Courses
SEMETER A
In Heaven and On Earth: The History of Religion and Economics
Dr. Yaron Cohen- Tzemach
0609-1200-01
Render unto Caesar the things that are Caesar’s, and unto God the things that are God’s.” This call from the gospels has echoed for the past two millennia throughout the Western world, shaping the division of daily life into the spiritual and material worlds. However, religious practice and belief lead to economic behaviors, while economic decisions and considerations drive and encourage religious rituals. This workshop aims to reexamine various manifestations of the interconnectedness of religion and economics in various cultural and historical settings. The workshop is divided into two parts. The first focuses on the foundational questions about the terms “religion” and “economy.” The second part offers a cross-section of the relationship between those terms throughout history, from the ancient world to the present.
Mythology today
Dr. Jeremy Fogel
0609-1201-01
The French theorist Roland Barthes argued that modern myths are presented as "necessary" or "natural" even though they are entirely historical, cultural, and political. This insight served as the basis for his influential analysis of myths in modern culture, whether the apparent centrality of red wine to French national identity or the theatricality of professional wrestling. Barth aspired to carry out a de-naturalization that dismantled the myth into cultural forces that promoted it for their own purposes.
Following Barth's example, and in the spirit of the critical thought that his analysis reflects, this course will explore mythologies in our contemporary culture that are presented as necessary or natural, even though they are in fact arbitrary cultural and historical constructs. We will talk about myths such as "the tsabar", "the most moral army in the world", "the free market", "the empty cart", "piracy" or "death of privacy". The course will emphasize active learning; having established the theoretical background for a critical analysis of such myths in the first lessons, participants will be asked to choose a myth and break it down in short class lectures on which we will hold joint discussions.
Why Democracy?
Dr. Yoav Fromer
0609-1203-01
After decades of global expansion, it appears that on nearly every front, domestically and internationally, liberal-democratic regimes, norms and institutions currently find themselves under siege. This workshop will critically explore the anatomy and evolution of democracy ? as an idea, ideal, process and a practical form of government ? in order to understand: Why is democracy in retreat and what can be done to stop this? Employing an interdisciplinary host of canonical primary texts from political philosophy, history, sociology and literature in the "Great Books" tradition, as well as relevant works of art and film, we will try to answer a set of timely questions: how does democracy function and why did it develop over time? What competing forms does it maintain, and what does it demand of us, as citizens, in the 21st century? Is democracy universal ? or does it require particular historical, social, economic, geographic or cultural conditions to emerge and survive? What makes it preferable to other regimes? What are its inherent weaknesses, problems and dangers? Our goal is to introduce students to the complexities, challenges and contradictions of democracy while helping them understand why it's worth fighting for today - especially in Israel.
Of Love and Other Demons: the Discourse of Love From Theoretical Perspectives
Dr. Yahil Zaban
0609-1206-01
The course will review the complexity in which Love is treated in literature, visual arts, philosophy and psychoanalysis. We will be covering a variety of discourses and texts: from Plato?s Symposium and Songs of Songs to modern poems and theories.
Gender Troubels:sex,Gender,Politics
Dr. Chen Edelsburg
0609-1208-01
The workshop will delve into the main developments in gender studies made in the last century around which a rich field of knowledge, theories, methodologies and practices have emerged (feminism, masculinity studies, queer studies and more). We will examine concepts such as sexuality, desire, morality, emotion, economics and language through gendered perspectives. The workshop will include personal research projects on media representations of gender in current events and their manifestation in newspapers, television and social networks. Readings will include texts by Simone de Beauvoir, Virginia Woolf, Homer, Sigmund Freud, Yona Volach, Michelle Foucault, bell hooks and others.
Fidelity &originals: On Translation in Culture and Everyday Life
Dr. Yaakov Herskovitz
0609-1213-01
Throughout history translation played a crucial role - in culture and daily life. In every conversation and every glance we are translating reality, in one way or another. We are surrounded by translation, in all possible modalities. In this workshop we will study translation in theory and in practice. Theoretically we will think of topics in translation studies and tend to questions such as: how philosophers and scholars have considered translation and how translators grappled with issues in the practice of translation. Through the theory we will arrive at the practice: we will consider adaption as translation, translation in our global world, our ability to understand others, literary translation etc. In this we will focus on some thematic questions: Is there such a thing as an "original"? How is an original different from a translation? In what manner is translation essential to society and how are we, as humans, dependent on translation?
