Abstract
Although we are often encouraged to write what we know, the best research writing is motivated by our interest in the unknown: What do we want to discover, how can we discover it, and what are the most effective ways to communicate our discoveries? These questions will drive our work in WR 151. Building on WR 120 or its equivalent, this class will help you cultivate your writing and research skills through a range of assignments, including a scholarly research essay in which you will be responsible for identifying and refining a topic, devising research questions, and answering those questions by finding and using a range of scholarly and non-scholarly sources. As a course that earns a Hub Unit in Oral/Signed Expression, WR 151 will also give you an opportunity to analyze and practice oral/signed expression in order to communicate your research to academic and non-academic audiences. You will learn to infuse your writing with the urgency of oral exchange and to develop an oral style that reflects the rigor and precision of your writing. Through these experiences, you will gain practice in and a better understanding of the ways that different forms of information are produced, disseminated, and used today. The specific topic of this section is “Zionism, Post-Zionism, and the Jewish State Idea.” In this course, we will examine the intellectual and political history of Zionism in its many iterations and trace the development of its various streams during the pre-state and post-state periods. Students will become familiar with many of the challenges—past, present, and future—inherent to the task of creation and maintenance of a modern state grounded in ethnic nationalism established in territory previously inhabited by people of multiple religious, ethnic, and national identities. Students will also examine the sources and evolution of Palestinian nationalism and pan-Arabism, and their impact on Zionist and Post-Zionist ideas. Course materials include but are not limited to political tracts, maps, poetry, film, and primary source materials relevant to our course of study.