The Jewish Lives series, published by Yale University Press, explores the stories of historical and present-day influential individuals whose Jewish experiences shaped their contributions to culture, science, and politics. Local professors lead these book discussions.
Showing up to write isn’t half the battle – it is the battle. This class will help you develop writing habits that will boost your confidence, help you find your "voice," and keep your writing process in motion.
The coexistence of Orthodoxy and feminism sounds like an oxymoron to many. However, in today’s world, there is a vibrant movement to develop the social and religious roles of women within Orthodox communities.
Herodotus' work has come down to us as the first composition of Greek history and presents us with an incredibly expansive and detailed amalgam of theology, science, theater, and philosophy.
There is a standard Jewish joke that our bodies serve only one purpose...to hold up our Yiddishe Kups (our Jewish minds). Judaism, however, does teach about the importance of caring for our bodies; they are holy vessels given to us by God. We will examine some texts on the relationship between our minds, our bodies and our spirits...
Join Anthony Wexler to delve into two powerful, and very different, works of Holocaust literature: Elie Wiesel’s iconic first-person testimony, Night (1960), and Art Spiegelman’s remarkable graphic novel, Maus (1991).
The Jewish Sermon on the Mount compares the universal ethics of Judaism and Christianity. The class will analyze "Judeo-Christian" ethics showing the similarities as well as differences between the two faiths. Was Jesus a universalist Jew? Find out in this in-depth discussion.
This course will provide an introduction to conversational Hebrew.
The Roberts Court Law School Faculty, Case Western Reserve University CWRU Law School will discuss the meaning and importance of the Supreme Court's decisions on issues, including LGBT rights, DACA, Trump tax returns, Faithless Elector, and Abortion Rights cases.
With events involving large ensembles and audiences impossible at the moment, chamber music might be a solution to our hunger for live performances, with proper social distancing measures in place for performers and listeners.
Mythology served as the underpinning for many aspects of ancient Egyptian culture. Mummies, pyramids, the afterlife, pharaohs - all of these are rooted in myths that developed and evolved over 4,000 years.
In this class, we will read and discuss a selection of lyric and elegiac poems by Roman authors Catullus and Horace, as well as other poets. Various themes will be examined such as love, humor, friendship, and death and mourning.
In this course, we'll look at the cultural factors that led to the Harlem Renaissance, an artistic movement that arose in Manhattan in the 1920s and included artists, writers, and intellectuals, including the legendary Langston Hughes. We'll dip into blues and jazz, examine some of the visual art, and then read selections from Hughes, W.E.B.
Conversational Hebrew allows students to reach their goal of communicating in Israel's native language as well as enjoy Hebrew Literature, songs, drama and film, read Israeli newspapers and view Israeli television.
This course will examine the presidencies of eight men who came to office without being elected to it and how each affected the country and the world. We will study the power and limits of the American presidency as they apply to our history in critical times.
Conversational Hebrew allows students to reach their goal of communicating in Israel's native language as well as enjoy Hebrew Literature, songs, drama and film, read Israeli newspapers and view Israeli television.
Hebrew literature engages advanced students in fictional novels and plays by leading Israeli authors and playwrights.
The Better Half outlines the ways in which two X chromosomes work to the advantage of women. Reporting on his own medical practice and research as well as that of colleagues in the field, the author’s narrative-based style makes the genetics and bioscience information accessible to the lay audience.
Conversational Hebrew allows students to reach their goal of communicating in Israel's native language as well as enjoy Hebrew Literature, songs, drama and film, read Israeli newspapers and view Israeli television.
Classical Hebrew exposes students to the sights and sounds of the original Biblical Hebrew as it appears in both the Torah and the Hebrew prayers. Students will have multiple opportunities to explore ancient Hebrew texts and their meanings in-depth.
Conversational Hebrew allows students to reach their goal of communicating in Israel's native language as well as enjoy Hebrew Literature, songs, drama and film, read Israeli newspapers and view Israeli television.
Conversational Hebrew allows students to reach their goal of communicating in Israel's native language as well as enjoy Hebrew Literature, songs, drama and film, read Israeli newspapers and view Israeli television.
Conversational Hebrew allows students to reach their goal of communicating in Israel's native language as well as enjoy Hebrew literature, songs, drama and film, read Israeli newspapers and view Israeli television.
