HIS208Y - History of the Jewish People » Uncategorized

Jeopardy

Alexandra Guerson — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 15:15:13 +0000

Thanks to everybody who came to class today to join in a game of Jeopardy; hopefully it was fun! If you want to go through it again, click here to access the game. I should have probably prepared two games considering how quickly you went through this one! Keep in mind that some of the answers need some fleshing out but it’s a good start for reviewing. The game allows only a maximum of 25 terms, so you won’t find all 30 terms you are expected to know for the exam.

Essay answer

Alexandra Guerson — Wed, 31 Mar 2010 02:20:04 +0000

What makes a good essay answer

- same as a regular essay:

thesis stated clearly in the first paragraph
several paragraphs in which you provide evidence for your thesis
conclusion tying everything together

Approach

take time to plan your answer; make sure you read the questions closely and you understand what is being asked.
begin by stating your thesis – do not waste time restating the question; make sure your thesis is not a simple statement of fact but rather an answer to a why question. In the exam from last term, for example, saying that Jews fared better under Islam was correct but you only got full marks if you made it clear why
Cite the evidence – stronger answers use specific points to make their case and shows an understanding of historical context. Using primary sources add particular weight to any historical essay so don’t leave out the material covered in tutorial! Weaker answers are based on vague generalizations or assumptions.
The greatest single problem in essay answers is the lack of supporting examples.Remember that Jews were not expelled from England, France, or Spain in the middle ages because Christians hated the Jews but because of specific political, social, and cultural changes in those societies. Although the results were the same, the reasons were different in Spain, France or England.
As in any essay, make sure to acknowledge any counter evidence. If you discount counter evidence, you need to make sure you explain why.
Stick to the point
Tie your essay together by stating your conclusions in the end

Final exam

Alexandra Guerson — Sat, 27 Mar 2010 03:14:17 +0000

Structure

part 1 – Identification questions. Students will be given 10 terms and will need to identify 5. The 10 terms will be taken out of a list of 30 posted on Blackboard. Worth 30%
part 2 – Students will write one of two essays. In this essay, both choices involve making comparisons between content from the first term and the second term. Worth 35%
part 3 – Students will write another essay, again choosing from two possibilities. In this case, both choices focus exclusively on content from the second term. Worth 35%

Approach

As Prof. Hollander highlighted during the review session last week, your job as a historian is to pay attention to patterns (how things continue over time; how are they similar in different places) as well as differences (how they change over time, how the same things take different shape in different places)

Some of what we’ve studied this term

the impact of modernity from the 18th to the 20th c
emancipation – the ways emancipation was experienced differently
spiritual reactions to emancipation- Jewish Reformation
- other reactions to emancipation - antisemitism
- different and new paths Jews took in reacting to those difficulties in the old world
- Zionism, socialism as a reaction
- context of WWI produced an opportunity for Zionism to be put in practice
change in character of british mandate
Jews of Arab lands gave you an idea of differences in Arab lands
differences between those and European experiences
The Holocausto is this a continuation of past antisemitsm?
o a break from old patterns? something new?
Israel, Zionism
o same questions can be asked about those two – something new? a break? or continuation?
in gathering of exiles -> are we talking about a conclusion? or is it a break from the past
assimilation in the US -> in what ways is it new? or is it a logical continuation from the past?

Main tip – remember to back up your points with examples. If you argue that the state of Israel represents a break, make sure to explain why, citing evidence from the course. Be careful not to overgeneralize.

Winter term

Alexandra Guerson — Thu, 24 Dec 2009 00:47:12 +0000

As promised, here’s the lowdown of the changes for the new term:

tutorials resume on the second week of classes; that means Jan 12 and 13.
lectures resume on Jan 6th at a new classroom: SS 1085

I’ll be posting the exam marks on Blackboard in the first week of classes and handing back the exams in the first tutorial. Enjoy the break and I’m looking forward to seeing you in January.

Exam prep

Alexandra Guerson — Sat, 05 Dec 2009 03:02:25 +0000

For those of you who missed tutorial this week, I distributed a handout with tips on how to prepare for history exams. As mentioned both in lecture and tutorial for the past couple of weeks, the test will be one hour long and you will be required to identify five key persons/movements/concepts out of a list of ten and write one essay out of a choice of two. The essay questions will be quite broad and it will require you to draw from material from the whole semester. Just think about some of main themes we looked at this term.

Download the handout distributed in class here.

Check the exam date/time here.

Tutorial #10 – Next week

Alexandra Guerson — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 14:45:40 +0000

I have posted the readings for next week above. As you know, next week is the final tutorial for the semester – we will be going over some of the main themes discussed in the course so far as well as some strategies for preparing for the test.

Readings for each week

Alexandra Guerson — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 19:11:37 +0000

I was asked to upload the list of readings for each week. You’ll find it under “readings” above. Cheers! Hope you all had a good break.

The case of the missing books

Alexandra Guerson — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 09:34:06 +0000

On October 5th, a student in the class emailed me to let me know the books had made it to the shelves at the bookstore and she had gotten her copy of the sourcebook. At some point last week, other students emailed me to let me know that although the system accused seven copies of the book available in the store, no one at the bookstore could locate them. Some were even told that they never ordered new books. I once again went to the bookstore this weekend, and I can report that they have found six of the seven missing copies. I saw them myself. If you still don’t have your copy, you can now safely proceed to the bookstore.

Meanwhile, here’s a link to the first edition of the book.

Useful resource

Alexandra Guerson — Mon, 28 Sep 2009 17:14:27 +0000

At the end of each text of the Marcus anthology, you’ll notice a bibliography. In the new edition of the book, these include references to entries from the Encyclopaedia Judaica, one of the most valuable resources in Jewish Studies. When doing the assigned reading for class, consider consulting this encyclopaedia – it is available online through the U of T Library homepage. Just click on e-Resources and search for Encyclopaedia Judaica. You’ll want to consult the second edition.

Tutorial 1 – Jews in Early Medieval Europe & Jews and the Rise of Islam

Alexandra Guerson — Mon, 21 Sep 2009 02:42:43 +0000

Readings:
Efron, 147-8, 157-8, 160-1, 161-2, 164, 116-21
Marcus, no 3.I, 4, 22, 48, 72

When doing the readings this week, consider:
- What differences do you see between Jews under Christianity and Jews under Islam?
- What can these documents tell us about Jewish life in Europe and the Mediterranean in the 7th-9th century?