Zohar Gazit

Contemporary Israel: The Politics of Ethnic Difference
The course explores the politics of ethnic difference in Israel through a combined historical-sociological perspective, using diverse textual and visual materials. After tracing the origins of the ethnic categories of “Ashkenazi” (Western) and Mizrachi (Middle Eastern/North African) Jews, we examine the history of immigration to Israel in the 1950s, considering how ethnicity came to define class and geography. In subsequent units, we will deal with Mizrachi protest movements such as the Israeli 1970s “Black Panthers” and the more recent trend of Mizrachi intellectuals to reclaim the “Arab-Jew” identity, and in comparison, the Mizrachi traditional support of hawkish positions regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In the concluding units, we will utilize comparative tools to conceptualize this internal Jewish dynamic.

The Origins of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
When did the Jewish-Arab conflict begin? This survey course considers several different moments of its birth, such as the 1880s first wave of Zionist immigrants to Palestine, the 1917 Balfour Declaration, the 1948 and 1967 war and the 1964 establishment of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and other landmark moments. Based on secondary literature and primary textual and visual materials, we will engage with these competing periodizations and analyze various Israeli and Palestinian historical narratives they embody, considering broader themes such as the relations between the historian’s identity and the production of historical narratives, and the dynamic between facts, narratives and ideologies. 3 hrs. lect.

Israeli Society Through Films
In this course we will examine Israeli culture, society, and history through Israeli cinema. We will view and discuss fiction films and documentaries that address, present and reflect such themes as national and personal aspects of life in Israel, the centrality of war and the ongoing conflict, the lives of Palestinians, experiences of Holocaust survivors, the changing status of the kibbutz, ethnic minorities, gender relations, LGBT issues, and varied religious communities. By analyzing films, we will trace and explore core values, shared beliefs, diverse ideologies, unique points of view, social processes, and social relations in past and present-day Israel. (formally HEBM 0250) 3 hrs. lect.

Rites and Rituals in Israeli Society
In this course we will use theory and case studies, from Israel and its neighbors, to explore a wide range of rituals. We will examine national goals achieved with the assistance of ceremonies, and society’s imprint on its members through life-cycle rituals. We will address similarities and differences in the ways specific rituals are performed, and the diverse meanings they may hold for groups and individuals in geographically proximate yet culturally distinct countries, and in the heterogeneous Israeli society. Our aim is to analyze cultural repertoires and social relations, as are represented, reproduced, and contested in ritualistic activities. (formerly HEBM/SOAN 0254) 3 hrs. lect