New Article: Reshef, Written Hebrew of the Revival Generation

Reshef, Yael. “Written Hebrew of the Revival Generation as a Distinct Phase in the Evolution of Modern Hebrew.” Journal of Semitic Studies 61.1 (2016): 187-213.
 
URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/jss/fgv036
 
Abstract

A well-known fact is that the consolidation of the use of Hebrew for practical communication after World War I involved the transformation of Hebrew into a spoken language. The aim of this article is to show that the 1920s witnessed a marked transformation in the written language as well. Focusing on written texts from the emergence period of Modern Hebrew, it is shown that a series of features that were commonly used by revival generation writers were not absorbed into the mundane written practices of the emergent speech community. Based on this marked change, this article suggests to recognize the period between the 1880s and the 1920s as a distinct phase in the evolution of written Modern Hebrew.

 

 

 

New Book: Burla and Lawrence, eds. Australia and Israel

Burla, Shahar, and Dashiel Lawrence. Australia and Israel. A Diasporic, Cultural and Political Relationship. Eastbourne: Sussex Academic Press, 2015.

 

 

Australia and the State of Israel have maintained a cordial if at times ambiguous relationship. The two countries are geographically isolated: strategic, economic and cultural interests lie increasingly with Asia for one, and with the US and the EU for the other. But for all that divides the two states, there is also much they share. Australia played an important role in the Jewish state’s establishment in 1948, and is home to the most Zionist centered Jewish diaspora globally. Jewishness for most Australian Jews has been shaped and defined by engagement with and support for Israel. At the heart of this engagement is a small but thriving Israeli community within the larger multicultural Australia.

Australia and Israel: A Diasporic, Cultural and Political Relationship draws attention to the important historical and contemporary nexus between this diaspora and its imagined homeland. The collection also considers the ways in which these two states mobilise national myths and share environmental challenges. In recent time relations between the two states have been tested by the illegal use of Australian passports in 2010, the mysterious death of dual national Ben Zygier, and growing disquiet within the ranks of the Australian Labor Party and the Australian Greens over Israel’s handling of the Israel-Palestinian conflict. One prominent world-wide issue is the Palestinian BDS (Boycotts, Divestments and Sanctions) movement, which has attracted sympathy and support that has brought about substantive differences of opinion regarding its legitimacy within the Jewish Australian community. These issues demonstrate the multifaceted and complex picture of two very different nations, that nevertheless share an abiding connection.

 

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements
Introduction: Why the Book?
Shahar Burla and Dashiel Lawrence

Part One Australia and Israel – Diasporic Relationship

1 Rewriting the Rules of Engagement: New Australian Jewish
Connections with Israel
Dashiel Lawrence

2 The Personal, the Political and the Religious: Bnei Akiva
Australia and its Relationship with Israel
Ari Lander

3 Israeli Government and Diaspora Mobilisation: The Flotilla
to Gaza and the Australian Jewry as a Case Study
Shahar Burla

4 The Place of Hebrew and Israel Education in Australian
Jewish Schools
Suzanne Rutland and Zehavit Gross

5 The Ausraeli Approach: the Diasporic Identity of Israelis
in Australia
Ran Porat

Part Two Australia and Israel – Political and Cultural Relationship

6 Overcoming Water Scarcity and Inequity in Arid Lands:
Comparing Water Management in Australia and Israel
Dominic Skinner and Stephanie Galaitsi

7 Ben Zygier’s Story and Australia–Israel Relations
Ingrid Matthews

8 A Fight Worth Having: Rudd, Gillard, Israel and the
Australian Labor Party
Alex Benjamin Burston-Chorowicz

9 An Alliance of Forgetting: National Narratives of Legitimacy
on the Occasion of Israel–Australia’s Joint Stamp Issue
Commemorating the Battle of Beersheba
Micaela Sahhar

Part Three Australia, Israel and the Boycott Divestment and
Sanction Scheme

10 The Australian Greens and the Israeli–Palestinian Conflict
Philip Mendes

11 Academic Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions: Implications
for Australian–Israeli Relations
Ingrid Matthews and James Arvanitakis

Conclusion: First Cousinhood, Political Unease, and the Limits
of Comparison
Fania Oz-Salzberger

The Editors and Contributors
Index

 

Shahar Burla is a research Associate at the Sydney Jewish Museum. He is the author of Political Imagination in the Diaspora: The Construction of a Pro-Israeli Narrative (2013). He has received several awards, including a President’s Fellowship for outstanding PhD student, Bar-Ilan University and the Menahem Begin Foundation academic award.

Dashiel Lawrence is a doctoral candidate at the School of Historical and Philosophical Studies, University of Melbourne. His research interests include Jewish diaspora–Israel contemporary relations, and Jewish critics of Israel.

 

 

Job: U Cincinnati, Assistant Professor in Israel and Modern Jewish Thought

https://www.h-net.org/jobs/job_display.php?id=47483

The Department of Judaic Studies at the University of Cincinnati invites applications for an Assistant Professor in Israel and Modern Jewish Thought.   This is a full-time tenure-track position, beginning August 1, 2014.

The successful candidate will be a promising scholar with demonstrated excellence in research and teaching. Qualified candidates will be familiar with the critical, academic study of Israel and Modern Jewish Thought within a broader, global context. Also desirable would be background in theories and methods in the study of religion, competency in Modern Hebrew, and the ability to integrate digital technologies into the research and teaching of Jewish Studies.   Teaching responsibilities include the introductory courses Modern Jewish Civilization, Modern Jewish Thinkers, and Modern Israel, advanced courses on Israel and Jewish thought, and advising research projects of advanced undergraduate and graduate students.  The successful candidate will also serve on committees and generally work to further the department’s growth and prestige. We are seeking individuals whose research and teaching activities are consistent with our mission, which emphasizes a commitment to diversity and to collaborative projects nationally and internationally.

Qualifications: Ph.D. in hand by July 31, 2014, clear evidence of research and publication activity, solid evidence of teaching effectiveness, and knowledge of Modern Hebrew.

Applicants for this position must apply online to http://www.jobsatuc.com (position number 213UC6187). Cover letter should address the candidate’s effectiveness and consistency with both the position and the mission of the Department and indicate experience and success with teaching and interacting with culturally diverse populations. Include a current vita, samples of scholarly work, and evidence of teaching effectiveness. Three letters of recommendation should be sent electronically to Matthew Kraus matthew.kraus@uc.edu  (phone: 513-556-2298) or mailed to Judaic Studies Search Committee C/O Matthew Kraus Dept. of Judaic Studies, University of Cincinnati, PO Box 210169 Cincinnati, OH 45221-0169. Applications must be submitted by November 7, 2013 and will not be considered complete until all letters of recommendation have been received. For questions, please contact Professor Jana Braziel, Chair of Search Committee (513) 556-0350 [jana.braziel@uc.edu].

Application deadline:  November 7, 2013. Screening of applications will begin promptly on November 7 and will continue until the position is filled. The University of Cincinnati is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer.  Women, people of color, people with disability and veterans are encouraged to apply.  Preliminary interviews will be conducted at the annual meetings of AAR/SBL and AJS.