Israeli Identities
Course Number: MELC 316 A
Instructor Name: Dr. Shai Ben Ami
Instructor Email: shaib@uw.edu
Office Hours: TBD
Course Description:
This course examines fiction and film, as well as selected poetry, popular songs, essays, and comics to explore the experience of diverse groups within contemporary Israeli society. Among the topics to be considered: the sabra ideal; Holocaust survivors and the second generation; Sephardic/Mizrahi communities; religious/secular divides in Israeli culture; Israel’s Arab/Palestinian minority; and questions of gender, including LGBTQ+ lives.
Expectations of students:
- Come to class fully prepared.
- Attend all in-person classes and actively participate in the forum.
- Complete assignments on time. If difficulties arise (such as illness, caring for others who are ill, technological problems, etc.), let me know. We will figure out how to keep your learning on track.
- Abide by the standards of academic honesty and student code of conduct.
- Seek help. I’ll do my best to help you succeed in this class.
Course Etiquette:
- Get to class on time.
- Keep phones and other devices from making any noise or disruption.
- Respect each other and myself. This class is a safe place to ask questions, explore and formulate a better understanding of Israeli identities.
Mode of Instruction:
All meetings will be in person.
Learning Objectives and Goals: By the end of this course, the student will be able to:
- Navigate conversation about current Israeli culture and identity.
- Outline the different aspects that affect the national identity.
- Discuss and deconstruct movies, popular songs, and other products of Israeli culture.
- Critique scholarly research related to Israel.
- Write coherent response papers.
Course Assessment/Expectations:
Class Activities 15%
Oral Presentations 20%
In-Class Group Assignment 15%
Response Papers (10): 50%
|
Course Assignments |
Points |
Due Dates |
|
Oral Presentations |
20 |
Will be discussed in class |
|
Mid-term In-class Group Assignment |
15 |
Week 5 |
|
Written one pagers (8 out 10) |
50 |
Weekly |
|
Class activities |
15 |
All term |
|
Total |
100 |
|
Class Schedule:
Week 1:
Introduction
No reading needed
Week 2:
Israel: An overview
Required Reading:
Della Pergola, S. (2021). A minimal demographic history of Israel. In Hazan, R., Dowty, A., Hofnung, M., & Rahat, G. (Eds.). The Oxford Handbook of Israeli Politics and Society. pp. 35 - 57.
Anderson, B. (1983). Introduction. In Imagined communities: Reflections on the origin and spread of nationalism (pp. 1-10). Verso.
Activity: Mapping Israel
Response paper: 1
National/cultural Identity
Required Reading:
Assmann, J., & Czaplicka, J. (1995). Collective Memory and Cultural Identity. New German Critique, 65, 125–133. https://doi.org/10.2307/488538
McFee, M. (1968). The 150% Man, a Product of Blackfeet Acculturation. American Anthropologist, 70(6), 1096–1107. http://www.jstor.org/stable/669511
Activity: My identity
Response paper: 1
Recommended reading:
Anderson, B. (1983). Introduction. In Imagined communities: Reflections on the origin and spread of nationalism. Verso.
Week 3:
"Villa in the Jungle"
Required Reading::
Oren, N. (2019). 4 A villa in the jungle. In Israels national identity: The changing ethos of conflict (pp. 89-118). Lynne Rienner Publishers. https://doi.org/10.1515/9781626377967-006
Yair, G. (2014). Israeli existential anxiety: cultural trauma and the constitution of national character. Social Identities, 20(4–5), 346–362. https://doi.org/10.1080/13504630.2014.1002390
Activity: TBA
Response paper: 2
Recommended reading:
Reconsidering the Sabra Ideal
Reading: Zerubavel,,Yael (1995), Recovered Roots, chapeter 2 pp. 13-36
Activity:TBA
Response paper: 3
Recommended reading:
Conforti, Y. (2011). " The New Jew" in the Zionist movement: ideology and historiography. The Australian Journal of Jewish Studies, 25, 87-119.
Week 4:
Holocaust Survivors and the Second Generation
Required Reading:
Klar, Y., Schori‐Eyal, N., & Klar, Y. (2013). The “Never Again” state of Israel: The emergence of the Holocaust as a core feature of Israeli identity and its four incongruent voices. Journal of Social Issues, 69(1), 125-143.
Activity:
Response paper: 4
Holocaust Survivors and the Second Generation
Required Reading: Steir-Livny, L. (2015). Holocaust humor, satire, and parody on Israeli television. Jewish Film & New Media, 3(1), 193-219.
