Hebrew IV: Advanced Topics in Hebrew Literature (316-1-20)
Instructors
Hanna Tzuker Seltzer
847/467-5684
Crowe 5-159
Office Hours: Mondays/Wednesdays 11:00am - 12:00pm, or by appt.
Hanna Tzuker Seltzer was born and raised in Jerusalem, where she also studied Film and Television. Her short narrative film was aired on Israeli TV and was awarded the Snunit Prize for emerging Israeli filmmakers. Prior to her PhD studies at the University of California Berkeley, she graduated summa cum laude from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, earning her BA in Hebrew Literature with Designated Emphasis in Creative Writing. Hanna also holds a certificate in teaching Hebrew as a Second Language from the Rothberg International School at the Hebrew University, where she taught in the Summer Ulpan. She has also taught at the Milah Ulpan in Jerusalem. During her doctoral studies at UC Berkeley (Ph.D., 2017, Jewish Studies), she taught courses in modern Hebrew language and Jewish Studies, earning UC Berkeley’s Outstanding Graduate Instructor Award. Hanna also studied Yiddish and examined its complex connection to Israeli history, literature, and culture.
Meeting Info
Kresge 4531 MENA Seminar Rm: Mon, Wed 9:30AM - 10:50AM
Overview of class
The topic for this course is Biblical Stories and Modern Poems in Hebrew. Many define the Hebrew Bible as the best literature ever written. Indeed, the Hebrew Bible inspired numerous canonical novels, poems, paintings and sculptures in Western culture. In the case of Hebrew literature, the connection to the Hebrew Bible is even more binding, as the biblical texts informed and inspired Zionist ideology and the revival of Hebrew as a modern language. In this class we will read a selection of biblical stories in their original language, biblical Hebrew, a reading which will enable us to see the immense influence of biblical Hebrew on modern Hebrew language. We will then read Hebrew poems that are based on the stories we have read. We will analyze both the biblical stories, the Hebrew poems, and the connections between them. The poems we will read in class are interpretations of the biblical stories. Beyond the grammatical and periodical difference between the texts and the poems (Biblical Hebrew vs. Modern Hebrew), the poems can be political, ideological, social, or personal critique of of sometime a dialogue with the biblical story. All course materials and class discussions will be in Hebrew.
Registration Requirements
Pre-requisite: Hebrew 216-3 or equivalent, or permission of the instructor.
Learning Objectives
Students will experience with reading biblical Hebrew by reading texts from the Hebrew Bible in their original language.
Students will learn basic linguistic principles of biblical Hebrew.
Students will be closely familiarized with some of the canonical stories in the Hebrew Bible such as the Binding of Isaac, the barrenness of Rachel, the story of Joseph and his brothers, and more.
Students will learn how to perform "Close Reading", which is a literary analysis of the text and will practice it through the biblical stories and the poems we will read.
Students will read modern Hebrew poems of various poets in their original language and will be able to identify the resemblance between modern Hebrew and biblical Hebrew, as well as the biblical Hebrew as foundational to modern Hebrew.
Students will be able to note the influence of biblical stories and especially expressions on Israeli cultural sphere in general and on modern Hebrew language in particular.
Teaching Method
Classes will be in the form of class discussions, as well as shared learning. We will read together the biblical stories, learn how to decipher the unique grammatical structures of the Hebrew Bible and the stylistics of the biblical narrator. We will read modern Hebrew poems and look for the connections between the biblical text and the modern poems we read. Students will work frequently in pairs and groups to practice the reading and understanding of biblical texts as well as modern Hebrew poems.
Evaluation Method
During the course there will be regular homework assignments to practice what we learned in class and to prepare for following classes. There will be class presentations throughout the course, and a final presentation in lieu of a final exam.
Class Materials (Required)
No need to purchase any specific textbooks for this class; class materials will be distributed by the instructor or will appear in the class Canvas site as PDFs.
Class Notes
This class is intended for students who are either heritage speakers of Hebrew or are in a very advanced level of Hebrew. The class level is equal to Hebrew fourth year.
Class Attributes
Literature & Fine Arts Distro Area
Enrollment Requirements
Enrollment Requirements: Pre-Req: Students must have taken or currently be enrolled in Hebrew 216-3, or have the consent of the instructor.