{"id":43,"date":"2014-09-02T18:20:13","date_gmt":"2014-09-02T18:20:13","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/scholarblogs.emory.edu\/ajh\/?page_id=43"},"modified":"2017-11-30T15:14:24","modified_gmt":"2017-11-30T15:14:24","slug":"course-schedule","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/scholarblogs.emory.edu\/ajh\/course-schedule\/","title":{"rendered":"SCHEDULE OF LECTURES AND READINGS"},"content":{"rendered":"

NOTE: AJE = American Jewish Experience<\/i>, ed. by Jonathan D. Sarna<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Thurs., Aug. 24<\/span>
\nCourse Introduction and Overview of Syllabus <\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Tues., Aug. 29<\/span>
\nThe First Modern Jews: Jewish Life in the Colonial Period
\n<\/b>Reading: <\/span>
\n*Letters of the Franks Family<\/a>, 1-12.
\n*Synagogue constitutions<\/a>, 13-20. <\/span>
\n<\/b>Questions:
\n\u2022 Based on the letters of Abigail Franks, would you say her overall feelings about America are positive, negative, or mixed? Cite three examples.
\n\u2022 Identify three points of difference between the 1770 constitution of the Philadelphia synagogue and the 1790 constitution of Shearith Israel in New York.
\n<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Thurs., Aug. 31<\/span>
\n“German” Jewish Immigration: In Search of Economic Survival<\/b>
\nReading:
\n*Hasia Diner, “On to America,”<\/a> in A Time for Gathering<\/i>, 36-59.
\n*Memoirs of Jesse Seligman<\/a> and Henry Seessel<\/a>, Memoirs of American Jews<\/i>, 343-352 and 353-367.
\nQuestions:
\n\u2022 Give two reasons for the wave of Central European Jewish immigration to the U.S. that began around 1820.
\n\u2022 Based on the Seligman and Seessel memoirs, cite two strategies Central European Jews employed to succeed in America.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

Tues., Sept. 5<\/span>
\nCreating an American Judaism: The Social and Ideological
\nContexts of Reform<\/b>
\nReading:
\nMichael A. Meyer, “America: The Reform Movement’s Land of Promise,” AJE, 59-81.
\n*Leon Jick, <\/i>The Americanization of the Synagogue<\/i><\/a>, 79-96.
\nQuestion:
\nThe articles by Meyer and Jick both describe how and why the process of religious reform took hold among American Jews during the mid-nineteenth century. What are the major points of difference between their arguments?
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

Thurs., Sept. 7<\/span>
\nThe Winding Road to Jewish Denominationalism<\/b>
\nReading:
\n*Marc Lee Raphael, “‘Our treasury is empty and our bank account is overdrawn’: Washington Hebrew Congregation, 1855-1872,” in the journal American Jewish History —<\/em> to access go to this page<\/a> and select the issue for volume 84, number 2 (June 1996) and you will find the article link in the table of contents.
\n*“Pittsburgh Platform,” <\/a>in Meyer, Response to Modernity<\/i>, 387-388.<\/span>
\nQuestion:<\/span>
\nBased on Raphael’s description of the Washington Hebrew Congregation, point out three religious practices (or a combination of practices) that make it hard to classify the synagogue as Orthodox, Reform, or Conservative.<\/span><\/p>\n

Tues., Sept. 12<\/span>
\nThe Politics of German-Jewish Acculturation<\/b>
\nReading:
\n*Naomi W. Cohen, <\/i>Encounter With Emancipation<\/i><\/a>, 109-114 and 129-139 only (not the entire chapter).
\nQuestion:
\nGive at least three examples of how “German” Jews changed their lives in order to fit into American social and cultural patterns.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

Thurs., Sept. 14<\/span>
\nSocial Discrimination and the Call for a “Christian America”<\/b>
\nReading:
\n*Excerpts from Michael Selzer, ed., <\/i>Kike! <\/i>A Documentary History of Antisemitism in America<\/em><\/a>, 55-62.
\nQuestion:
\nCite at least three claims antisemitic writers made against American Jews in the nineteenth century. For each claim, explain how it emerged from the social and political context of the period.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

