COML1311 - Introduction to Modern Hebrew Literature

The Image of the City. This course examines how cities are forged in Israeli writings and how a city may be a symbol for aspirations or ideas. Sometimes, the city in a short story or a poem may reflect national issues, political conflicts, and questions of gender, but also romantic love and family ties. At other times, the emotional and physical connection between a writer and a hometown is at the center of a literary work. Haifa for Yehudit Katzir or A.B. Yehoshua, Tel Aviv for Meir Wieseltier or Dahlia Ravikovitch, Jerusalem for Yehuda Amichai or Amos Oz are prime examples of such literary reworkings of the city. The class is conducted in Hebrew; texts are read in the original. The material we cover depends on the pace and reading level of the class.