American Literature and Culture After 9/11
Dr. Maya Klein
0609-1215-01
The attacks that took place on Sept 11, 2001 were a defining event in American history and this course will examine their effect and aftereffect on 21st century American culture and literature. We will read from a selection of works in various genres (fiction, poetry, essays and graphic art) and view films that grapple with the event both directly and indirectly. Our discussion will address issues such as the ?global event? and the collapse of the towers as a global media spectacle; trauma and memory; dissenting ideas on the role of the US in global affairs and its foreign policies; and relate to questions of language and translation after 9/11. We will read texts and excerpts from works by: Don Delilo, Art Speigelman, Claire Messud, Jonathan Safran Foer, Otessa Moshfegh, Mohsain Hamid, Joan Didion, Ocean Vong, Susan Sontag, Teju Cole, Saleem Hadad and others. In the course of the semester, students will grapple not only with this specific event that ushered in the 21st century, but also gain a broad (and timely) perspective on how such catastrophic and collective events are experienced, reflected and represented in the cultural imagination.
The History of the Ethiopian Jews: a Historical and Archaeological Perspective
Dr. Bar Kribus
0609-2017-01
The Beta Israel (Ethiopian Jewish) community has a fascinating and unique history, different in many ways from the history of other Jewish communities: While most Jews in the Diaspora lived, until modern times, under Christian or Islamic rule, the Ethiopian Jews ruled over parts of Ethiopia until the 17th century and were engaged in a series of wars with the Christian, Solomonic kingdom. While the religious leaders of most of the world's Jews were rabbis, the religious leaders of the Ethiopian Jews are priests, and many biblical commandments no longer observed by Jews elsewhere, such as the offering of sacrifices, were observed by this community.
Much of the research on the history of the Ethiopian Jews has focused on the activities of emissaries of World Jewry to this community, on the community's aliyah (immigration) to Israel and on its integration there. The fascinating history of this community before its aliyah and its unique heritage are virtually unknown to the general public. The aim of this course is to bring the lesser-known aspects of this community's history and heritage to the fore. We will learn about the Kingdom of the Gideonites - the political autonomy of the Beta Israel, and its wars with the Solomonic kingdom. We will examine the community's unique religious tradition. We will get to know the regions in which the Ethiopian Jews lived and sites that played a key role in their history, among them - strongholds in which they fortified themselves during the wars and holy sites linked with important religious leaders and serving as places of pilgrimage.
SEMETER B
From Oedipus Rex to Hanoch Levin All the World's a Stage
Dr. Michal Peles Almagor
0609-1204-01
"All the world's a stage," wrote William Shakespeare. But the theater creates diverse stages, dependent on social, cultural, and political structures. Exploring these stages reveal a range of perspectives regarding the relations between theater and everyday life, and how ideology impacts aesthetics. The course interrogates how theater responds to and corresponds with sociopolitical climate. We will focus on canonical plays ranging from Sophocles? Oedipus Rex, Shakespeare?s Hamlet, and modern playwrights such as Susan Glaspell, Samuel Beckett, and Hanoch Levin. We will focus on theater as an artistic intersection between the written text and the performed product, exploring performative elements such as voice, tone, gestures, and movement. We will consider the relationship between universal and historical time, the recurring trope of the family, and its evolution against the backdrop of historical and cultural change.
The Humanities meet the Life and Exact Sciences: deciphering the human past
Prof. Lidar Sapir Hen
0609-1209-01
The workshop will focus on the way techniques and knowledge from Natural, Life, and Exact Sciences can be integrated with the Humanities and contribute to the understanding of the human past. Combination of such methods enable researchers to better understand ancient culture, language, politics, and religion of past societies. It also contributes to our understanding of the complex interaction of humans with their environment. Ancient DNA, stable Isotopes, computer sciences, zoology, botany and materials analysis are among the many subjects that are already an integral part of this research. However, scholars in these fields rely on different theories and assumptions in their research. During the workshop, we will discuss anthropological, archaeological, and historical theories, and the way these are integrated into the research. The workshop will be based on papers? reading and discussions, accompanied by guest lectures and visits to humanities? laboratories.
Beastly and Artistic: Animals in Literature and Film for Children and Youth
Dr. Tal Kogman
0609-1211-01
There is an abundance of animal representations in the realm of the child. The visual and material space that surrounds children, from infancy on, includes dolls and toys in the shape of animals. Images of animals are printed on children's clothing and various accessories used by babies and children. Animal figures are prominent in books and movies meant for children and youth. These animal representations help shape the younger generation?s attitudes towards the animal.