Tues., Sept. 19<\/span>
\nImmigration from Eastern Europe: Background and Structure<\/b>
\nReading:
\nRose Cohen, Out of the Shadow<\/i>, through p. 207.
\nQuestion:
\nGive three reasons for the massive wave of Jewish immigration from Eastern Europe that began about 1880. In addition, cite three ways in which this wave of immigration differed from the previous, “German” wave.<\/span><\/p>\n

Thurs., Sept. 21
\n<\/b><\/span><\/span>NO CLASS – ROSH HASHANAH<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Tues., Sept. 26<\/span>
\nAmericans View the Immigrants<\/b>
\nReading:
\nIda Van Etten, “Russian Jews as Desirable Immigrants.”<\/a>
\nJacob Riis, “The Jews of New York.”<\/a>
\nContinue reading Cohen, Out of the Shadow
\n<\/i>Question:
\nDo the articles by Riis and Van Etten present a positive or negative portrait of Eastern European Jewish immigrants? Give three examples to back up your argument.<\/span><\/p>\n

Thurs., Sept. 28<\/span>
\nA “World Turned Upside Down”<\/b>
\nReading:
\n*A Bintel Brief<\/i><\/a>(Letters to the Jewish Daily Forward<\/i>), excerpts.
\n*Hutchins Hapgood, <\/i>The Spirit of the Ghetto<\/i><\/a>, on the Yiddish theater, 118-135.
\nFinish Cohen, Out of the Shadow<\/i>.
\nQuestion:
\nDrawing from the readings, give three examples of why immigrants may have seen America as “a world turned upside down.” See if you can add to the list after viewing the movie Hester Street <\/em>in class on Monday.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

Tues., Oct. 3<\/span>
\n“Germans,” “Russians” and the Reorientation of Communal Life<\/b>
\nReading:
\nMoses Rischin, “Germans versus Russians,” AJE, 136-150.
\n*Letter from Louis Marshall to Bernard Richards<\/a> (1916) from Louis Marshall: Champion of Liberty, <\/i>514-517.
\n<\/i>Question:
\nList three criticisms Louis Marshall makes of the proposed American Jewish Congress in his letter to Bernard Richards. What do each of these criticisms say about Marshall’s view of the new Eastern European leadership and their impact on Jewish communal affairs?
\n<\/i><\/span><\/p>\n

Thurs., Oct<\/span><\/span><\/b>.<\/span><\/span> <\/strong>5<\/strong>
\n<\/span>Varieties of Jewish Expression and Belief<\/b>
\nReading:
\nDawidowicz, “The Jewishness of the Jewish Labor Movement,” AJE, 183-193.
\nUrofsky, “Zionism: An American Experience,” AJE, 243-255.
\nQuestion:
\n<\/span> Based on this week’s readings as well as previous readings, list at least six different cultural, religious or political groupings that existed within the American Jewish community by the early twentieth century.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Tues., Oct. 10<\/b>
\n<\/span><\/b>NO CLASS – FALL BREAK<\/span><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

Thurs., Oct. 12<\/span>
\n<\/b>IN CLASS FILM<\/strong> – Hester Street<\/em><\/span><\/span>
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

Tues., Oct. 17<\/span>
\nMIDTERM EXAM – IN CLASS<\/span>
\nRemember to bring a blue book<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

Thurs., Oct. 19<\/span>
\nNO CLASS – Prof. Goldstein away<\/span><\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

Tues., Oct. 24<\/span>
\nAntisemitism in the Interwar Period<\/b>
\n<\/span><\/b>Reading: <\/span>
\nLeo Ribuffo, “Henry Ford and The International Jew<\/i>,” AJE, 199-216.
\n*<\/i>The International Jew<\/i><\/a><\/span>, (anti-Semitic primary source, 1921), excerpts, 109-119.<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/b>Question<\/span>:<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/b>Highlight in your Sarna book (or write in your notebook) the few sentences you consider to be the kernel of Ribuffo’s argument (no more thna 4 sentences). Come to class ready to identify this passage and tell the class whether you agree or disagree with the argument.<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

