Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
The twentieth century brought significant changes for many Jews. Some of these were dramatic, even apocalyptic, while others were more gradual shifts in ways of life and worldviews. As traditional lifestyles eroded, Jews began to develop a new understanding of the divine and its place in their lives.
Twentieth Century Jewish Literature examines how these radical changes manifested themselves in modern Jewish literature, by tracing the ways in which the Jewish writers of this period imagined and depicted the divine. In order to understand these writers' approach to the representation of God, it considers distinct strains in Jewish thought, which find their roots both within the Jewish culture and also come from outside Judaism. This book also locates the particular case of modern Jewish literature within the wider context of western literature and culture, exploring how modern Jewish literature can challenge scholarly assumptions of modernist traits in post-Christian western cultures and literatures.
This book would be of interest to students and scholars of Religion and Literature, Jewish Studies, Comparative Literature, Cultural Studies and Modern Intellectual History.
Synopsis
Demonstrating the pervasive presence of God in modern Hebrew literature, this book explores the qualities that twentieth-century Hebrew writers attributed to the divine, and examines their functions against the simplistic dichotomy between religious and secular literature.
The volume follows both chronological and thematic paths, offering a panoramic and multilayered analysis of the various strategies in which modern Hebrew writers, from the turn of the nineteenth century through the twenty-first century pursued in their attempt to represent the divine in the face of metaphysical, theological, and representational challenges. Modern Hebrew literature emerged during the nineteenth century as part of the Haskalah (Jewish Enlightenment) movement, which attempted to break from the traditional modes of Jewish intellectual and social life. The Hebrew literature that arose in this period embraced the rebellious nature of the Haskalah and is commonly characterized as secular in nature, defying Orthodoxy and rejecting God. Nevertheless, this volume shows that modern Hebrew literature relied on traditional narratological and poetic norms in its attempt to represent God. Despite its self-declared secularity, it engaged deeply with traditional problems such as the nature of God, divine presence, and theodicy.
Examining these radical changes, this volume is a key text for scholars and students of modern Hebrew literature, Jewish studies and the intersection of religion and literature.