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HIST394
History and Memory: A Chinese-Jewish Comparison
HIST394 SP
Crosslistings: EAST394
Not Currently Offered
The theme of this seminar is the tension between the public
past and personal memory as expressed in the Chinese and
the Jewish traditions. Readings focus on the various ways
in which history has been structured in traditional China
and pre-Enlightenment Judaism and the limited but
persistent ways in which individual memory has been able
to question -- and at times, even alter -- the meaning of
publicly remembered events. This latter process will be
examined through a comparison of Cultural Revolution and
Holocaust memoirs.
This seminar is envisioned as a contribution to the History
Department offerings in critical approaches area. It is
intended for upper-level majors and nonmajors. This course
will further the teaching in comparative historiography that
I began fifteen years ago in the seminar "Historiography
East and West."
MAJOR READINGS
Bernard Lewis, HISTORY: REMEMBERED,
RECOVERED AND INVENTED
S. Owen, REMBERANCES: THE EXPERIENCE OF THE PAST IN CHINESE
CLASSICAL LITERATURE
Yosef Yerushalmi, ZACHOR: JEWISH HISTORY AND JEWISH MEMORY
Yang Chiang, LIFE IN CADRE SCHOOL
Milan Kundera, THE BOOK OF LAUGHTER AND FORGETTING
Saul Friedlander, WHEN MEMORY COMES
William Casey, REMEMBERING
Zhang Xianliang, GETTING USED TO DYING
Lawrence Langer, THE RUINS OF MEMORY
EXAMINATIONS AND ASSIGNMENTS
Writing requirements: 1) Each
student will write a 1-2 pp. reflective essay on each
week's reading, 2) Each student will write a research essay
on a topic of his/her choice of 15-20 pp. These essays will
be presented to the class during the last three sessions
of the seminar.
ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS and/or COMMENTS
Unless
preregistered students attend the first class meeting or
communicate directly with the instructor prior to the first
class, they will be dropped from the class list. NOTE:
Students must still submit a completed Drop/Add form to the
Registrar's Office.
COURSE FORMAT: Discussion Seminar
REGISTRATION INFORMATION
Level: UG Credit: 1.00
Prerequisites:
None
Last Updated on MAR-22-1999
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Copyright Wesleyan University, Middletown, Connecticut, 06459