Thurs., Oct. 26<\/span>
\nAmericanizing Jewish Life: The Second Generation<\/b>
\nReading:
\nJeffrey Gurock, “The Emergence of the American Synagogue,” AJE, 219-234.
\n*Peter Levine, <\/i>Ellis Island to Ebbets Field<\/i>,<\/a> 144-169.
\nQuestions:
\n\u2022 List three differences between Eastern European immigrant synagogues and the Americanized synagogues described by Gurock.
\n\u2022 Based on Levine’s description of the American Jewish sports culture, point out two ways in which this culture reinforced American identity and two ways in which it reinforced Jewish identity.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

Tues., Oct. 31<\/span>
\nJewish Neighborhoods and the Geography of Identity<\/b>
\nReading:
\n*Deborah Dash Moore, “A World of its Own,”<\/a> in At Home in America, <\/i>60-87.
\n*Eli N. Evans, “An Inconsequential Town,” <\/a>3-19.
\nQuestion\/Assignment:
\nHow are the New York neighborhoods described by Moore different from the surroundings in which Eli Evans grew up? To answer this question, draw maps of these two types of neighborhoods, complete with the homes, stores, schools, libraries, houses of worship, and other institutions that might have existed there (be creative!). In drawing your maps, think about how the different geographies of these places shaped the identities of those who lived there. How was being Jewish different in each space?
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

Thurs., Nov. 2<\/span>
\nCultural Pluralism: Visions and Realities<\/b>
\nReading:
\n*Horace M. Kallen, “Democracy versus the Melting Pot”<\/a> (1915).
\n*Anonymous, “I Was a Jew”<\/a> (1941).
\nQuestion:
\nPoint out at least three differences between the way ethnic group life was envisioned by Horace Kallen and the way it was seen by the author of “I Was a Jew.”
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

Tues., Nov. 7<\/span>
\nWorld War II and its Aftermath<\/b>
\nReading:
\n*Deborah Dash Moore, “On the Threshhold”<\/a><\/span>
\n*Letter from an American Jewish Soldier in World War II<\/a>
\nQuestion:
\nCite three major changes experienced by American Jews as a result of World War II. Which of these, do you think, had the most profound effect on American Jewry, and why?
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

Thurs., Nov. 9<\/span>
\nThe Holocaust, Israel and American Jewry<\/b>
\nReading:
\nHenry Feingold, “Who Shall Bear the Guilt for the Holocaust? The Human Dilemma” AJE, 273-292.
\n*Moore, “Israel as Frontier” <\/a>in To The Golden Cities<\/i>, 227-261.
\nQuestions:
\n\u2022 After reading Feingold’s article, do you feel American Jews could have done more to help European Jews during the Holocaust? Give at least two examples to back up your view.
\n\u2022 Drawing on Moore’s article, list two examples of how the birth of Israel allowed American Jews to “reimagine” themselves.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

Tues., Nov. 14<\/span>
\nReligion and Culture on the Suburban Frontier<\/b>
\nReading:
\nSamuel C. Heilman, Portrait of American Jews<\/i>, 8-46.
\n*Philip Roth, “Eli the Fanatic,” <\/a>249-298.<\/span><\/span>
\nQuestion:<\/span>
\nBased on both the Heilman reading and the Roth story, cite two ways in which the 1950s brought positive developments to the Jewish community and two ways in which the decade brought negative developments.<\/span><\/p>\n

