CDN 380H1F – Fall 2015
SOCI0-CULTURAL PERSPECTIVES OF THECANADIAN JEWISH COMMUNITY
SYLLABUS
Thursdays 10 -12, University College, Room 372
Instructor: Franklin Bialystok
Office: University College, D 203
Office Hours: Thursdays, 12:30 to 2 or by appointment
Overview of the Course
This course examines the contributions made by Canadian Jews to Canadian culture. We use the term, “culture” in the broad perspective, as it relates to the formation of anethno-cultural identity. This interpretation broadens the scope of our understanding of culture.It allows us to examine how cultural markers such as literature, journalism, scholarship, the plastic arts, music, drama, film, broadcasting, sport and other cultural modesframe Canadian identity. This course concentrates onliterature written by Canadian Jews from a historical/geographical/chronological perspective since the turn of the twentieth century. The emphasis will be on: how the writers were influenced by and reflectedupon contemporary events; their physical and human environment; and how their work reflected their reality. One dynamic that we will investigate is the degree of “Jewishness” that influences their work. In other words, we examine the dialectic between the artist as a Canadian Jew, and as a Canadian who happens to be Jewish. This dialectic will frame some of our discussions. As this is primarily a historical study and not a course on literature, we do not focusing on syntax, style or literary criticism, but rather on how literature sheds perspectives on Canadian Jewish adaptation and identity.
The course will follow an approximate chronology through the Twentieth Century. It is expected that students will have a basic knowledge of Canadian history and society.
The course will be largely based on discussions of the required readings. Short explanatory lectures will provide context, as needed. We will incorporate music into the class as well as film, as time allows.
Course Requirements and Evaluation
NOTE: THIS COURSE HAS A HIGH AMOUNT OF READING. IF YOU ARE NOT WILLING TO DO THE READING AND BE PREPARED TO DISCUSS ITS MEANING AND IMPLICATIONS FOR ADAPTATION AND IDENTITY YOU SHOULD RE-CONSIDER TAKING THIS COURSE.
The primary requirement is contribution to the class discussions. Attendance is compulsory. Marks will be deducted in the case of unverified absences. Students are required to have read the course readings and to be prepared to discuss them. This cannot be stressed enough. As such, student contribution is mandatory in each class. Class contribution comprises 20% of the course mark.
A second requirement is presentations. These will take three forms. The first will require students to periodically provide a brief (a few minutes) biographical picture of a writer that will be discussed that day. The second is a presentation of a supplementary work of fiction. More on this below. Third, in the final class, students will present an overview of their term essay. These presentations will not be graded, as they are meant to be informal, but consideration of this work will be taken into account as part of the class mark.
A third requirement is a critical book review. Students will select a novel from an assigned list or an alternative with the approval of the instructor. This will be presented to the class as a condensed summary of the text and a critical analysis. This review will be 3-4 pages in length and will comprise 20% of the course mark and will be due the week after the presentation. The presentations will commence in
Week 3 and terminate in Week 11.
The final requirement is a term long study of a different form of cultural representation than is being looked at in class. Students will select from a broad category of topics early in the term, and engage in research on this topic. This will be done in consultation with the instructor. Students will hand in the proposal by February 23 outlining the rationale, scope, areas of exploration, etc. The proposal will include a tentative annotated bibliography. This proposal will comprise 15% of the course mark. The final study will be a paper of approximately 15 pages, plus footnotes and bibliography. Students will informally present their research in Week 12 (see above). The paper based on this study will comprise 45% of the course mark.
Students are required to regularly check the course website on Blackboard for announcements and additional course materials.
Course Texts
Students will purchase the following texts from the U of T Store:
Menkis, Richard and Ravvin, Norman, eds. The Canadian Jewish Studies Reader (M & R)
Michaels, Anne. Fugitive Pieces.
Richler, Mordechai. The Apprenticeship of Duddy Kravitz
In addition, there is aset of readings comprising a Course Kit. They will be distributed in Class One for a nominal fee.
