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CLASSICAL RABBINIC TEXTS IN HEBREW
Hebrew Studies 448 Prof. Jonathan Schofer
Jewish Studies 448 1352 Van Hise Hall
Religious Studies 448 Tel: 263-2835
Autumn 2004 Email: jwschofer@wisc.edu
Van Hise 587 Office Hours: Tuesday 4:00-5:00
TuTh 2:30-3:45 Thursday 11:30-12:30
and by appointment
Course Description
This course provides an introduction to the Hebrew texts of the Classical or Talmudic period of Rabbinic Judaism. Our goals are threefold: (1) to build skills in interpreting a range of sources, including liturgy, Mishnah, Tosefta, midrash, and narrative; (2) to address certain major topics in rabbinic religion; and (3) to introduce key reference books and critical editions so that you will be able to study on your own.
Our readings are divided into the following units:
1) A series of texts centered upon the Shema. This unit will give exposure to a variety of genres, including liturgy, law, midrash, and narrative. It will also move roughly from easier to more difficult materials.
2) Narrative
3) Midrash
4) Maxims
5) larger literary compositions
If we complete these units before the end of the semester, I will provide additional readings.
The most important part of this course is regular and thorough preparation of texts for class sessions. I will also assign homework – short written exercises – on a regular basis.
Books
A Hebrew Bible
Marcus Jastrow, Dictionary of the Targumim, Talmud Babli, Yerushalmi, and Midrashic
Literature
H. L. Strack and Günter Stemberger, Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash
Course Reader (available at Bob's Copy Shop at University Square)
recommended: Miguel Pérez Fernández, An Introductory Grammar of Rabbinic Hebrew
Requirements and Grading
1. Attendance is mandatory.
2. Careful preparation of assigned texts, reading out loud and translating, and participation in class discussions are essential aspects of involvement in the course. Your email address with the university must be current, or you should inform me of an appropriate one to add to the class email list. On a regular basis, we will send out information and comments by email to help you through the readings.
3. Homework (30%) – Short written assignments will be given on a regular basis. Homework should be submitted at the beginning of class on the day it is due. I do not accept homework over email.
This is the policy regarding late papers:
If you hand in homework up to one class session late, the grade will be reduced half a letter (A to AB, AB to B, etc.).
If you hand in homework between on class session and one week late, the grade will be reduced a full letter (A to B, AB to BC, etc.).
After that, and until the final exam, you can hand in late work, but the grade will be reduced two full letters (A to C, AB to D, B to D, and lower grades will be an F).
4. Midterm (30%) – An in-class midterm will be given on Tuesday, November 2. It will consist of (a) translating and analyzing passages that we have studied in class, and (b) answering questions based on the "references and background" readings (see below) and other secondary sources.
5. Final Exam (40%) – The final will consist of translating and analyzing passages that we have studied in class as well as one unseen passage. It will be on Tuesday, December 21 at 5:05 P.M.
6. University policies on plagiarism and cheating can be found at:
http://www.wisc.edu/students/conduct01.htm
7. On Tuesday November 23, there will be no class (I will be in San Antonio attending the Annual Meetings of the Society for Biblical Literature and American Academy of Religion).
Preparation Guidelines
You should be able to parse/decline every word in the text:
For every Biblical verse, check the Bible and read the entire verse in Hebrew. Read the broader context in Hebrew or English. Always think about the differences between literal and midrashic interpretations of a given verse. How is the rabbinic text built upon biblical exegesis?
I highly recommend that you prepare for class in study groups, which we will arrange in the first week of the course.
References and Background (these readings should be done during the first five weeks of the course, and they will be among the materials covered by the midterm)
Lambdin, Introduction to Biblical Hebrew, selections (Reader 91-100)
Strack and Stemberger, Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash, "General Introduction"
"Tanna" and "Amora" in Encyclopedia Judaica (Reader 101-110)
David Stern, "Midrash and Indeterminacy" (Reader 111-127)
David Stern and Daniel Boyarin, "An Exchange on the Mashal" (Reader 129-135)
Unit 1: The Shema
Shema
the morning Shema (Reader 1-6)
Ismar Elbogen, Jewish Liturgy: A Comprehensive History, 16-24 (Reader 7-15)
Moshe Weinfeld, Deuteronomy 1-11, on Deut. 6:4-25 (Reader 16-30)
Mishnah
m. Berakhot 1 (Reader 31-32)
Strack and Stemberger, Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash, "The Mishnah"
Avot 1:1 (Reader 33)
Mekhilta to Exodus 12:8 (Reader 34)
Avot de Rabbi Natan, version A on the "fence of the sages" (Reader 35-36)
Midrash
Sifre Deuteronomy 32 (Reader 37-39)
Strack and Stemberger, Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash, 233-251, 270-273, and skim 247-359
Narrative
b. Berakhot 61b on the martyrdom of R. Akiva (Reader 40-41)
Strack and Stemberger, Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash, 164-165
Unit 2: Narrative
Honi the Circle Drawer
m. Taanit 3:8 (Reader 43-44)
The Four in the Garden
m. Hagigah 2:1 (Reader 45)
t. Hagigah 2:1-4 (Reader 46-47)
b. Hagigah 15b, selection (Reader 48)
Avot 3:13-16, 4:1-3 (Reader 49-50)
The Oven of Akhnai
m. Baba Metzia 4:10 (Reader 51)
b. Baba Metzia 59b on the Oven of Akhnai (Reader 52-54)
Rubenstein, "Torah, Shame, and 'The Oven of Akhnai,'" page 39 (Reader 55)
Unit 3: Midrash
Moses, God, and the Sea
Mekhilta to Exodus 14:21, two selections (Reader 57-59)
D. Boyarin, "The Sea Resists: Midrash and the (Psycho) Dynamics of Intertextuality" (Reader 60-66)
Strack and Stemberger, Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash, 247-257
Glorifying God
Mekhilta to Exodus 15:2 "This is my God" (Reader 67-69)
Mekhilta to Exodus 12:12 "This month shall be for you" (Reader 70)
D. Boyarin, "Between Intertextuality and History: The Martyrdom of Rabbi Akiva" (Reader 71-77)
God's Presence on Earth
Pesikta de Rav Kahana 1:1 (Reader 78-80)
Strack and Stemberger, Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash, 291-296
Unit 4: Maxims
Avot 2:1, 4, 7-11, 13-16, 3:1 (Reader 81-84)
Unit 5: Larger Literary Compositions
Avot de Rabbi Natan, Version A, Chapter 16, commentary to
yetzer ha-ra‘ (Reader 85-89)