History 265 /Religious Studies 365 Spring 2007
JEWISH HISTORY
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David Itzkowitz:
Office Hours: Monday 2-3:30, Tuesday 10-12. Other times by appointment
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In
this course we will be examining selected themes in the history of the Jewish
people in Europe,
BOOK
LIST:
There
is no required textbook for this course.
H.H. Ben-Sasson, ed., A History of the Jewish People is a massive (1170 pp.)
multi-authored treatment of the whole of Jewish history from pre-Biblical times
to the present. There is a long section
dealing with the period that we will be covering. If you want the security of a general work,
this is about as good as they get. There
may be an occasional assignment in the text, but no one ought to feel compelled
to buy it. There are multiple copies in
the library.
Required Books:
Jenna
Weissman Joselit, The Wonders of
Lucy
Dawidowicz, The
War Against the Jews
Amos
Oz, In the
David
Biale, et.al., eds., Insider/Outsider: American Jews and
Multiculturalism
There
will also be additional readings assigned.
We will view some films and may listen to some guest lecturers.
BUREAUCRATIC
EXPECTATIONS:
We
will meet three times per week for lecture and discussion. Attendance is expected. It is also expected (and assumed) that the
reading, which may be considerable, will be done on time. Falling behind is probably not the best way
to go.
Each
student will be expected to write a brief reaction paper (of no more than 500
words) on four (4) of the assigned readings.
These papers should summarize the thesis or theses of the reading(s),
describe the larger issue that underlies the reading(s) and suggest a question
for class discussion. These papers are due, in class on the Wednesday of
the week that the reading is due.
Each
student will take two one-hour examinations, scheduled for February 23 and
April 9, and write a paper of ca. 2500-3000 words on a topic of interest to
them that is related to the themes of the course. The paper is due no later than the final
class meeting on April 30. In addition,
each student will make a short class presentation of some aspect of their
paper. Each student must meet with me to
discuss their paper topic no later than March 19. I will, of course, be happy to suggest
topics. Students may, if they wish,
substitute a paper for one or more of the examinations. Anyone wishing to
exercise this option must consult with me at least two weeks before the scheduled
examination date. Grades for the
course will be based on written work but may be adjusted to account for class participation All
written work must be completed in order to pass the course.
Reasonable
accommodations will be provided for students with physical, sensory, cognitive,
learning, and psychological disabilities.
Please contact the Disability Services Office located at Macalester
Health Services, 696-6275, to discuss accessing acommodations.
IN
NO CASE OTHER THAN A REAL EMERGENCY WILL AN INCOMPLETE BE GRANTED IN THIS
COURSE.
THIS SCHEDUE, LIKE ALL
OTHER THINGS IN THE WORLD, IS SUBJECT TO SUDDEN AND RADICAL CHANGE
SCHEDULE
WEEK
OF TOPICS READING
January
22 & 29 Introduction Memoirs of Gluckel of
Pre-emancipation
Jewish Life Talmud
Tsene Ur’ena
For Friday, February 2, read Pierre Birnbaum and Ira Katznelson,
“Emancipation and the Liberal Offer.”
February 5 Emancipation (1) Pierre Birnbaum, “Between
Social
and Political
Assimilation: Remarks on the
History of Jews in
David Itzkowitz, “The
Jews
of
Religious Freedom”
David Itzkowitz,
“Cultural
Pluralism and the Board
of
Deputies of British
Jews”
Other reading tbd
WEEK
OF TOPICS READING
Life (II) “The East” “Russian Jewry, the Russian
State, and the Dynamics of
Jewish Emancipation
Eli Lederhendler,
“Modernity
Without Emancipation or
Assimilation? The Case of
Russian Jewry”
Image
Before My Eyes
(film)
February
26 Is
(I)
Life in
March 5 Is
(II) Zionism Revolution”
Theodore Herzl “The Jewish
State”
Steven Zipperstein, “Ahad
Ha’am and the Politics of
Assimilation”
March
19 Holocaust (6) Dawidowicz,
War Against
the
Jews
March 26 Palestine/Israel:
1948, (7) Oz,
1967
and its
Aftermath
April 2 Contemporary
Issues tba (no class mtg, April 6, Good Friday—I’ll let you think about the
irony of this fact in the context of this course)
WEEK OF TOPICS READING
April 16 Student
Reports
April 23 Student
Reports
April
30 LAST DAY OF CLASS