ALWAYS refer to the Smith College Official Course Catalog for the most up-to-date information.  All courses are 4-credit unless otherwise noted.

Fall 2008

JUD 100y Elementary Modern Hebrew
A year-long introduction to modern Hebrew in the context of Israeli and Jewish culture. Equal development of the four language skills: reading, writing, speaking and listening. By the end of the year, students will be able to comprehend short and adapted literary and journalistic texts, describe themselves and their environment, express their thoughts and opinions and participate in classroom discussions. No previous knowledge of the language is necessary. Enrollment limited to 18. {F} 8 credits.Completion of this course (or its equivalent) is REQUIRED by Smith College for any student planning to study abroad in Israel.
Ilona Ben-Moshe
Full year course, M W F 9-10:20 am

JWST 250 Intermediate Hebrew (at Mt. Holyoke)
(Equivalent to JUD 200 Intermediate Modern Hebrew at Smith)
Continuation of JUD 100y. Emphasizes skills necessary for proficiency in reading, writing and conversational Hebrew. Elaborates and presents new grammatical concepts and vocabulary through texts about Jewish and Israeli culture and tradition, as well as popular culture and day-to-day life in modern Israel. Newspapers, films, music and readings from Hebrew short stories and poetry. Starts a transition from simple/simplified Hebrew to a more literate one, and sharpens the distinction between different registers of the language. Prerequisite: at least one year of college Hebrew or equivalent, or permission of the instructor. Enrollment limited to 18. In fall 2008 this course is offered at Mt. Holyoke College. Van service from Smith to MHC may be provided. Students will attend class at Mt. Holyoke on MW, and at Smith (via video conferencing) on Fridays. {F} 4 credits
Ilona Ben-Moshe
M W 2:40-3:55 (at Mt. Holyoke)
F 11:00-12:15 (at Smith)

JUD 225/REL 225 Jewish Civilization: Text and Tradition
A grand sweep of core narratives and beliefs that have animated Jews and Judaism from antiquity to the present. Readings from the classical library of Jewish culture (such as Bible, Talmud, midrash, Passover Haggadah, mystical and philosophical works, Hasidic tales) and from modern Jewish literature, thought, and popular culture. Focuses on dynamics of religious, cultural, and national reinvention at specific moments and places in Jewish history. How do more recent expressions of Jewishness seek inspiration and authority from their engagement with text and tradition? {L/H} 4 credits
Joel Kaminsky
M W F 11:00 am -12:10 pm

CLT 218 Holocaust Literature
Creative responses to the destruction of European Jewry, differentiating between literature written in extremis in ghettos, concentration/extermination camps, or in hiding, and the vast post-war literature about the Holocaust. How to balance competing claims of individual and collective experience, the rights of the imagination and the pressures for historical accuracy. Selections from a variety of artistic genres (diary, reportage, poetry, novel, graphic novel, film, monuments, museums) and critical theories of representation. All readings in translation. {L/H} 4 credits
Justin Cammy
T Th 9-10:20

FYS 163 The Holy Land
Suleiman Mourad
T Th 1-2:50

REL 210 Introduction to the Bible I
Joel Kaminsky
M W F 1:10-2:30

REL 221 Jewish Spirituality: Philosophers and Mystics
Topic: Jewish Mystical Traditions
Lawrence Fine
W 2:40-5:10

GOV 229 Government and Politics of Israel
Donna Robinson Divine
T Th 9-10:20

THE 220  Homelands: Mythmaking, Representation and Debate in Israeli Drama
Ellen Kaplan
M W 1:10-2:30, M 7:30-9:30 pm

Courses that touch on Jewish Studies and that may count as an elective toward the major with the prior approval of an adviser. Students must write one of their assignments for such courses on an appropriate Jewish Studies topic. In fall 2008 these courses include:

HST 227 Outcasts: Minorities in Medieval Societies
Michelle Herder
MW 1:10-2:30

HST 246 Memory and History
Darcy Buerkle
T 1:00-4:00

SPN 250 Sex and the Medieval City
Ibtissam Bouachrine
MW 2:40-4:00

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January Interterm

110j Elementary Yiddish
An introduction to Yiddish language in its cultural context.  Fundamentals of grammar and vocabulary designed to facilitate reading and independent work with Yiddish texts.  The course is divided into three parts: intensive language study every morning; a colloquium on aspects of Yiddish cultural history; and an afternoon service internship with the collection of the National Yiddish Book Center, the largest depository of Yiddish books in the world.  Smith enrollment limited to 9; admission by permission of the instructor.  Taught on site at the National Yiddish Book Center.  {H}  4 credits
Justin Cammy (Smith College)
Rachel Rubinstein (Hampshire College)
Staff of the National Yiddish Book Center.
MTWRF 9:30-4:00
Application required - Due November 17, 2008. Click here to download in Word.

