Study Center in Prague, Czech Republic Course Title: History of Jews in Bohemia and Central Europe Course Code: RELI 3002 PRAG Programs offering course: CES, CNMJ Language of instruction: English U.S. Semester Credits: 3 Contact Hours: 45 Term: Spring 2017 Course Description This course examines the Jewish experience in the Czech lands and the other countries of Central Europe. It touches upon the history of Jews in Russia, in addition to Central Europe, since Russia shares some commonalities with the history of Jews in Poland and the Czech Lands. The course will be of interest to History and/or Jewish or Religious studies students, as well as those who want to learn about the history of the Jewish people in the heart of Europe. It is of interest to US students in particular, as one of the largest Jewish communities worldwide lives in the United States and most North American Jews are of Central or Eastern European decent. The History of Jews in Central Europe is not only a story of prejudice and contempt, but also a story of hope and suffering which culminates in the worst tragedy of the Jewish people in history, the Holocaust. However, the issue of the Holocaust is not principal in this course. This course aims at providing students insights into this most flourishing center of Jewish life of Prague and Central Europe. Students will gain a great deal from excursions to Prague's Jewish Quarter with its famous Jewish cemetery, and to the new Jewish cemetery where Franz Kafka is buried. Further, students will participate in the full day class excursion to Terezín, the only concentration/transit camp on the territory of the Czech Republic. In addition, students will participate in a trip to Moravia including a required visit to the ghetto town of Třebíč to view the historical ghetto structures and restored synagogues. This course encourages students to Judeo - Christian dialogue. The course will deal partly with some Jewish philosophical ideas and practices, but is not a course in the Jewish Religion. Learning Objectives By the end of the course the student will: Be able to orient him/herself in modern European Jewish history in Central Europe. Understand and be able to describe the Jewish experience in the Czech lands and in Prague. Understand and be able to describe the Jewish experience in the Czech lands and in Prague, a great center of Jewish life until the rise of Hitler. Demonstrate with in-depth examples the coexistence of the Jewish population within the nations of Central Europe. Gain in-depth understanding of and be able to illustrate the experiences and the way of life in Jewish centers before and during the Holocaust. The Post-Holocaust will be discussed only briefly. Gain an understanding of the Jewish traditional commitment to "stewardship" of the environment and the role the Jewish condition has played in Jewish environmental concerns past present and future. 1
Course Prerequisites A student should have a curiosity and desire to explore Jewish History in Prague and Central Europe using the on-site opportunity to explore real sites and locations and "walk" where this history took place. Methods of Instruction We will use both lecture and seminar/ discussion formats with students presenting reading insights. A number of outclasses will take us to pertinent sites of Jewish History in Prague and two required trips out of Prague will take us to Lidice and Terezín, both sights of Nazi atrocity, in addition we will travel to Třebíč the last remaining Ghetto of the Middle ages. Speakers will relate personal experiences of recent Jewish History. Course Requirements Class Attendance and Participation Attendance is mandatory and unexcused absences, missed "out classes "and field trips (unless all properly "made-up") will be reflected in the final grade. Missed out classes, guest speakers, and required trips will also be reflected in a reduction of the participation portion of the grade as determined by the professor. "Out Classes" These are important and required part of the course and instructional material (any missed out- classes or excursions require a demonstrated learning and self-exploration of the sites in make up, parameters of which are determined by the professor). Failure to "make-up" missed out class will be reflected in lowering of semester grade. Field Trips This course requires Participation in a minimum of 2 field trips related to the course by sights visited and topics explored (Třebíč trip (required academic trip) & Terezín (professor required trip with class or other center class on a different date with approval of Professor)) is required. A 1 to 2 page written report will be expected and required. Missing a required trip will be reflected in lowering of semester grade. Other alternatives must be discussed and approved by Professor and will include a site visit and academic research) Guest Lectures Attendance of guest lectures elaborating on the course material are required, and a short written responses to these speakers are required. Preparation Every student will use a Course Reader available in the CIEE library or memory stick at the beginning of the semester and is required to read the assigned readings from the Reader and/or other materials before each class, as per the syllabus. Several quizzes (unannounced) on reading material will be given. Writing Assignments Students choose topic of interest and research area well in advance (feel free to consult sources as you prepare your research). Students will be informed 3 weeks in advance of delivery deadline what are the professors' expectations for essays 2
