American Jewish Writers

American Jewish Writers
Esther Schor
Princeton University
Spring 2009

· Chametzky, et al. Jewish American Literature: A Norton Anthology, Norton (N)
· Lazarus, Emma. Selected Poems and Other Writings ed. Eiselein, Broadview
· Cahan, Abraham. Yekl and the Imported Bridegroom, Dover
· Yezierska, Anzia. The Bread Givers, Persea
· Roth, Henry. Call it Sleep, Picador
· Malamud, Bernard. The Assistant, FSG
· Bellow, Saul. The Adventures of Augie March, Penguin
· Roth, Philip. Goodbye Columbus, Vintage
· Singer, I. B. Enemies, A Love Story, FSG
· Spiegelman, Maus I, Pantheon
· Roth, Philip. American Pastoral, Vintage
· Sarna, Jonathan. American Judaism, Yale (optional)

Readings:

Week 1 - Introduction (B): “The Golden Land”

· Halpern, “In the Golden Land” (1919)
· Leyeles “New York” (1918)
· Schwartz, “Blue Grass,” from Kentucky (1925)
· Leyvik “To America” (1955)
· Levine, “Sources” (1981)
· Rich, from “Eastern War Time” (1991)
· Koestenbaum, “Best-selling Jewish Porn Films” (2006)
· Paley, “Untitled [Thank God there is no god]” (2008)

Week 2 - Jewish Founders

· Leeser, “Dangers and Defenses of Judaism” (N) 75-82
· Wise, “The Fourth of July” (N) 84-86
· Lazarus, 43-106, 175-288

Week 3 - The Great Wave: Jewish Immigrants, 1882-1939

· Cahan, Yekl (1896)
· Yezierska, The Bread Givers (1925)

Week 4

· H. Roth, Call it Sleep (1934) Books I-III
· D. Schwartz, “In Dreams Begin Responsibilities” (N) 540-545 (1937)

Week 5

· H. Roth, Call it Sleep, Book IV
· Halpern (N) 246-253
· Glatstein (N) 370-378
· Dropkin (N) 259-262

Week 6 - Post-War Fictions: Ethnicity and Assimilation

· Malamud, The Assistant (1957)

Week 7

· Bellow, The Adventures of Augie March (1953)

Week 8

· Olson, Tell me a Riddle (1961) (N) 689-715
· Roth, Goodbye Columbus (1962)

Week 9 - I. B. Singer: “Noble” Laureate

· Singer, “Gimpel the Fool” (1953) (N) 614-623
· “Taibele and her Demon” (1978) (B)
· “Shiddah and Kuziba” (1961) (B)
· Singer, Enemies, A Love Story (1966/1972)

Week 10 - “Second-Hand Smoke”: Writing the Holocaust

· Spiegelman, Maus I, A Survivor’s Tale: My Father Bleeds History (1986)
· Maus II (excerpt) (1991) (N) 1095-1104
· Leyvik “Song of the Yellow Patch (1940) (N) 285-287
· Glatstein “Good Night, World” (1946), “Without Jews” (1946) (N) 373-5
· Ozick, “The Shawl” (1980) (N) 896-89

Week 11 - Women, God and Other Challenges

· Paley, “The Loudest Voice” (1959) (N) 795-804
· “An Interest in Life” (1959) (B)
· “Wants” (1974) (B)
· “Living” (1974) (B)
· “A Midrash on Happiness” (B)
· Poems from Fidelity (B)
· Rich, “Yom Kippur 1984” (N) 996-998
· Ostriker, “Kol Nidre” (2008) (B)
· Osherow, poems (1994-6) (N) 1129-1133
· Goodman, “The Four Questions” (1996) (N) 1134-1148

Week 12 - Roth’s Doubles

· P. Roth, American Pastoral (1998)

Websites
We will keep up with a few websites that report on current developments in American Jewish culture. Please read one article from among the following websites each week before class.

1) Nextbook: http://www.nextbook.org
2) Forward (Arts & Culture): http://www.forward.com/sections/jewish-arts-culture
3) Zeek@Jewcy: http://www.jewcy.com/zeek

Films
The following optional films have been put on reserve. I recommend that you view at least two.

· Crosland, The Jazz Singer (1927)
· Goldin, “Cantor on Trial” (1931) (short film)
· Silver, Hester Street (1975)
· Mazursky, Enemies, A Love Story (1989)
· Dorman, Arguing the World (1998)
· Allen, Radio Days (1987)

Writing Assignments

1) Two “starter” papers max. 1-2 pp. to be read aloud in class.
2) Paper #1 6-8 pp.
3) Paper #2 6-8 pp.