MA in Jewish Studies

TH 9100, Being Jewish in Britain

Credits:  				30

Course Lecturer:  	Dr. Bill Williams  

Course Aims::

This course unit introduces students to the empirical study of the Jewish identity in contemporary Britain and to the collection and interpretation of oral testimony.

 

Course Objectives:

Students will be expected to

1. become familiar with the methodological and conceptual problems surrounding the use of oral evidence;
2. to develop an ability to interpret such evidence in the light of secondary and documentary sources;
3. to place such interpretations in the context of modern Jewish history;
4. to engage actively in the current debates surrounding 'Jewish Identity'; and
5. to use oral history as a means of tracking the particular ways in which Jewishness is expressed and sustained in modern Britain.

Reading:

Paul Thompson, The Voice of the Past: Oral History (Oxford University Press 1978)

Stephen Brook, The Club: The Jews of Modern Britain (London 1989)

Howard Cooper & Paul Morrison, A Sense of Belonging: Dilemmas in British Jewish Identity (London 1991)

Jonathan Sacks, Will We Have Jewish Grandchildren?: Jewish Continuity And How To Achieve It (London 1994).

Weekly					Tuesdays 3-6 (WLG13)				
				
Taught in: 			Both Semesters

Assessment:				

MA in Jewish Studies | Centre for Jewish Studies | Religions and Theology Home Page | Postgraduate Study

e-mail: Bernard.Jackson@man.ac.uk