Conversational Hebrew allows students to reach their goal of communicating in Israel's native language as well as enjoy Hebrew Literature, songs, drama and film, read Israeli newspapers and view Israeli television.
Recounting a range of gendered experiences - including sexual barter and the dissolution of familial ties - Renata Laqueur's diary is a compelling account of the dehumanization enforced by the Nazis in Bergen-Belsen. Despite many attempts, Laqueur was never able to find an American publisher for her diary.
This course will begin with a review of basic economic concepts and then apply this foundation to a discussion of the economic challenges facing the nation. Starting with a discussion of the views of major economic thinkers, we will then discuss concepts that are critical to an understanding of basic economics.
Specific artists like Édouard Manet, Pablo Picasso, and Jackson Pollock loom large over the dominant history of modern art, leaving other figures underrecognized. If we chart this history without them, what new subjects and ways of telling the story of modern art emerge?
Heading into the 2020 election year, the United States is experiencing what sometimes feels like unprecedented political strife and polarization. This is not, however, the first time that this country has experienced extreme crisis, conflict, and polarization.
Join Steven Windmueller for a look at American Jewish behavior in reaction to our country in crisis.
Flannery O’Connor explained the violent epiphanies in her stories by saying, “To the hard of hearing you shout, and for the almost blind you draw large and startling figures.” In this course, we will look at the “large and startling figures” in the stories from both her 1955 A Good Man is Hard to Find as well as her 1964 Everything
Dante's Divine Comedy is a world literature masterpiece that has come to be regarded as one of our greatest human treasures. It offers an almost encyclopedic presentation of classical and medieval ethics, philosophy, theology, politics, and some of the most imaginative, stirring and beautiful poetry ever written.
This course is a survey of some of the most important and engaging work being done by American women in the literary genre that Lorde calls a “vital necessity of our existence.” The selected texts – by Victoria Chang, Franny Choi, Natalie Diaz, Donika Kelly, Patricia Lockwood, and Claudia Rankine – touch on such broad-ranging themes as grief, te
Join Jodi Maile Kirk (Director of Active Learning) and Heather Meeker (Executive Director) from The Musical Theater Project to examine issues of social justice through musical theater.
Henry Ford was an American icon, innovator, industrialist, and also an ardent antisemite. Ford used his fame and fortune to disseminate his vitriol - blaming Jews for all the ills in America. This class will examine the dark side of the self-made billionaire whose prejudice still resonates today.
Legal themes in literature reflect our fascination with a justice system that sometimes does not appear to be just. Great writers like Shakespeare, Melville, Kafka, among others, ask us to consider what happens when laws are not rational or punishments are unjust.
This on-line book club takes a deep dive into the issues coming out of three points of a triangle, YOU, JUDAISM, and TECHNOLOGY. Before COVID 19, we suffered from our digital devices and other forms of technology driving us when we in fact should be the drivers.
The intersection of Jewish and popular music culture has been an exceedingly rich and productive encounter. Is it Jewish? Is it American? Can we claim the voices of such luminaries as Bob Dylan, Leonard Cohen, Carole King, and a host of others?
A full understanding of American culture requires looking at the role doctrinal and personal religious belief has played in our politics from the time of the Pilgrims through the events of June, 2020. This course will trace some of the major elements of religion and politics in American culture.
In this course, we will study the remarkable breakthroughs across the arts and sciences in the first several decades of the twentieth century.
A close look at 4 individuals who helped shape both the lives of American Jews and the broader American society in which they lived. We will explore their basic biographies as well as the lasting impact their legacies had on both Jewish and American history.
This course focuses on the study of select American artists in Europe from the colonial period to the post-1945 era. These artists were offered exposure to the great ateliers, museums, and frescoes overseas. A few of these artists in the twentieth century remained in the US for their professional training, yet they absorbed European sources.
Journey through all twenty-four books of the Jewish Bible, studying them one-by-one, with master teachers as your guides. This unique approach explores the major themes, broad context, and key events of each book - all in an open, thoughtful, participatory atmosphere.
Journey through all twenty-four books of the Jewish Bible, studying them one-by-one, with master teachers as your guides. This unique approach explores the major themes, broad context, and key events of each book - all in an open, thoughtful, participatory atmosphere.