Topics in Judaism (339-0-23)
Topic
Ancient Jewish and Christian Narrative
Instructors
Barry Wimpfheimer
847 4912618
Crowe Hall, 1860 Campus Drive, 4-140
Meeting Info
University Library 4670: Tues, Thurs 2:00PM - 3:20PM
Overview of class
Narratives are centrally important to religions. From foundational myths that create the space within which religion happens to discrete episodes that ground specific rituals, narratives are the very stuff of religion. The purpose of this course is to consider narratives as a special site for the production of religious meaning; the course will draw heavily from both religion theory and literary theory. Issues we will cover include: whether textual meaning is located in the author, text or reader; how the religious context of a narrative affects its possible interpretations; how myths and rituals comprise different modes of narrative; the relationship between narrative time and religious time; the challenge to authority inherent to much religious narrative; the variety of ways through which religious figures mobilize narrative to further their authority.
This course will utilize Jewish and Christian narratives from the Hebrew Bible, New Testament, Rabbinic Literature, Apocrypha, Gnostic Texts and Church Fathers as primary texts. Students will be expected to build on materials covered in the course by applying narrative theory to the study of these narratives. Students will also learn about the near simultaneous emergence of Christianity and Rabbinic Judaism and put these two religious formations in conversation.
Some of the theoretical works to be used are: Paul Ricouer, Figuring the Sacred; Roland Barthes, Mythologies; Hayden White, "The Value of Narrativity in the Representation of Reality;" Robert Segal, ed., The Myth and Ritual Theory; Jerome Bruner, The Making of Stories; Mikhail Bakhtin, Problems of Dostoevsky's Poetics; Clifford Geertz, The Interpretation of Cultures; Stanley Fish, Is There a Text in This Class?
Learning Objectives
1. To train to read narratives critically.
2. To understand the thick nature of narrativity.
3. To compare the emergence of Christianity and Rabbinic Judaism through their narrative traditions.
Teaching Method
Class Materials (Required)
Jeffrey Rubenstein, Rabbinic Stories
Class Attributes
Ethical and Evaluative Thinking Foundational Disci
Ethics & Values Distro Area