Winter 2012: Kritzman (2A)
European Jewish Intellectuals (Identical to Jewish Studies 26)
This course examines the role of the Jewish intellectual in twentieth century Europe. We Shall focus on several paradigmatic figures (Arendt, Benjamin, Adorno, Levinas, Derrida) who confront the redefinition of politics and civil society in modern times. some attempt to deal with these changes through a critical reflection on the concepts of democracy and ethics and on how justice can be practiced either within or outside of the geographical and spiritual boundaries of the modern nation state. We shall examine how Jewish self-consciousness and a deep attachment to biblical tradition enables these intellectuals to reconcile ethical imperative with political realities. Topics include the challenges of Eurocentric Christian humanism and universalism to Jewish assimilation; the promises of totalitarianism; Marxism and messianism; the politics of biblical exegesis; history and Jewish mysticism; and Zionism, anti-Zionism and the Arab-Israeli conflict. (LIT/W)