Activity: Movie – "Alex is lovesick"
Response paper: 4
Recommended reading: Ofer, D. (2009). The Past That Does Not Pass: Israelis and Holocaust Memory. Israel Studies, 14(1), 1–35. http://www.jstor.org/stable/30245842
Week 5:
"Melting Pot" Sephardi/Mizrahi Experience
Required Reading::
Sagiv, T., & Yair, G. (2019). The end of ethnicity? Racism and ambivalence among offspring of mixed marriages in Israel. Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies, 47(4), 861–877. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369183X.2019.1654158
Activity: Mid-term In-class Group Assignment
Response paper: 5
Recommended reading:
"Melting Pot" Sephardi/Mizrahi Experience
Required Reading:
Goldberg, H. E. (2008). From Sephardi to Mizrahi and Back Again: Changing Meanings of “Sephardi” in Its Social Environments. Jewish Social Studies, 15(1), 165–188. http://www.jstor.org/stable/40207039
Activity: Movie: "Turn Left at the End of the World"
Response paper: 5
Recommended reading:
Week 6:
New Migrations: Russians, Ethiopians, Guest Workers, Yordim
Required Reading:
Khanin, V. (Ze’ev). (2010). Russian-Jewish political experience in Israel: patterns, elites and movements. Israel Affairs, 17(1), 55–71. https://doi.org/10.1080/13537121.2011.522070
Gilad, E., & Millet, S. (2016). The Identity of Ethiopian Immigrants in Israel: Jew-Ethiopian/Israeli-Ethiopian. International Journal of Educational Studies, 3(1), 29-36.
Activity: Show – "Nebsu", "Sovietchaka"
Response paper: 6
Recommended reading:
Galili, Lily. "The other tribe: Israel’s Russian-speaking community and how it is changing the country." Foreign Policy at Brookings. The Brookings Institution (2020).
New Migrations: Russians, Ethiopians, Guest Workers, Yordim
Required Reading:
Semyonov, M. & Gorodzeisky, A. (2012). Chapter 7 Israel: An Immigrant Society. In International Perspectives: Integration and Inclusion (pp. 147-163). Montreal: McGill-Queen's University Press. https://doi.org/10.1515/9781553395133-009
Kaplan, S. (1999). Can the Ethiopian change his skin? The Beta Israel (Ethiopian Jews) and racial discourse. African Affairs, 98(393), 535-550.
Activity:
Response paper: 6
Week 7:
Israel’s Minorities (Palestinian/Arab/Druze/Hebrews/Armenian….)
Required Reading:
Shimony, B. (2013). Shaping Israeli-Arab Identity in Hebrew Words—The Case of Sayed Kashua. Israel Studies 18(1), 146-169. https://dx.doi.org/10.2979/israelstudies.18.1.146.
Mahmoud Darwish, “Identity Card” (1964)
Sayed Kashua, “Cinderella,”
Activity:show: "Avoda Aravit"
Response paper: 7
Recommended reading:
Israel’s Minorities (Palestinian/Arab/Druze/Hebrews/Armenian….)
Required Reading: Kaufman, I. (2004). Ethnic Affirmation or Ethnic Manipulation: The Case of the Druze in Israel. Nationalism and Ethnic Politics, 9(4), 53–82. https://doi.org/10.1080/13537110390444122
Activity: Movie : TBA
Response paper: 7
Recommended reading:
Week 8:
Religious and Secular Divides
Required Reading:
Hermann, T. (2012). More Jewish than Israeli (and Democratic)? Israel Studies Review, 27(1), 4–9. http://www.jstor.org/stable/41804780
Leon, N. (2012). Secular Jews: From Proactive Agents to Defensive Players. Israel Studies Review, 27(1), 21–26. http://www.jstor.org/stable/41804783
Fischer, S. (2012). Yes, Israel Is Becoming More Religious. Israel Studies Review, 27(1), 10–15. http://www.jstor.org/stable/41804781
Activity: Shows: Schtisel, Srugim, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJnOlaZwMeg
Response paper: 8
The Kibbutz, The Moshav, The Town and City life
Reading:TBA
Activity: Movie: "The Song of The Sirens"
Response paper: 8
Week 9:
Army Service
Required Reading:: Girsh, Y. (2019). Negotiating the uniform: youth attitudes towards military service in Israel. Young, 27(3), 304-320.
Activity: Movie: Yossi and Jagger/Zero motivation/ Buffor/Hamefakedet
Response paper: 9
LGBTQ+ life
Required Reading:
Fisch, M. (2004). Resistance in the IDF and the Emergence of the Gay Community: An Instance of Social Transformation in Israel. Israel Studies Forum, 19(2), 108–126. http://www.jstor.org/stable/41804940\
Activity:Movie: Sublet
Response paper: 10
Recommended reading:
Talmon, M. (2013). A Touch Away from Cultural Others: Negotiating Israeli Jewish Identity on Television. Shofar: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Jewish Studies 31(2), 55-72. https://dx.doi.org/10.1353/sho.2013.0008.
