970 Tales of Hasidism,

12 Apr 8 Antisemitism Arendt, The Origins of Totalitarianism, Raul Hilberg, The Destruction of the European Jews, 3 vols. 1985; Apr 10 Evening Film Screening Antisemitism Arendt, Horkheimer and Adorno, Dialectics of Enlightenment, 2007; Leon Poliakov, The History of Anti-Semitism, 4 vols. 2003; Jean Paul Sartre, Anti-Semite and Jew, 1948 Apr 15 Jewish Religion after the Holocaust Jonas, The Concept of God after Auschwitz: A Jewish Voice ; Kolitz, Yossel Rakover Speaks to God Levinas, "To Love The Torah More Than God" Eliezer Berkovits, Faith After the Holocaust, 1977; Yoram Kaniuk, Adam Resurrected: A Novel, 1990; Richard L. Rubenstein After Auschwitz: History, Theology, and Contemporary Judaism, 1992 Apr 17 Jewish Religion after the Holocaust Jonas, The Concept of God after Auschwitz: A Jewish Voice ; Kolitz, Yossel Rakover Speaks to God; Levinas, "To Love The Torah More Than God" Batnitzky, Eliezer Berkovits, Faith After the Holocaust, 1977; Yoram Kaniuk, Adam Resurrected: A Novel, 1990; Richard L. Rubenstein After Auschwitz: History, Theology, and Contemporary Judaism,

13 Apr 22 Jewish Religion after the Holocaust Jonas, The Concept of God after Auschwitz: A Jewish Voice ; Kolitz, Yossel Rakover Speaks to God; Levinas, "To Love The Torah More Than God" Batnitzky, Apr 24 On Jewish Humor Wisse, No Joke: Making Jewish Humor, 1-58 Eliezer Berkovits, Faith After the Holocaust, 1977; Yoram Kaniuk, Adam Resurrected: A Novel, 1990; Richard L. Rubenstein After Auschwitz: History, Theology, and Contemporary Judaism, 1992 Henri Bergson, Laughter: An Essay on the Meaning of the Comic, 1956; Simon Critchley, On Humor, 2002; Apr 29 On Jewish Humor Wisse, No Joke: Making Jewish Humor, , Sigmund Freud, Jokes and Their Relation to the Unconscious, 1990 Henri Bergson, Laughter: An Essay on the Meaning of the Comic, 1956; May 1 Last Class Review Simon Critchley, On Humor, 2002; Sigmund Freud, Jokes and Their Relation to the Unconscious, 1990 TBA Final Exam Final Exam Final Exam 13