Study of selected Jewish languages including Hebrew and Yiddish, and Jewish literature including prose, poetry, and drama, from various periods and geographic areas, in the context of time and place. Selections may vary from semester to semester depending on the interests and expertise of the instructor.

Nothing could be easier than translating, it seems; a quick use of Google Translate or an AI chat and you’re good to go. Why, then, does the result so often fall flat or sound off, especially when it comes to complex literary works? In this course, we’ll trace the footprints of literary translation—the cultural, geo-political, theological, and linguistic knowledge embedded in every utterance we produce, and the acute challenges that arise when carrying these elements across languages. Taking on the viewpoints of writers, translators, and readers, we’ll tackle questions like: How should a translator handle an idiom with no equivalent in the target language (like “barking up the wrong tree”)? Is a translation’s job to capture the original’s unique flavor or to read smoothly to its new audience? And what’s the experience of reading someone else’s words filtered through a translator’s sensibility? Hebrew literature—born from a people in constant movement and containing echoes of multiple languages—presents a particularly fertile ground for exploring translation. We’ll follow the work in and about translation by celebrated modern Hebrew writers such as Yehuda Amichai, Shimon Adaf, and Maya Arad, as well as Sayed Kashua, whose writings sophisticatedly navigate the boundaries between Hebrew and Arabic; We will engage in hands-on translation exercises accommodating students with or without second language proficiency. We’ll peek into translators’ behind-the-scenes accounts, including Robert Alter’s work on Bible translation; And grapple with theoretical perspectives from Walter Benjamin through Jacques Derrida to Naomi Seidman on translation’s ethical and political implications. As a special component of the course: some of these writers and thinkers will join us for live class discussions! Translation, as many who practice it will tell you, is reading at its most intense. By semester’s end, you’ll not only better understand the intricacies of translation and gain insights into Modern Hebrew literature but also sharpen analytical skills that extend far beyond this course. Bring your passport—we’ll be crossing linguistic borders together.

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