Fall 2009 Course Listing Updated April 20th Visit the MESP website for more information regarding certificate requirements: (http://mideast.wisc.edu/certificate/) Core Course: Languages and Cultures of Asia 266: Intro to the Modern Middle East An introductory survey to the politics, history, and culture of the modern Middle East. 3 credits; Jennifer Loewenstein Courses Fulfilling the History and Social Science Requirement: Jewish Studies 665/ Political Science 665: Israeli Politics and Society Course provides historical and analytical understanding of Israeli internal political life and institutions. Attention will be paid to political culture, coalition formation and ethnic politics as they are manifested in Israeli politics. The effect of regional conflict upon Israel's domestic politics will also be considered. 4 credits; Nadev Shelef Courses Fulfilling the Religion and Culture Requirement: and Semitic Studies 211/ Jewish Studies 211/ Religious Studies 211: Introduction to Judaism General introduction to Judaism covering the biblical, classical rabbinic, medieval, and modern periods. 4 credits; Jordan Rosenblum Religious Studies 271: Religion in History and Culture: The West An interdepartmental, multidisciplinary survey of the major religious traditions of prehistory; the ancient near east; the ancient Mediterranean; biblical, post-biblical and contemporary Judaism; Christianity; Islam; and selected topics for comparativehistorical study. 3 credits; Ulrich Rosenhagen and Semitics Studies 343/ Jewish Studies 367/ Literature in Translation 367: Israeli Fiction in Translation Major writers, trends and themes in Israeli fiction from pre-state period to present. 3 credits; Miriam Talmon Bohm Courses Counting Towards the Language Requirement:
African Languages and Literature 321/ Languages and Cultures of Asia 321: First Semester Arabic An important Afro-Asiatic language; description, drills, reading, speaking. 5 credits for undergrads (4 credits during summer only); TBA and Semitic Studies 101: First Semester Modern For students with little or no previous knowledge of. Basic communication skills; speaking, reading, writing modern ; elements of grammar and syntax. 4 credits; Bilha Mirkin and Haya Yuchtman and Semitic Studies 103: First Semester Biblical Introduction to the language of the Bible. Serves as basis for later forms of classical. and Semitic Studies 303: First Semester Biblical Introduction to the language of the Bible. Serves as basis for later forms of classical. Meets with 103. Languages and Cultures of Asia 339: First Semester Turkish Proficiency at the elementary level in listening, speaking, reading and writing, using Languages and Cultures of Asia 363: First Semester Persian Proficiency at the elementary level in listening, speaking, reading and writing, using Elective Courses: and Semitic Studies 217/Jewish Studies 227/ Literature in Translation 227/ Religious Studies 227: Intro to Biblical Literature Introduction to the literature and literary history of the Old Testament, Apocrypha, Dead Sea Scrolls, Talmud, and Midrashim. 4 credits; Ronald Troxel History 220/Jewish Studies 220: Intro to Modern Jewish History The history of the Jews in selected parts of the world since the 17th century. Particular attention will be paid to the fact that this is the history of a minority group whose life unfolds in relationship to a larger society. 4 credits; David Sorkin and Semitics Studies 241: Intro to Biblic al Archeology
An overview of archaeology and its relationship to understanding the biblical world. 4 credits; Jeffrey Blakely Jewish Studies 258/ Sociology 258: Jews, State, and Citizenship Introduction to historical sociology of citizenship through a comparative investigation of Jewish emancipation in nineteenth-century Europe, including social origins of emancipation, its consequences for the social organization and collective identity of Jews, and Jewish responses to emancipation. 3 credits; Chad Goldberg Languages and Cultures of Asia 279: Introduction to Turkish Folk Literature Survey of major genres of Turkish folk literature including oral epic, heroic and romance tales of minstrels, mystical love poetry, fairy tales, dervish tales, legends, riddles, proverbs, and jokes with emphasis on performance contexts and crosscultural perspectives. 3 credits/ Sarah Atis History 313/Medieval Studies 313: Intro to Byzantine History and Civilization Topical consideration of the entire scope of the history of the Byzantine Empire, from the fourth to the fifteenth centuries, and selected aspects of its culture. 3-4 credits/ TBA Languages and Cultures of Asia 314/Literature in Translation 214: Literature of Central Asia Critical survey of the development of medieval and modern literatures of the peoples of Central Asia from pre-islamic times to the present with selected readings in English translation. 3 credits/ Uli Schamiloglu NEW: and Semitics Studies 371/ Jewish Studies 371 Topics in Jewish Civilization: The Holocaust and Israeli Cinema Note: Lecture 3 only 3 credits; Miriam Talmon Bohm Studies 368/History 368/Jewish Studies 368/Medieval Studies 368/ Religious Studies 368 : The Bible in the Middle Ages Medieval Bible and its shaping effect on medieval culture. and Semitic Studies 401/ Jewish Studies 401: Survey of Modern Literature Readings in literature, class conducted in. 3 credits/ Rachel Brenner Jewish Studies 435/ Philosophy 435: Jewish Philosophy: Antiquity to 17 th century
A survey of major philosophers and philosophical currents within Judaism from antiquity through the seventeenth century. 3 credits/ Steven Nadler and Semitics Studies 513/ Jewish Studies 513: Biblical Texts and Poetry Critical reading of selected texts from the Minor Prophets and the Writings. Classics 515/History 368/Religious Studies 517: Religions of the Ancient Mediterranean Ancient religions in their political, social and cultural contexts; topics include ritual, literary and artistic representations, religious persecutions, and/or modern approaches to the study of ancient religions. Chronological and geographical focus will vary between Greece, Rome, Judaea and Egypt. and Semitic Studies 533/ Jewish Studies 533: Readings in Contemporary Literature 3 credits/ Philip Hollander Jewish Studies 625: Holocaust: Facts and Trials The background to the Holocaust, its implementation, the efforts to impose the criminal law on its perpetrators and the points of interaction between the Holocaust and U.S. policy. 3 credits/ Frank Tuerkheimer and Semitic Studies 653: Wisdom Literature: Proverbs and Qohelet Philological and literary study selections from the text of Proverbs, Qohelet, and other works. Readings in the ancient translations. Advanced Languages Courses (maximum 3 credits may go towards elective credits) and Semitics Studies 301: Intro to Literature Selected works for different periods and genres; class discussions in. 3 credits/ Philip Hollander African Languages and Literature 445/ Languages and Cultures of Asia 445: Advanced Readings in Arabic Texts Selection from Quranic and post-quranic Arabic texts to meet the needs of the students. 3 credits/ Dustin Cowell Languages and Cultures of Asia 539: Fifth Semester Turkish and Azeri Proficiency at the advanced level in listening, speaking, reading and writing, using
3 credits/ TBA Languages and Cultures of Asia 563: Fifth Semester Persian Proficiency at the advanced level in listening, speaking, reading and writing, using 3 credits/ TBA and Semitic Studies 605: Syriac I Syriac grammar and reading.