JST 318U / HST 318U | Jewish History II: From the Middle Ages to the Present
INSTRUCTOR: Professor Natan Meir
MODE: Hybrid (In-person and online)
TIME/DAY(S): Thursdays, 2:00 - 3:50 p.m. and online (asynchronous)
LOCATION:  WEB & FAB48 (Fourth Avenue Building) | CRN: 41740 / 45090

How do you tell the story of a people dispersed over much of the world with no obvious political, economic, or military history? Dive into a rich world of religious, cultural, and social developments, and understand how a tiny minority not only survived centuries of sometimes hostile environments but even found places for incredible flourishing and creativity. This survey of Jewish history explores (among many other topics) Jewish-Muslim-Christian relations in the “Golden Age” of medieval Spain, medieval Jewish philosophy, the Crusader massacres of German Jewish communities, the many factors leading to the expulsions of Jews from Spain and other western European countries, the rich and flourishing Jewish cultures that emerged in Eastern Europe and the Ottoman Empire, the struggle for equal rights in 19th-century Europe, intercontinental migrations on a massive scale, the emergence of a Jewish community in the U.S., the Holocaust, and the establishment of the State of Israel. Prepare to be surprised by: homoerotic Hebrew poetry in the Middle Ages… an antisemitic cartoon from medieval England… a Renaissance-era Jewish messianic figure who converted to Islam… anarchist balls on Yom Kippur… Stalinist Yiddish poetry… and much more.

This class is the second in a two term introduction to the study of Jewish history, religion and culture (no prerequisites are required).

University Studies cluster: Interpreting the Past

JST 324U | Historical Introduction to the Hebrew Bible - CANCELLED WINTER TERM
INSTRUCTOR: Professor Loren Spielman
MODE: Remote - Scheduled
TIME/DAY(S): Monday/Wednesday/Friday, 10:15 a.m. - 11:20 a.m.
CRN: 41741 

Curious about the Hebrew Bible/Old Testament? Where does it come from and what does it contain? What historical information can be learned from the Biblical stories of Abraham, Moses, David and Solomon?  This course investigates these issues while surveying the contents of the Hebrew Bible, also known as the Old Testament.  We will examine some of the more famous stories in the Hebrew Bible in an academic environment with special attention to its literary and historical developments.  We will examine the connections between the Hebrew Bible and contemporary Ancient Near Eastern literature and compare their different world views.  We will also discuss the various sources and traditions of Israelite religion and engage with Biblical ideas about community, sanctity, social justice, prophesy, wisdom, and the nature of human suffering.

University Studies cluster: Interpreting the Past.

JST 378U / HST 378U | Pagans, Christians and Jews
INSTRUCTOR: Professor Loren Spielman
LOCATION: FMH B129 (Fariborz Maseeh Hall)
TIME/DAY(S): Tuesdays & Thursdays, 10:00 a.m. - 11:50 a.m.
CRN: 41742 / 45086

After Emperor Constantine’s conversion to Christianity in the 4th century CE, the Roman Empire underwent radical changes. Pagan sacrifice was outlawed, temples were closed, and new churches were built in every town, city and village. Heretics and Jews were forbidden from holding public office and owning Christian slaves. In this course, we will examine the story of the Christianization of the Roman empire from the mid-third century, when Christianity was still a small, largely insignificant movement, Judaism was reeling from the loss of its central temple, while shrines devoted to Isis, Mithras, and the traditional gods of the Greco-Roman pantheon dominated the landscape. By reading some of the ancient literature from late antiquity -- inscriptions and prayers, tales of martyrdom, stories about holy men and women, and the sayings of esoteric philosophers -- we will explore the changes that occurred as the Roman empire officially embraced and promoted the Christian faith.

Fulfills an elective requirement for the Classical Studies minor.

Fulfills University Studies cluster requirement: Interpreting the Past.

FILM 384U | Topics in American Cinema and Culture: American Divorce Films
INSTRUCTOR: Professor Michael Weingrad
DAY(S)/TIME(S): Mondays & Wednesdays, 4:00 p.m. - 5:50 p.m.
LOCATION: LH331 (LINCOLN HALL) | CRN: 44733

Divorce has been an important subject in American film from the Silent Era to the present, reflecting shifting attitudes toward courtship and marriage, gender and class, liberty and responsibility. Looking at the production, reception, and literary sources of over a dozen American films, we will consider divorce as comedy, as tragedy, and as gauge of American anxieties and aspirations. Particular topics will include the “comedy of remarriage” in films of the 1930s and 40s, divorce and American Jews, the impact of the 1960s counterculture, and how and when the concern for children is treated. Films include The Divorcee (1930), Dodsworth (1936), The Women (1939), Palm Beach Story (1942), Petulia (1968), The Heartbreak Kid (1972), Blume in Love (1973), Hester Street (1975), An Unmarried Woman (1978), Kramer vs. Kramer (1979), The Squid and the Whale (2005), and Marriage Story (2019). Readings include Henry James, What Maisie Knew; C. S. Lewis, The Four Loves; and Stephen Sondheim and George Furth, Company.

University Studies clusters: American Identities and Examining Popular Culture

This course fulfills the BA Fine and Performing Arts requirement
 

FILM course fees:  Students and auditors taking any film course will be charged a $45.00 fee.  This is a fee that the Film department applies to all of their courses. 

HST 461/561 Topics In Jewish History: Dance
INSTRUCTOR: Professor Nina Spiegel
MODE: Remote - Scheduled (synchronous with asynchronous components)
TIME/DAY(S): Thursdays 12:00pm - 1:50pm
CRN: 45080 / 45081

Dance has played an important role in Jewish religious and cultural life over the ages. This course will use dance as a window into exploring ways in which Jewish culture has developed in different regions and the variety and diversity of Jewish life. Looking at Jewish dance around the world offers a unique avenue for deepening understanding of Jewish culture, religion, and society and engaging in comparative and transnational history.  The course will focus on the twentieth century and cover Jewish dance traditions in Europe, the Middle East and Africa as well as a range of contemporary dances in the United States and Israel. We will cover everyday dances as well as dances performed on stage. Our sources will include photography, film, first hand accounts by dancers and choreographers, and scholarly interpretations.  No previous coursework in Jewish studies or dance history is required: the course will provide an introduction to the topic and to how to view and approach dance as a window into culture.  We will meet synchronously on zoom on Thursdays from 12-1:50 and there will be additional instructional asynchronous components (such as film viewing) available on Canvas. 

This course counts toward the theater major in the College of the Arts.

No prerequisites are required.