111 - 120 of 168 results for: COMPLIT

An analysis of apophatic discourses of love in medieval Persian mystical texts. The philosophical underpinnings and implications of Sufi thought are discussed in this course. However, the principal aim is to shed light on the radical poetic force of the Persian texts. Topics to be addressed include the fundamentally oral, temporal nature of mystic speech; the relation of the speaking ¿I¿ to the unknown and unknowable Other; the discourse of love in which God and the beloved are one; the linguistic fragmentation of mystical discourse, straining against the edges of meaning; the possibility of salvaging mystical experience in language; and, finally, the question of apophasis as a theologically and politically subversive act. Primary readings include texts by Ab¿ Sa¿¿d Abi¿l-Khayr, A¿mad Ghaz¿l¿, , ¿Ayn al-Qo¿¿t Hamad¿ni, A¿mad Sam¿¿ni, R¿zbeh¿n Baqli, Far¿d al-D¿n ¿A¿¿¿r, and Jal¿l al-D¿n R¿m¿. The primary texts will be complemented by readings from Georges Bataille, Maurice Blanchot, Michel de Certeau, Jacques Derrida, Philippe Lacoue-Labarthe, Emmanuel Levinas, and Paul Ric¿ur, among others. Taught in English.

Eighteenth-century culture seen as permeated by intellectual and artistic practices and plays pushing principles of reason and rationality to an extreme that becomes self-undercutting. Such obsessions and practices are becoming more visible and prominent now, as the traditional concept of "Enlightenment" (synonymous with the 18th century) is undergoing a profound transformation. Among the protagonists of this seminar will be: Diderot as a philosopher and novelist; Lichtenberg as a scientist and writer of everyday notes; Goya, accusing violence and obsessed with nightmarish visions; Mozart as the excessive master of repetition and variation.

Walter Benjamin's work as cultural historian, critic, literary author and philosopher, seen from the trajectory of a German-Jewish intellectual life in the context of the first half of the 20th century. Providing such a historical perspective will be the condition for an actively critical reading of Benjamin's works; a reading that -- counter to the predominant Benjamin-reception -- will try to distinguish between works of purely biographical and historical interest and those Benjamin texts that prove to be of great and lasting intellectual value. Taught in English.

Drawing on literature, the arts, political discourse, museums, and new media, this course asks why and how we take interest in the watershed events of the modern era; how does contemporary culture engages with modern, made-made disasters such as the World Wars or 9/11? Readings and viewings include the literature of G. Grass, W. G. Sebald, Ian McEwan, Toni Morrison and Cormac McCarthy; the cinema of Kathryn Bigelow and Steven Spielberg; speeches by Barak Obama; and the theoretical writing of Walter Benjamin, Hayden White, Fredric Jameson, among others. Taught in English.

Advanced study in the humanities faces changes within fields, the university and the wider culture. Considers the debate over the status of the humanities with regard to historical genealogies and current innovations. Particular attention on changes in doctoral education. Topics include: origins of the research university; disciplines and specialization; liberal education in conflict with professionalization; literature and literacy education; interdisciplinarity as a challenge to departments; education policy; digital humanities; accountability in education, assessment and student-centered pedagogies.

Emphasis on personal and collective future as perceived and described in works translated from Hebrew or written originally in English. Focus on novels, short stories, poems and movies that deal both with the future of Israel and the Middle East and the future of individuals in the area. Guest speaker on Science Fiction and the Graphic Novel. The course is part of "The Future of Storytelling" activities organized by Taube Center for Jewish Studies.

In this course we will read the main novels and plays of Pirandello, Sartre, and Beckett, with special emphasis on the existentialist themes of their work. Readings include The Late Mattia Pascal, Six Characters in Search of an Author, Henry IV; Nausea, No Exit, "Existentialism is a Humanism"; Molloy, Endgame, Krapp's Last Tape, Waiting for Godot. Taught in English.

This course presents and reflects on some of the canonical works of Hebrew literature, from biblical era to the present. Discussing works such as the Wisdom Books and selections from the Midrash; and reflecting on important periods such as the Golden Age of Jewish Culture in Spain, the Renaissance, and contemporary Israeli literature, we will highlight linguistic innovation, as well as crucial thematic and philosophical concerns. Readings include the Book of Job, Psalm, Ibn Gabirol, Mapu, Rachel, Goldbegr, Agnon, S. Yizhar, Amichai, Oz and more.

A presentation of human rights discourse around issues of how we "occupy" space. Centering on racialized spaces and the effects on a wide range rights in US and in other countries. Readings on human rights, history, critique. Deep readings in cultural texts and practices that name injustice and seek redress in a number of forms.