Spring 2025

Major ideas, personalities, and movements in Jewish history from antiquity to the present in light of the interaction of the Jews with the general culture.

Explores Jewish participation in the social, cultural, political and economic life of the modern Middle East.

Exploring the Hebrew Bible, the world in which it arose, and influential texts, including work from Ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia and the Southern Levant.

Historical background and responses to the Holocaust, withspecial emphasis on ethical implications.

History and contexts of anti-Semitism, racism and other discourses about difference examined through religious, national and cultural forms in Europe and in the US.

Explores the relationship between the Jewish people and political powers. Topics include politics in exile, changing relationships to power, and relations with the modern nation-state.

Investigates understandings of law, legal interpretation and the integration of law and narrative in Jewish texts by exploring how to examine legal and literary texts.

Investigates contemporary conflicts in the discovery of the ancient world. Students will ask essential questions about the power of discovering and showcasing specific narratives.

Examination of the social forces that shaped and continue to shape culture and society in contemporary Israel.

Individual research and readings. Not available for graduate credit.

Research leading to the master's degree. Maximum units which may be applied to the degree to be determined by the department. Graded CR/NC.