The unit will focus on Jewish literary responses to catastrophe from ancient times to the Holocaust. After considering the historical framework for events including the Destruction of the Temple, the Crusades and the Spanish Exile, students will read the poetry, stories, songs, and prayers that the Jews composed in reaction to the catastrophes. We will consider how the literature of destruction manifested a Jewish religious response to collective trauma, and how the literature became a means of cultural survival for the Jewish people. We will also examine if and how the literature of destruction is artistic. -- Course Website
Instructor: Professor Leah Garrett