MIDTERM: The student will write a 6 page research essay on Jewish history in the midterm. FINAL: The student will write a 10 page final analytical/comparative research essay to be presented to the class as a FINAL graded presentation for discussion and should reflect knowledge of research and conclusions. Length of Paper- determined by full pages (note difference in paper length from US) of text not including footnotes and using a reasonable font size. Non fulfilment of the requirement will be reflected in the grade. Research Papers It is hoped the student will profit from available libraries, not only at CIEE, but also at other facilities in Prague - The Jewish Museum, The National Library, Charles University Library and will write an essay of historicity combined with his or her own analysis, comparison and evaluation of the historical facts, as for example: persecution, racism, violence. This paper should reflect serious academic work and not simply downloading of web-sites!!! Careful research and reference footnoting must be done. You must use at least two primary sources (books or articles-not web quotes). You are required in your footnotes to indicate primary academic sources and where you have located these sources in Prague. Examinations Midterm: test will be an in-class definition & short answer test over the lecture and reading material covered in class and out-class excursions. Final presentation will be an in-class academic presentation/defense of the research topic. Students briefly present their research findings and explain and defend their conclusions. Student are welcome to do power-point, video or any other creative vehicle Presentations For each class there will be one student in charge of presenting the main points from the assigned reading and leading a class discussion of the covered topic. Outlines, power-point etc. are welcome. These presentations are graded, as well. Travel Input Students tend to travel to other European locations during their overseas study experience. With the input of the Professor, Jewish highlights and historical locales can be explored using guiding questions leading to significant sights and contacts within local communities to expand on a student's contact with the European Jewish Experience. Extra credit can be obtained by submitting visit reports, making class presentations and/or responding to guiding questions provided by the Professor. Destinations should be discussed with the Professor prior to travel. Assessment and Final Grade Midterm essay 15 % Midterm test 15 % Final essay 25 % Final presentation 10 % Class attendance and participation 35% (demonstrated through graded reading presentations, quizzes, discussion participation, field trip attendance & report, out class contribution, and guest speaker reports and classes attended) 3
CIEE Prague Attendance Policy At CIEE, professors record attendance online, and CIEE staff takes care of any possible excuses from absences. Professors do not excuse absences. An absence can be excused only for medical reasons or other extraordinary situations. If a student is sick, s/he must visit a doctor on the day that s/he is sick and get an official note from the doctor. For help to see a doctor, see the Student Handbook and/or ask CIEE Prague staff. The student then submits that note to the CIEE Academic Department to get the absence excused. For other extraordinary situations, the student must contact the Academic Department to request an excuse. Students get three allowed unexcused absences for each course for the whole semester program. This assumes a course schedule of two 90-minute meetings per week, so if the course meets in one longer block, missing the class constitutes two absences. These allowed unexcused absences should be used for situations such as when one does not want to bother to see a doctor or has some personal situation that prevents the student from attending class. Allowed unexcused absences should not be used in a planned way for travel or other extracurricular events. If a student has 4 unexcused absences, the semester grade will be lowered by 5 points (on a 100-point scale). For 5 unexcused absences, the grade is lowered by 10 points. Students with 6 or more unexcused absences will automatically fail the course. This is a CIEE rule that applies to all CIEE courses and is in line with the Participant Contract that each CIEE student signs before arriving on site. CIEE staff regularly updates the Moodle attendance for each course. Students can and should check their attendance on the Moodle course sites throughout the semester to make sure it is correct. Students with excessive absences will be notified and the student s study abroad advisor will also be notified. CIEE Academic Honesty Statement Presenting work of another person as one s own, failure to acknowledge all sources used, using unauthorized assistance on exams, submitting the same paper in two classes, or submitting work one has already received credit for at another institution in order to fulfill CIEE course requirements is not tolerated. The penalty ranges from failure on the assignment to dismissal from the program. The Academic Director should be consulted and involved in decision making in every case of a possible violation of academic honesty. 4
