Hebrew and Judaic Studies (HEJS) Course Listing
1101. The Land of Israel from Biblical Times to the Present
Three credits. Taught in English. May not be used to meet the foreign language requirement. Miller An in-depth look at the history, culture and civilizations of the land of Israel. The importance of the land in Judaism and its significance for Christianity and Islam will be discussed. Lectures and discussion will be enhanced by slide presentations.
1103. Literature and Civilization of the Jewish People
Three credits. Taught in English. May not be used to meet the foreign language requirement. Miller The major concepts, personalities and literary works of the Hebraic tradition from the Biblical and Talmudic periods to the present. CA 1. CA 4.
1149-1150. Elementary Biblical Hebrew I and II
Four credits each semester. Four class periods. Not open for credit to students who have had three or more years of Hebrew in high school. Students who wish to continue in Hebrew but feel ill prepared should contact the head of the Literatures, Cultures and Languages department. An introduction to the biblical language for the student with no previous background. Grammar and drills, using simple texts, prepare the student for independent reading of Hebrew Scripture in the original.
1151-1152. Elementary Modern Hebrew I and II
Four credits each semester. Four class periods and one 1-hour laboratory practice. Not open for credit to students who have had three or more years of Hebrew in high school.
Elementary Hebrew grammar. Drill in pronunciation. Reading of simple texts. Practice in easy conversation.
1153-1154. Intermediate Hebrew I and II
Four credits each semester. Four class periods and one 1-hour laboratory practice.
Prerequisite: HEJS 1152 or the equivalent.
Review of elementary Hebrew grammar. Graded composition and translation. Intensive and extensive reading. Oral practice in the language. The basic structure patterns of Hebrew.
1193. Foreign Study
Credits and hours by arrangement. Prerequisite: Consent of Department Head required, normally before the student’s departure. May be repeated for credit.
Special topics taken in a foreign study program.
2104. Modern Jewish Thought
Three credits. Recommended preparation: HEJS 1103. Taught in English. May not be used to meet the foreign language requirement.
Nationalism, culture, ethics and philosophy in the writings of the major Jewish thinkers from Spinoza to the present. Emphasis on the work of Moses Mendelssohn, Hermann Cohen, Franz Rosenzweig, Martin Buber, Mordecai Kaplan, Judith Plaskow, and others. CA 1. CA 4-INT.
3201. Selected Books of the Hebrew Bible
Three credits. Prerequisite: INTD 3260 or HIST 3301 or HEJS 1103, which may be taken concurrently or instructor consent. A knowledge of Hebrew is not required. May be repeated with change of content and consent of instructor. Taught in English. May not be used to meet the foreign language requirement.
Focuses on a biblical book (or books) and emphasizes its literary structure and content.
3202. Sects and Movements in Judaism
Three credits. Taught in English. May not be used to meet the foreign language requirement.
Varieties of Jewish expression and belief from Biblical times to the present. Topics include: the Dead Sea Sect, Pharisees, Sadducees, Karaites, Marranos, Hasidism and the Reform, Conservative, Orthodox and Reconstructionist movements of the modern era.
3203. The Holocaust
(Also offered as HIST 3418.) Three credits. Taught in English. May not be used to meet the foreign language requirement.
Origins, development, and legacy of the Holocaust. Topics include the history of modern European anti-Semitism, the creation of the Nazi state, the catalytic role of the Second World War, the actions and attitudes of the perpetrators, victims, and bystanders, and the diverse ways in which scholars and societies have dealt with the legacy of the Holocaust.
3218. Palestine Under the Greeks and Romans
(Also offered as CAMS 3256 and HIST 3330.) Three credits. Prerequisite: CAMS 1101 or 1102 or CAMS 3253/HIST 3301; or HIST 3320 or 3325; or INTD 3260; or HEJS 1103 or 3202; or instructor consent. Taught in English. May not be used to meet the foreign language requirement.
The political, historical and religious currents in Greco-Roman Palestine. Includes the Jewish Revolts; sectarian developments, the rise of Christianity and the Talmudic academies.
3218W. Palestine Under the Greeks and Romans
(Also offered as CAMS 3256W and HIST 3330W). Three credits. Prerequisite: CAMS 1101 or 1102 or CAMS 3253/HIST 3301; or HIST 3320 or 3325; or INTD 3260; or HEJS 1103 or 3202; or instructor consent; ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 2011; open to juniors or higher. Taught in English. May not be used to meet the foreign language requirement. Miller
3241. Jewish Magic: from Late Antiquity through the Early Modern Period
Three credits. Jewish magical beliefs and practices from the rabbinic period through the early modern period. Texts include spells, kabbalistic lore, magical books, incantations, legends, prayers, medical texts, exempla.
3251-3252. Advanced Hebrew
Three credits each semester. Prerequisite: HEJS 1154 or instructor consent.
Further grammar study. Practice in composition involving the use of everyday vocabulary and idiomatic expressions. Readings and films relevant to Israeli culture and history. With a change in content, either or both of these courses may be repeated for credit.
