Jewish Studies (JS)

JS-301. Jewish Studies Applied Learning Internship. 3 Hours.

Placement in an internship with a Jewish agency, either in social services, nonprofit, or other areas. Students will meet regularly with their instructor and complete assignments and readings relating to their internship work.
Prerequisite: (100 - 399 or 100A - 399Z).

JS-306. Europe 1919-1948: Fascism, Socialism, And The Second World War. 3 Hours.

This course addresses European history from the treaties that ended the First World War in 1919 to the Berlin Crisis and the start of the Cold War. Themes will include the Great Depression and crisis of liberal democracy, the challenges to it posed by Mussolini, Hitler, and Stalin, and the culmination of tensions among these in the Second World War. Particular attention will be paid to genocide and the Nazi attempt to destroy the European Jewish community.
Prerequisite: (100 - 399 or 100A - 399Z).

JS-314B. Russian And Soviet History 1855 To The Present. 3 Hours.

The political, diplomatic, intellectual and social development of the peoples of the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union from the accession of Alexander II to the present. The great diversity of the Russian Empire and Soviet Union’s populations will be a particular focus, with emphasis on the Jewish and the Muslim communities.
Prerequisite: (100 - 399 or 100A - 399Z).

JS-316. Languages And Cultures: Middle East. 3 Hours.

This course introduces students to the languages, cultures, values, preconceptions and misconceptions associated with the region known as the Middle East. A variety of sources, including academic texts, articles, fiction, poetry, film and the visual arts are incorporated to better grasp and appreciate the complex of languages and cultures of the region. Check the current schedule for the focus country.

JS-321. American Jewish Politics. 3 Hours.

This course will cover: Conceptual frameworks of American Jewish political power, institutions and behavior; multiple theories of modern Jewish politics in America; internal and external advocacy institutions from 1820-present; American Jews and the legal process; American Jews and the Labor Movement; American Jews and Feminist politics; Anti-Semitism and the American Jewish response; American Jewish politics and Israel.
Prerequisite: (100 - 399 or 100A - 399Z).

JS-344. Narratives Of The Jewish Experience. 3 Hours.

This course focuses on stories told in contemporary Jewish communities as illustrative of the Jewish experience. Narrative is representative and constructive of life experience, memory, and identity. We will analyze stories collected by others and available to wide audiences, and to stories we collect through interaction and interviews with members of the Jewish community. Analyses will be conducted within a narratological framework that blends discursive theory and practice. Students will gather oral narratives from family members, community members, political and religious leaders, and educators with the goal of analyzing how stories both reveal and construct personal and social identities.
Prerequisite: (100 - 399 or 100A - 399Z).

JS-352. Jewish-American Literature: People Of The Books. 3 Hours.

This course studies how the United States shapes the meaning of Jewish identity and culture, and conversely, how Jewish literature helps shape the meaning of American identity and culture. Working in a range of cultural forms from comic books to genre fiction, Jewish writers throughout the modern era creatively and critically interrogate and re-imagine what it means to be Jewish-American, and more broadly, investigate and challenge what it means to be American.
Prerequisite: ENGL-101 with a minimum grade of C.

JS-396. Jewish Political Thought. 3 Hours.

This course explores the Jewish political tradition, focusing particularly on the concepts of power, sovereignty, and community. Starting from the Biblical text, we will examine how both classical and modern thinkers within the Jewish tradition understood the ways in which power was created, the different meanings of leadership, the idea of national independence, and the ultimate question of belonging within a fragmented political community.
Prerequisite: (100 - 399 or 100A - 399Z).