Abstract
This course uses a variety of methodological approaches to introduce students to the multidimensional nature of contemporary Israeli culture and society. The course begins with a brief overview of modern Israeli history and the political conflicts have defined its existence. The majority of the course materials are designed to enable students to ask questions about what it is like to experience contemporary Israel from a range of minority perspectives, some based in foundational identities, some coalesced around fleeting statuses, and some informed by deeply held-ideologies and religious beliefs (these perspectives often overlap and merge). In the final weeks of the course, we examine two basic human activities: playing and eating to bring in additional perspectives on contemporary Israeli subjectivities.
Conventional and alternative narratives of the Israeli experience will be illuminated by analyzing a variety of texts, including literature, film and ethnography. Careful attention to historical and social contexts will amplify these explorations. The goal of the course is to give students a range of scholarly tools to explore central questions about Israeli culture and social life. Note: Course taught in English; no Hebrew necessary. All readings are available new or used online, many articles and selected chapters are on the course website.