Last modified: 04 Oct 2022 14:20
During the 19th and early 20th centuries, Jewish emancipation was tied to broader movements for social and civil liberties, enabling Jews to participate in wider society – in some places, for the first time. This module asks students to think critically about this period and its impact on modern understandings of Jewishness, antisemitism, colonialism, and Jewish/non-Jewish relations. Exploring Jewish history at the turn of the century can offer a greater understanding not just of modern Europe, but of the social and political world today.
| Study Type | Undergraduate | Level | 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Term | First Term | Credit Points | 30 credits (15 ECTS credits) |
| Campus | Aberdeen | Sustained Study | No |
| Co-ordinators |
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This module asks students to think critically about modern understandings of the Jewish community and Jewish/non-Jewish relations, through European Jewish history at the turn of the twentieth century.
Geographically, we will explore Eastern, Central, and Western Europe, as well as the colonial holdings of Britain and France in the SWANA region (South West Asia/North Africa). Students will explore histories and philosophies that still reverberate in our world today. They will be expected to engage with difficult and often sensitive issues around gender, race, antisemitism, and colonialism.
In order to do that, this special subject will require extensive reading, but also engagement with alternative sources. History is not just analysis of the written word. We will consider “cultural media” in the broadest possible terms – everything from contemporary literature to art and cartoons, religious texts, photography and cartography, exhibitions, sensory landscapes and even food. Students will be expected to do their assigned readings and source analyses, in order to better understand the diversity of the Jewish community of this period. Further, their assignments are expected to incorporate the variety of sources made available to them, as well as ones found through their own research.
Students should come out of this module with a better understanding of the diversity within Modern European Jewish history and culture, as well as with sharpened critical thinking and analytical skills, and the ability to effectively communicate complex ideas both verbally and in writing.
Information on contact teaching time is available from the course guide.
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 30 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | 15 | Feedback Weeks | 18 | |
| Feedback |
Students will produce a 3000-word essay. Relevant support will be provided. |
Word Count | 3000 | |
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual | Analyse | Draw comparisons between a range of European and colonised Jewish experiences. |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Understand and evaluate historiography around the complex histories of the European Jewish history. |
| Factual | Understand | Develop understanding of European Jewish thought, histories and cultures at the turn of the twentieth century. |
| Reflection | Apply | Use effective writing skills to communicate complex historical and theoretical ideas in a clear and engaging way |
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 10 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | 11 | Feedback Weeks | 13 | |
| Feedback |
Students will produce a 12-15 minute gobbet presentation. Relevant support will be provided. |
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| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual | Analyse | Draw comparisons between a range of European and colonised Jewish experiences. |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Understand and evaluate historiography around the complex histories of the European Jewish history. |
| Factual | Understand | Develop understanding of European Jewish thought, histories and cultures at the turn of the twentieth century. |
| Reflection | Apply | Use effective writing skills to communicate complex historical and theoretical ideas in a clear and engaging way |
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 60 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | 19,20 | Feedback Weeks | ||
| Feedback |
Students will complete a take-home exam comprising of gobbet discussions and essay-style questions drawn from material throughout the course. There will be a fixed period for completion of the exam in line with departmental policy. |
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| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual | Analyse | Draw comparisons between a range of European and colonised Jewish experiences. |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Understand and evaluate historiography around the complex histories of the European Jewish history. |
| Factual | Understand | Develop understanding of European Jewish thought, histories and cultures at the turn of the twentieth century. |
| Reflection | Apply | Use effective writing skills to communicate complex historical and theoretical ideas in a clear and engaging way |
There are no assessments for this course.
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Reflection | Apply | Use effective writing skills to communicate complex historical and theoretical ideas in a clear and engaging way |
| Conceptual | Analyse | Draw comparisons between a range of European and colonised Jewish experiences. |
| Factual | Understand | Develop understanding of European Jewish thought, histories and cultures at the turn of the twentieth century. |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | Understand and evaluate historiography around the complex histories of the European Jewish history. |
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