Thurs., Nov. 16<\/span>
\nFrom Classical Liberalism to Ethnic Revival: The 60s and 70s<\/b>
\nReading:
\n*Marc Dollinger, <\/i>Quest for Inclusion: Jews and Liberalism in Modern America<\/i><\/a>, 3-18.
\nHeilman, Portrait of American Jews<\/i>, 47-100.
\nQuestion:
\nBased on Dollinger’s article, present (very briefly) two possible explanations for the attraction of Jews to liberal politics. Which of the two do you think is a better explanation and why?
\n<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

Tues., Nov. 21<\/span>
\nDenominational Growth and Fragmentation<\/b>
\n*Jack Wertheimer, <\/i>A People Divided<\/i>,<\/a> 170-184.
\nUAHC, “Statement of Principles for Reform Judaism.”
\n<\/a><\/span>Question:
\nGo to the website of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations and read the “Statement of Principles for Reform Judaism” (1999). Give three ways in which these principles echo the sentiments of the Reform Movement’s Pittsburgh Platform of 1885 and three ways in which they contradict the Pittsburgh Platform.
\nPRIMARY DOCUMENT WRITING ASSIGNMENT DUE IN CLASS. REMEMBER TO SUBMIT ORIGINAL DOCUMENT WITH EDITED DOCUMENT AND ANALYSIS ESSAY.<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Thursday, Nov. 23<\/span>
\nNO CLASS – THANKSGIVING BREAK<\/span> <\/span><\/b><\/p>\n

Tues., Nov. 28<\/span>
\nFeminism and the American Jewish Community<\/b>
\nReading:
\n*Deborah E. Lipstadt, “Feminism and American Judaism: Looking Back at the Turn of the Century,”<\/a> in Women and American Judaism<\/i>, 291-304.
\n*Ellen Umansky, “Reclaiming the Covenant,” <\/a>230-234.
\nQuestion:
\nGive at least three examples of how feminism has changed American Judaism.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

Thurs., Nov. 30<\/span>
\nIntermarriage and the Culture of Survival<\/b>
\nReading:
\nHeilman, Portrait of American Jews<\/i>, 101-164.
\nLisa Schiffman, Generation J<\/i>, 1-30.
\nQuestion:
\nSchiffman speaks of a “revolution” in Jewish identity that is creating new forms of Judaism that do not require marriage within the group in order to survive. Drawing on either Schiffman’s book or your own observations, give at least three examples of these new forms.
\nTAKE-HOME FINAL EXAM DISTRIBUTED IN CLASS<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Tues., Dec. 5<\/span>
\nMulticulturalism and the Jews<\/b>
\nReading:
\n*Lerner and West, “Cultural Identity and Whiteness,”<\/a> 62-79.
\nQuestion:
\nBased on the Lerner-West conversation and your own observations, do you think Jews are best described as “insiders” or “outsiders” in American culture? Give at least three reasons to back up your claim.<\/span>
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

Thurs. Dec. 14<\/span>
\nTAKE-HOME FINAL EXAMS must be submitted electronically to my email, egoldst [at] emory [dot] edu<\/a>, by midnight on this date. No late papers will be accepted. Download the take-home exam HERE.<\/a>
\n<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

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NOTE: AJE = American Jewish Experience, ed. by Jonathan D. Sarna Thurs., Aug. 24 Course Introduction and Overview of Syllabus Tues., Aug. 29 The First Modern Jews: Jewish Life in the Colonial Period Reading: *Letters of the Franks Family, 1-12. *Synagogue constitutions, 13-20. Questions: \u2022 Based on the letters of Abigail Franks, would you say … Continue reading SCHEDULE OF LECTURES AND READINGS<\/span> →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2196,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-43","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/scholarblogs.emory.edu\/ajh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/43","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/scholarblogs.emory.edu\/ajh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/scholarblogs.emory.edu\/ajh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scholarblogs.emory.edu\/ajh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2196"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/scholarblogs.emory.edu\/ajh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=43"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"https:\/\/scholarblogs.emory.edu\/ajh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/43\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":102,"href":"https:\/\/scholarblogs.emory.edu\/ajh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/43\/revisions\/102"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/scholarblogs.emory.edu\/ajh\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=43"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}