CIEE, Prague

This course offers an introduction to Jewish Mysticism, or the Kabbalah, which means the literary tradition, one of the oldest branches of Judaism. Due to its location in the center of Europe, Prague is a special place to study the Kabbalah, as the Kabbalists from Germany, Italy, and Spain had an enormous influence on Czech Judaism. According to a Talmudic dictum, there are four levels of explaining the Scripture: peshat, the direct meaning; remez, the allegorical meaning; drash, the inquiry into Scripture; and finally, sod, the secret meaning. During this course students explore the history of the Kabbalah and examine the major trends in Jewish mysticism.

The course focuses on the history of the entity known as “Mitteleuropa” in the last two hundred years from a German perspective. The course covers different definitions and ideological uses of this concept and includes an analysis of its moving boundaries, sometimes including Germany, sometimes not. The main themes studied in the course are the unification of Germany and its rise as a great power, compared to the decline of the Habsburg Empire and the (re)birth of new states following World War I. Students analyze the rise of extremism in the 20s and 30s, especially National Socialism and its impact on the countries of Central Europe, including World War II and its consequences, the disappearance of Central Europe, and Communist rule over Poland, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, and East Germany. The semester ends with the rebirth of Central Europe after the end of Communism.