Spring 2009

100y  Elementary Modern Hebrew (continued from Fall semester; see Fall courses for a full description) Completion of this course (or its equivalent) is REQUIRED by Smith College for any student planning to study abroad in Israel.
Ilona Ben-Moshe
MWF 9:00-10:20

JUD 258/ENG 230  American Jewish Literature
Jewish literary engagement with America, from Yiddish writing on the margins to the impact of native-born authors and critics on the post-war literary scene.  Topics include narratives of immigration; the myth of America and its discontents; the Yiddish literary world on the Lower East Side and the New York Intellectuals; ethnic satire and humor; crises of the left involving Communism, Black-Jewish relations, and ‘60s radicalism; the Holocaust in American culture; tensions between Israel and America as “promised lands”; and the creative betrayal of folklore in contemporary fiction.  Must Jewish writing in America remain on the margins, “too Jewish” for the mainstream yet “too white” for the new multicultural curriculum?
Justin Cammy
MW 2:40-4:00

JUD 362  Seminar in Modern Jewish Literature
Topic for 2008-09: Punchline: The Jewish Comic Tradition.  What makes a Jewish joke? Is Jewish humor self-deprecating, or is it a challenge to majority culture? From Yiddish folktales and types of Eastern Europe (the wise fools of Chelm; shlemiels and shlimazls) through the Jewish influence on 20th-century American comedy. Focuses on Sholem Aleichem (the Yiddish master of laughter through tears), Philip Roth, and Woody Allen, with pauses to consider theories of Jewish humor (beginning with Freud), immigrant comedy, political satire, and Jewish stand-up.  How do contemporary manifestations of popular culture (Curb Your Enthusiasm; The Simpsons; Borat; The Daily Show) draw on this broader tradition?
Justin Cammy
W 7:30-9:30

REL 211  Wisdom Literature
Joel Kaminsky

REL 215  Introduction to the Bible II
Robert Doran

REL 223 The Modern Jewish Experience
Lois Dubin

GOV 248  The Arab-Israeli Dispute
Donna Robinson Divine

GOV 323  Warring for Heaven and Earth: Jewish and Muslim Political Activism in the Middle East
Donna Robinson Divine

Courses that touch on Jewish Studies and that may count as an elective toward the major with the prior approval of an adviser. Students must write one of their assignments for such courses on an appropriate Jewish Studies topic. In spring 2009 these courses include:

GER 248 Laboratories of Modernity, 1800-1900
Joel Westerdale

HST 255 20th Century European Thought: The Cultural Context of Fascism
Ernest Benz

Additional opportunities for the study of language or topics of academic interest to students may be available through Special Studies at Smith or within the 5-College consortium. Please see an adviser.

Five-College Courses in Jewish Studies, Spring 2009
(The list below is a sampling of courses that complement the Jewish Studies curriculum at Smith)

Amherst College
HIST 61 The History of Israel (N. Levin)
RELI 39 Women in Judaism (Susan Niditch)

Hampshire College
HACU 190 The Rise of Secular Jewish Culture (. Rubinstein and J. Wald)
HACU 231 Between Race and Culture: Representing Jews and Others in American and British Literature (R. Rubinstein and L. Sanders)
HACU 270 Eastern European Jewish Music Performance Traditions (H. Netsky)

Mount Holyoke College
JEWISH 350s Jewish Women's Literature: A Feminist Tradition? (R. Rubinstein)
JEWISH 346 The End is Near: The Rise of Biblical Apocalyptic (L. Lyke)

University of Massachusetts, Amherst
Hebrew 121 Elementary Biblical Hebrew II (Sh. Bolozky, T 2:30-5)
Hebrew 240 Intermediate Hebrew II (N. Schwarz, MWF 11:15-12:05)
Hebrew 362 Modern Hebrew Lit II (Sh. Bolozky, TTh 1-2:15)
JUDAIC 323 Judaic Utopia/Dystopia, Ben-Ur, TTH 1-2:15
JUDAIC 353 Sephardic Cultures of the Spanish Diaspora (Ben-Ur, TTH 9:30-10:45)
JUDAIC 383 Women, Gender, Judaism (Shapiro, M 4:40-7)
JUDAIC 395 Family and Sexuality in Judaism (Berkovitz, TTh 1-2:15)

Please consult Spire for a full list of UMass courses; the courses listed below are on topics not offered at Smith in 2007-08. Courses offered through Hillel or Chabad House at UMass do not count towards the major or minor in Jewish Studies at Smith.