Jewish Studies: A Theoretical Introduction (Volume 1)

Key Words in Jewish Studies

by Andrew Bush

Jewish Studies , the first volume in a groundbreaking new series, Key Words in Jewish Studies, introduces the basic approach of the series by organizing discussion around key concepts in the field that have emerged over the last two history and science, race and religion, self and community, identity and memory. The book is oriented by contemporary critical theory, especially feminist and postcolonial studies, and the multidisciplinary approaches of cultural studies. By looking backward and forward—and across continents and disciplines—to unearth the evolution of the scholarly study of Jews, Andrew Bush provides a comprehensive introduction to the development of Jewish studies from the turn of the nineteenth century to the present. In the course of engaging scholarship on periods from the classical to the contemporary and from the disciplines of history, philosophy, sociology, anthropology, psychology, and literary studies, Bush questions male-dominated and Ashkenazi-centric visions of the field. He concludes with an experimental exposition of a new Jewish studies for a time where attention to difference has overtaken the security of canons and commonalities.

Genres: Jewish

166 pages, Hardcover

First published March 8, 2011

Reviews

[Blair Hodges · Rating 3 out of 5]

The concluding chapter (of 3 chapters) was a complete break from the first two in style, approach, and method. It was too disorienting for this beginner.