In this course, we analyze the design of animal figures in literature and film for children and youth from the 19th century to the present day. The aim of the course is to get acquainted with the complex ways in which books and films for children and youth disseminate ideas concerning our relations with animals. We will explore how animals are displayed in classic works of literature such as Black Beauty, The Jungle Book, Tarzan, The Wind in the Willows, Doctor Dolittle, Bambi and more, and compare the literary versions to cinematic ones. We will explore the perceptions of human-animal relations embedded in these texts and discuss whether these artistic works communicate the traditional concepts of human-animal relations or, instead, undermine them.
Tikkun: Mending a Broken World in the History of Jewish Thought
Dr. Assaf Tamari
0609-1214-01
The Shekhinah, God's presence in the world, is exiled, laying humiliated on the ground, waiting for us to restore her to her rightful state, and help her stand tall. This is merely one of the images offered by the history of Jewish thought to the state of rupture the world is understood to be in, as well as to the human responsibility to mend it. Why is the world so full of pain, suffering and hardship? What are the causes of its broken state? How do they reflect on its maker? What is humanity's part in the rupture? And what is our responsibility for repairing it? How does one mend? What does it mean to mend? And finally, what might a world of Tikkun, a mended world, look like?
This workshop offers a panoramic view on different perceptions of the world's broken state and its mending in the history of Jewish thought. The first part of the workshop will focus on antiquity. We will read together biblical and rabbinical texts. Its second and central part deals with the Middle Ages and early Modernity, and focuses on Maimonides' political thought on the one hand, and the Kabbalah's perceptions of human influence on the divine on the other. In the final part, we shall see how some of these notions find expression in Modernity, in which they resonate in the works of major thinkers.
At the heart of the workshop will be a close reading of foundational texts in the history of Jewish culture. We shall learn together how to investigate these texts, to raise critical questions, to put them in historical context, as well as to tie them to contemporary concerns, and to develop tools for critical thought more generally.
An Introduction to Philosophical Thought on Technology
Dr. Oren Roz
0609-1216-01
We find ourselves immersed in an era defined by technology, surrounded by its presence in our daily lives, influencing our activities, and shaping our perspective of the world. This ongoing technological advancement often evokes both concerns and hopes for the future. However, it is crucial to recognize that the process of technological development and the responses to it are not exclusive to our time; rather, technological innovations have accompanied humanity since its earliest beginnings.
In this course, we will explore the concept of technology and its distinct characteristics in our modern era. We will examine various philosophical perspectives from ancient Greece to the present, addressing questions such as: What is technology? How does it shape our relationships with nature, others, and ourselves? What is its connection to the political sphere? We will also discuss the ethical implications of modern technology and its relationship to art. Through readings from influential thinkers like Aristotle, Heidegger, Jonas, Benjamin, and Foucault, we will gain insights into the complex and impactful role of technology in our lives.
Course requirements: Active participation in class discussions, submission of 2 reading reports, and a final assignment.
An Introduction to Early Islam
Dr. Yaara Perlman
0609-1218-01
The course will focus on the rise and development of Islam in the period spanning the lifetime of the Prophet Muhammad (d. 632) and the Abbasid caliphate (750-1258). Beyond surveying and analyzing the main historical events of this period, we will discuss the characteristics of the foundational texts of Islam and the challenges that they pose for reconstructing early Islamic history. We will learn in the course both about the religion of Islam and about the history of the Muslim people. The topics that will be covered include the life of the Prophet Muhammad and his relationship with the Jews, the vast conquests that took place following his death, the rise of the Umayyad and Abbasid dynasties, the split between Sunnis and Shi'ites, the Qur'an's structure, contents, and interpretation, and the five pillars of Islam. The classes will consist of lectures and discussions based on assigned readings, which will include primary sources in translation and secondary literature.
Course requirements: active participation and final paper
Crash course: what is democracy
Dr. Jeremy Fogel
0609-1212-01
After decades of global expansion, it appears that on nearly every front, domestically and internationally, liberal-democratic regimes, norms and institutions currently find themselves under siege. This workshop will critically explore the anatomy and evolution of democracy? as an idea, ideal, process and a practical form of government? in order to understand: Why is democracy in retreat and what can be done to stop this? Employing an interdisciplinary host of canonical primary texts from political philosophy, history, sociology and literature in the "Great Books" tradition, as well as relevant works of art and film, we will try to answer a set of timely questions: how does democracy function and why did it develop over time? What competing forms does it maintain, and what does it demand of us, as citizens, in the 21st century? Is democracy universal? or does it require particular historical, social, economic, geographic or cultural conditions to emerge and survive? What makes it preferable to other regimes? What are its inherent weaknesses, problems and dangers? Our goal is to introduce students to the complexities, challenges and contradictions of democracy while helping them understand why it's worth fighting for today.