Class Schedule and Required Readings
January 8: Week One: Introduction, Overview and Historical Background
Reading: M & R: Articles by Menkis, Tulchinsky, Brown, 13 – 89
Book Review Assignment handed out.
January 15: Week Two: Yiddish Montreal
Reading: M & R: Articles by Robinson, Margolis,126-163
Course Kit: An Everyday Miracle: Yiddish Culture in Montreal. Butovsky, Anctil, Robinson, eds.:5 - 46
Course Kit: Melech Ravitch (1893-1976) in Parchment, Vol. 2, 1993-4:47-51 Greenstein, ed. Contemporary Writing in Canada, 53-6.
Term Research Assignment handed out.
January 22: Week Three: The World of A. M. Klein
Readings: M&R: Article by Anctil, 350 – 372
Course Kit: Greenstein, ed.: 57-60.
Geddes, ed., Canadian Poets x 3: 73-80
Kaplan, Like One That Dreamed: 81-163.
First Book Reviews begin, and will be part of every class until Week Eleven.
January 29: Week Four:The "Three Greats" of post-war Montreal – Layton, Cohen, Richler
Readings:
Course Kit: Greenstein, ed.:59-63.
Layton, Selected Poems: 165-190
Sherman in Parchment, Vol. 10, 2001-2: 191-197
Cohen, Selected Poems: 199-205
Ravvin, A House of Words – Jewish Writing, Identity and Memory, on Cohen, Richler:207-220.
February 5: Week Five: Richler’s Montreal
Reading: The Apprentice of Duddy Kravitz
February 12: Week Six: No Class. Preparation for Study Proposal
Term Study Proposals DueFebruary 23
READING WEEK
February 26: Week Seven: Jewish Life in the Frontier - The Prairie Experience
Readings: M & R: Articles byWaddington, 216-223; Ravvin, 266-282
Course Kit: Greenstein, ed. 64-8
Greenstein: Triptych of Prairie Past in Parchment, Vol. 2: 48
Geddes, ed. Canadian Poets x 3: Waddington:247-251; Mandel: 252-259
Ravvin, Hidden Canada, 261-272.
March 5: Week Eight: The Holocaust and its Impact on Canadian Jewish Identity
Readings: M & R: Articles byBialystok, 283-331; Schober, 332-347; Troper and Weinfeld, 373-422 (Optional)
Course Kit:
Sam (Simcha) Simchowitch in Parchment #3: “Sefer Otwock”, “Little Streets”, 298-300
Donia Blumenfeld Clenman, “ in Parchment #10: The Matmid in Canada”, “Rozia of Klimentow”, 303-6
J.J. Steinfeld in Dancing At The Club Holocaust– Stories New and Selected: “The Apostate’s Tatoo”, “Fifty Bullets”, “The Coinciding of Sosnowiec, Upper Silesia, Poland, 1942, and Banff, Alberta, Canada”: 273-289
Ruth Mandel in Parchment #3: “How To Tell Your Children about the Holocaust”: 301-2
March 12: Week Nine: Anne Michaels: From Poland to Greece to Toronto
Reading: Fugitive Pieces
March 19: Week Ten: What about Ontario?
Readings: M & R: Articles byDiamond, 186-215; Ravvin, 474-484
Course Kit: Greenstein,ed: 68-70; Norman Levine, “By a Frozen River”: 307-313; Matt Cohen, “The Sins of Thomas Benares”: 315-326.
March 26: Week Eleven: Contemporary Writers
Readings: Course Kit:
Greenstein, ed.: 70-72
David Bezmogis, Natasha and other stories:“Tapka”, “Natasha”: 327-355.
Parchment #2 : “A Jew’s House” by Norman Ravvin, , 357-360
Parchment #10:“Creeping” by Sharon Abron Drache, 363-369; “Three Poems From the March of the Living April 2000” by Lisa Lidor, 371.
Final Book Reviews presented.
April 2: Week Twelve: Presentations and Discussion of Term Research Assignments
April 10 - Noon: Term Assignment Due