Week 10:
LGBT+ life
Required Reading: Yair, G. (2019). Douze point: Eurovision and Euro-Divisions in the Eurovision Song Contest – Review of two decades of research. European Journal of Cultural Studies, 22(5-6), 1013-1029. https://doi.org/10.1177/1367549418776562
Activity:
Response paper: 10
Thanksgiving – No class
Week 11
Students presentations
Students presentations and Wrapping up
Recommended martials:
Podcasts: Tel Aviv Review, Israel Story, Unpacking Israeli History, UnHoly: Two Jews on The News, Inside Israel, 12 Cities in Israel
Consider following Israeli news sources such as: Haaretz, The Jerusalem Post, Ynet News, +972, Al-Monitor’s Israel Pulse, Israel HaYom, i24news, Times of Israel, Timeout Tel Aviv
Israeli songs in English: https://www.hebrewsongs.com/
Israeli Movies:
Academic accommodations:
I want students to learn as much as possible and do well in this class. I am happy to work with you to accommodate your learning-related needs. Please reach out to me with any concerns or issues that may arise during the course.
For illness:
Let me know as soon as possible if you have an illness or emergency that precludes you from meeting the assignment deadlines, participating in discussions, or keeping up with class. I do not require doctors’ notes. Together, we will figure out how to accommodate your situation.
Disability Resources for Student (DRS):
Your experience in this class is important to me. It is the policy and practice of the University of Washington to create inclusive and accessible learning environments consistent with federal and state law. If you have already established accommodations with Disability Resources for Students (DRS), please activate your accommodations via myDRS so we can discuss how they will be implemented in this course.
If you have not yet established services through DRS but have a temporary health condition or permanent disability that requires accommodations (conditions include but are not limited to mental health, attention-related, learning, vision, hearing, physical, or health impacts), contact DRS directly to set up an Access Plan. DRS facilitates the interactive process that establishes reasonable accommodations.
- Website: https://depts.washington.edu/uwdrs || email: uwdrs@uw.edu
Religious Accommodations:
Washington state law requires that UW develop a policy for accommodation of student absences or significant hardship due to reasons of faith or conscience, or for organized religious activities. The UW’s policy, including more information about how to request an accommodation, is available at Religious Accommodations Policy (https://registrar.washington.edu/staffandfaculty/religious-accommodations-policy/). Accommodations must be requested within the first two weeks of this course using the Religious Accommodations Request form (https://registrar.washington.edu/students/religious-accommodations-request).
Conduct:
The University of Washington Student Conduct Code (WAC 478-121) defines prohibited academic and behavioral conduct and describes how the University holds students accountable as they pursue their academic goals. Allegations of misconduct by students may be referred to the appropriate campus office for investigation and resolution. More information can be found online at https://www.washington.edu/studentconduct
Academic Honesty:
You are expected to adhere strictly to the UW’s code of conduct. All acts of plagiarism, cheating, or other forms of academic dishonesty, including using Chat GPT or other AI software, may be prosecuted to the full extent allowed under the code. This might include receiving a 0 for the assignment or test and an official misconduct report to the university. You are responsible for understanding the university’s guidelines for plagiarism, academic misconduct, and the code of conduct; ignorance of the rules is not a valid excuse for breaking them.
The assignments in this class have been designed to challenge you to develop creativity, critical thinking, and problem-solving skills. Using AI technology will limit your capacity to develop these skills and to meet the learning goals of this course. All work submitted for this course must be your own. Using generative AI tools, such as ChatGPT, when working on assignments is forbidden. The use of generative AI will be considered academic misconduct and subject to investigation. If you have any questions about what constitutes academic integrity in this course or at the University of Washington, please feel free to contact me to discuss your concerns.
Campus Resources: Safety & Mental Health
Title IX makes it clear that violence and harassment based on sex and gender is a civil rights offense subject to the same kinds of accountability and support applied to offenses against other protected categories such as race, national origin, etc. If you or someone you know has been harassed or assaulted, you can find the appropriate resources here:
- https://www.washington.edu/titleix (Title IX Resources at UW) - Title IX and other federal and state laws collectively prohibit discrimination based on sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender expression, pregnant or parenting status, and LGBTQ identity. These laws impose legal requirements and protections that serve as a foundation from which UW has created policies, practices, services, and programs that work in concert to advance equity for students, staff, and faculty of all identities.
- https://livewell.uw.edu/ (LiveWell) - LiveWell empowers individuals with the skills and knowledge to make informed decisions about their health and well-being while at UW and beyond. LiveWell uses both the expertise of professional staff and passion of Peer Health Educators to provide evidenced-based health promotion, advocacy education, and prevention services.
- https://www.washington.edu/counseling (Counseling Center: Mental Health) – Husky Helpline Counselling center and other resources to help students.
- http://www.washington.edu/safecampus (SafeCampus) - Call SafeCampus – no matter where you work or study — to anonymously discuss safety and well-being concerns for yourself or others.