Weekly Schedule Week 1 Jewish experience in Czech Lands - caution`s progress: enlightenment and tradition in Jewish Prague,1780-1830; the social vision of Bohemian Jews, intellectuals and community in the 1840s; Czech landscape, Habsburg crown, the Jews of Bohemia and Moravia to 1918 Required reading:. Hillel J. Kieval LANGUAGES OF COMMUNITY, THE JEWISH EXPERIENCE IN THE CZECH LANDS, University of California Press, Los Angeles 2000, pages 1-65. Rybar Ctibor - JEWISH PRAGUE, p 1-69 (reference for out trips) Week 2 East European Jewry as a cultural pattern of life in Eastern Europe; the catastrophe of 1648; the consequences of the catastrophe; the Kabbala; the messiah in Poland: Shabbtai Zwi and Jakob Frank; the popular piety of Hasidism; the origins of the Eastern European Jews; contacts between Jews and Non-Jews; the symbiosis diminishes; Jews in the Partitions of Poland; the reaction of the Jews to the new political, intellectual, and religious conditions; the Tsarist empire and the Jews; East European Jews outside Tsarist rule Required reading:. Heiko Haumann- A HISTORY OF EAST EUROPEAN JEWS, CEU Press, Budapest, New York, 2002- pages 33-91 All following readings are from.... Howard M. Sachar - THE COURSE OF MODERN JEWISH HISTORY, new revised edition, Vintage Week 3 Emancipation in the West - French Revolution and the background of Jewish emancipation; Jewish emancipation; Napoleon Bonaparte and the Jews; the Sanhedrin - and its price; the ghettos fall in Europe; [pages 38-60] special attention and discussion will be aimed at understanding the role of emancipation in the Jewish role in environmental preservation and concern. Week 4 The triumph of liberalism - the conservative return; the congress of Vienna and Germany; liberalism and the Jews; 1848 - the watershed; emancipation is completed [pages 94-118]. Declaration of mid-term essay topic (preapproved by Professor) and brief synopsis and sources due (entered into CIEE website) 5
Week 5 Week 6 Midterm Exam Week Jewish economic life and the Frankfort Tradition - the impact of the industrial revolution; the Jews and the rise of investment capitalism; the house of Rothschild; the Frankfurt tradition - internationalization, addiction to authority, intercession from above The decline of the Frankfurt tradition. [pages 120-144]. - review and "catch-up" - MIDTERM EXAM AND MIDTERM ESSAY DUE Week 7 Week 8 Week 9. Beginning of the end of Russian Jewry - the perversion of Slavophilism; the may laws; the revolutionary epoch; Romania - "Latin island" [pages 277-302]. The rise of Zionism - parliamentary maneuvers; the great crisis; Palestine before the first world war; [pages 303-331 ] the idea of nationalism; the idea of Palestine.; the rise of Zionism; Theodor Herzl; diplomatic and other efforts.. The Jews of Eastern Europe between the wars - Russia - the trauma of "collectivization;" the dissolution of Jewish community life; the struggle for minority rights in Eastern Europe; Poland: successor - state nationalism; the rise of Polish fascism; Romania and her Jews; Hungary and her Jews and revisionist nationalism. Czechoslovakia - the only land of liberty for the Jews between the wars. [pages 414-439). - Declaration of Final Essay topic & brief synopsis due (into CIEE library register/preapproval by Professor required The Onslaught of Nazism - The heritage of defeat. Adolf Hitler and the rise of National Socialism. Nazi Anti - Semitism. The anti - Semitic program in action The last days of Austrian and Czech Jewry. [pages 504-528]. Week 10 The birth of Israel - the war and its consequences; the British hold firm; Jewish "Illegals" the state of Israel as a direct answer to persecution of the Jews and the "final solution of Adolf Hitler " The UN partition plan. Ben - Gurion creates a state. [pages- 557-591] Week 11 Europe in the postwar - communism and Stalinism`s impact on Jews in Eastern Europe; Soviet Union - failed utopia; France - a vision of Gallicism reappraised; Great Britain - the joy of blandness. Required reading:. Situation in Europe in postwar. [pages 594-662] Week 12 Final Exam Week catch up and summation First Final Presentations and Papers due Final Presentation Days 6
Bibliography Howard M Sachar - Course of Modern Jewish History - Vintage books, New York, 1990. Heiko Haumann - A History of East European Jews - CEU, Budapest, New York, 2002. Hillel J. Kieval - Languages of Community - The Jewish Experience in the Czech Lands - University of California Press, Los Angeles, 2000. Rybar Ctibor - Jewish Prague. Prague: Akropolis, 1991 (available in Library/not in Readerreference for out trips material) Haim Hillel Ben Sasson - The History of the Jewish People from the Oldest Age up to the Present Time - Harvard University Press, Cambridge, 1999. Gerschom Scholem - Major Trends in Jewish Mysticism - Schocken Books, New York, 1990. Ariel - the Israel revue for art, history and science - two volumes. Selected articles.. Betty Rojtman - Black Fire on White Fire - University of California Press, Los Angeles, 1998. James Carroll- Constantine's Sword- The Church and the Jews- Houghton Mifflin Company Boston New York 2001. 7