Comparative Constitutional Law: The Case of Israel
Professor Ayelet Blecher-Prigat
This course introduces key issues in constitutional law and theory, using a comparative perspective with a focus on the Israeli constitutional system. The course will explore topics such as the principles and controversies surrounding judicial review, the evolution of Israeli constitutionalism, the interpretation and application of fundamental rights like equality, privacy, and freedom of religion. By examining these issues through a comparative perspective, students will develop critical thinking skills and a deeper appreciation for the role of constitutional frameworks in addressing complex societal debates. The course also offers insights into challenges that mirror those faced in the United States, particularly regarding the respective roles of the judiciary, the legislature, and the constitution in resolving divisive issues.
In Search of Lost Time: Memory in Legal Principle and Practice
Professor Daniel Levy
Human memory plays a key role in legal thought, institutions, and procedures. In a wide range of circumstances – evaluating the reliability of testimony, appreciating challenges to judges and jurors in learning and retaining information presented during a trial, assessing intent and culpability for plagiarism, or considering the admissibility of a plaintiff’s repressed memories – assumptions about the nature of memory play a vital role. For each topic, the relevant basic cognitive psychology and neuroscience information will be introduced in non-specialist terms. We will then consider the implications of those insights for philosophical attitudes, legal processes, and societal institutions, including memory in restorative justice, and collective memory in public spaces and monuments.
Global Cinema: Israeli Cinema and Media Cultures
Professor Aner Preminger
This course will examine the evolution of Israeli cinema in the context of global cinema history and Israeli culture. In the global context, we will discuss the nature of the interaction between Israeli cinematic developments and cinematic developments worldwide. In the domestic context, we will explore Israeli cinema as a mirror reflecting social and political developments within Israeli society and as a source of influence on Israeli culture and society. Beginning with the 1960s and the introduction of modernism into Israeli cinema, we will focus on film images and narratives that grapple with the paradoxes of a polarized society in search of its identity, including the perception and representation of marginalized communities, particularly women, ethnic minorities, and Palestinian citizens of Israel. We will also examine representations within Israeli films of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza and Arab citizens of other countries.
Digital Cinema Production: Wo.man with a Movie Camera
Professor Aner Preminger
This course examines the space between reality and fiction, the personal and the public, and the intimate and the social—exploring how cinema captures society through the lens of the personal camera. We will engage with modernist cinema and the private self through the work of Soviet filmmaker Dziga Vertov, French filmmakers Jean Rouch and Edgar Morin, and Israeli filmmaker David Perlov. Special focus will be given to the individual "I" as expressed through Perlov’s cinematic voice and vision, tracing the evolution of the personal film diary and its contemporary possibilities in the age of the iPhone camera.
Pack Light: Traversing Translation & Hebrew Literature
Professor Yael Segalovitz
In this course, we’ll trace the footprints of literary translation—the cultural, geo-political, theological, and linguistic knowledge embedded in every utterance we produce, and the acute challenges that arise when carrying these elements across languages. We’ll tackle questions like: How should a translator handle an idiom with no equivalent in the target language (like “barking up the wrong tree”)? Is a translation’s job to capture the original’s unique flavor or to read smoothly to its new audience? And what’s the experience of reading someone else’s words filtered through a translator’s sensibility? Hebrew literature—born from a people in constant movement and containing echoes of multiple languages—presents a particularly fertile ground for exploring translation.
We will engage in hands-on translation exercises accommodating students with or without second language proficiency. Some of the writers and thinkers we will be discussing will join us for live class discussions! Translation, as many who practice it will tell you, is reading at its most intense. By semester’s end, you’ll not only better understand the intricacies of translation and gain insights into modern Hebrew literature but also sharpen analytical skills that extend far beyond this course. Bring your passport—we’ll be crossing linguistic borders together.
How Modernity Shaped the Landscape: East, West, and the Cities of Israel/Palestine
Professor Noah Hysler Rubin
The multifaceted landscape of Israel/Palestine—its land and its people—has been shaped by processes of global modernization and Western colonial rivalry. As a result, the region’s urban and physical environments bear the imprint of pivotal political, economic, and cultural forces: from the late Ottoman Empire and the height of British imperialism to the rise of both Zionism and Arab nationalism, culminating in the establishment of the State of Israel.
This course approaches modernization and modernity as theoretical frameworks that not only illuminate the development of the Israeli/Palestinian city but also offer critical tools for understanding the broader patterns of Western urban transformation in the modern era. Through this lens, we will interrogate conventional dichotomies—East/West, Old/New, Traditional/Modern, Progressive/Backwards—as they appear in the local context. These categories will serve as analytical entry points into the geography of the region.
Our exploration will uncover a diverse array of modernities—Palestinian, Ottoman, British, Zionist, and Israeli—whose spatial legacies overlap, converge, and at times, stand in stark contradiction. Together, they form a complex and contested urban fabric that reflects the ongoing negotiation of identity, power, and place.
History and Sociology of Modern Israel
Professor Yifat Moas
In recent years—and especially since the October 7th massacre and the subsequent war between Israel and Hamas—global discourse around Israel has become increasingly polarized, often reduced to simplistic labels of "pro-" or "anti-" Israel. Yet many remain unfamiliar with the complex history and social fabric of the country. This course surveys the historical events, social transformations, and cultural dynamics that have shaped Israeli society—from the emergence of the Zionist movement and the founding of the state to the present day—offering students a multidimensional understanding of Israel in both historical and contemporary contexts.
Mizrahim in Israel
Professor Yifat Moas
While Jews are often imagined as having European roots, a significant portion of Israel’s Jewish population descends from once-thriving communities in Arab and Islamic countries. Their culture, and the ethnic relations between Mizrahi Jews (i.e., Jews of Middle Eastern and North African origin) and Ashkenazi Jews (with roots in Europe), have fundamentally shaped Israeli society. This course explores the history, culture, and evolving identity of Mizrahi Jews—from their historical experience in Arab and Islamic lands, through their immigration and struggles in Israel, to their cultural revival and growing political influence. These historical and cultural dynamics offer insights into the diverse forces that have shaped Israeli society, both past and present.