3279. Modern Israeli Literature in Translation
Three credits. Major themes and literary achievements of modern Israeli writing in translation. Authors range from the pre-Statehood period to the present.
3293. Foreign Study
Credits and hours by arrangement. Prerequisite: Consent of Department Head required, normally granted prior to the student’s departure. May count toward the major with consent of the advisor. May be repeated for credit.
Special topics taken in a foreign study program.
3295. Special Topics
Credits and hours by arrangement. With a change in content, may be repeated for credit. Prerequisites and recommended preparation vary.
3298. Variable Topics
Three credits. With a change in topic, may be repeated for credit. Prerequisites and recommended preparation vary.
3298. Holocaust in Theater and Film
(Also offered as ENGL 3623-001.) Holocaust in Theater and Film will investigate the various ways that dramatization have attempted to represent the Holocaust and make broader statements about humanity and society. Three credits.
3299. Independent Study
Credits and hours by arrangement. Prerequisite: Open only with consent of instructor. With a change in content, may be repeated for credit.
3301. The Jewish Middle Ages
Three credits. Survey of sacred and secular literature in a wide variety of genres produced by Jews in the medieval period from major centers of European settlement. CA 1. CA 4.
3401. Jewish American Literature and Culture
(Also offered as ENGL 3220.) Three credits. Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 2011. Shoulson
Interdisciplinary study of literary and artistic productions by and about Jews in the United States. CA 1. CA 4.
3401W. Jewish American Literature and Culture
(Also offered as ENGL 3220W.) Three credits. Prerequisite: ENGL 1010 or 1011 or 2011.
Interdisciplinary study of literary and artistic productions by and about Jews in the United States. CA 1. CA 4.
3511. American Jewry
Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher. Taught in English. May not be used to meet the foreign language requirement. Dashefsky
Historical, demographic, organizational, and sociopsychological perspectives.
Other Courses of Judaic Studies Interest:
CAMS 3243. World of Late Antiquity
(Also offered as HIST 3340.) The profound social and cultural changes that redefined the cities, the frontiers, and the economies of the classical world and led to the Middle Ages. Developments in the eastern and western Mediterranean lands between the second and seventh centuries, including: Neo-Platonism, the spread of Christianity, Rabbinic Judaism, and Islam. Three credits.
CAMS 3244. Ancient Fictions
Examines a range of novels and other fictions from the Greco-Roman world. Works read will include the Greek sentimental novels, the satirical Roman novels of Petronius and Apuleius, and a variety of other pagan, Jewish, and Christian fictions. Taught in English. Three credits.
CAMS 3246. Hellenistic World
The Eastern Mediterranean (the Greek east) from Alexander to Cleopatra (336-30 BCE), including historical, cultural, social, and religious developments. Three credits.
CAMS 3250. The Early Christian Church
(Also offered as HIST 3335.) Recommended preparation: HIST 3325/CAMS 3255 or HIST 3330/CAMS 3256. The evolution of Christian institutions, leadership and doctrines in the Roman Empire ca. 50-451 C.E. Topics may include Gnosticism, prophecy, martyrdom, asceticism, pilgrimage, heresy, orthodoxy. Taught in English. Three credits.
CAMS 3253. Ancient Near East (also HIST 3301)
(Also offered as HIST 3301.) The history of Near Eastern civilization from the Neolithic period to the Persian Empire. The birth of civilization in Mesopotamia and Egypt. The political, economic, social, and cultural achievements of ancient Near-Eastern peoples. Taught in English. Three credits. Prerequisite: Open to juniors or higher.
HIST 3705. The Modern Middle East from 1700 to the Present
Tradition, change, modernization and development in the Middle East from the Ottoman decline and rise of successor states to the Arab-Israeli and oil crises. CA 1. CA 4-INT. Three credits.
HIST 3712. The Middle East Crucible
Twentieth-century issues in the Middle East heartland with analysis focusing on the Ottoman heritage, nationalism, Arab-Israeli and other conflicts, Islam, oil, water, rapid sociopolitical change, trends in development, super-power rivalries, and the search for identity, independence, and peace with justice. Three credits.
INTD 3260. The Bible
(Also offered as CLCS 3201-01.) This course introduces students to the historical, literary and archaeological study of Hebrew scripture and the New Testament, and is open to students with little or no background in biblical literature as well as to those who have some familiarity with the Tanakh (“Old Testament”), the New Testament, or both. Fulfills Content Area 1 (Arts & Humanities) general education requirements. Three credits.
SOCI 2509W. Sociology of Anti-Semitism
Sources and consequences of anti-Semitism in society. CA 4-INT. Three credits.
SPAN 3200. Spanish Civilization to the Modern Period
An interdisciplinary course analyzing the politics, social structures, and cultural life of Spain from its beginnings to the start of the nineteenth century. Recommended preparation: SPAN 3178 or instructor consent. Three credits.