Jews and Muslims: Perceptions and Polemics

Catalog description

The current state of Jewish-Muslim relations is tragically fraught with mutual suspicion and competing historical narratives that are manifest as much in the religious as in the political arena. In the midst of this fractious debate, it is sometimes forgotten that Jews have for centuries been a vital presence throughout the Islamic world and have contributed in rich and dynamic ways to Islamic civilization right up to contemporary times. This course explores the intricate relations between Jews and Muslims from the formative period of Islam in the Middle Ages to the exodus of Middle Eastern and North African Jewish communities in the twentieth century to the religious and political tensions in contemporary times. The course will consider not only the complex dynamics of perceptions and relations in the past, but the human, cultural, and political ramifications of this vital historical relationship in the present. We will explore Jewish-Muslim relations through religious texts, historical documents, memoir literature, music, and film. The main focus of class time will consist of discussion of the required readings or other material. Your preparation and participation is vital. Each of you is expected to take careful notes on the readings and to formulate at least one question on some aspect of the readings that you would like the class to consider or that you would like clarified. Be sure to articulate your question and bring it with you to class. A portion of each class will be addressed to your questions.