Lecture MW 1:30-2:20;
Quiz Section TTh 12:30-2:20, TTh 1:30-2:20
C LIT 323 / NEAR E 496
Instructors: Naomi Sokoloff and Amal Eqeiq

This course examines the role that literature has played in the shaping of Israeli identity and of Palestinian identity. Materials covered include selections of fiction, poetry, essays, film and popular music, all of which provide students an opportunity to consider Palestinian culture and Israeli culture in light of the concept of “emerging national literatures.” The course is team taught by instructors with expertise in Hebrew studies and in Arabic studies.

Topics covered include: memory and collective experience; contested nationalisms; diaspora and homeland as themes and as centers of literary activity; canon formation; relations between highbrow, middlebrow, and popular culture; colonialism/anti-colonialism/post-colonialism; cultures in contact and bilingualism; gender and national literatures.

No prerequisites; no knowledge of Hebrew or Arabic is required.