LFU:online

Acquisition of basic skills for dealing with historic sources and presentations of Contemporary History as well as skills in presenting the newly acquired knowledge orally as well as in writing. Acquisition of basic knowledge and application of relevant methods aiding scientific research.

Biographies and autobiographies are among the most popular and best-selling genres of historiography. In this course, we will explore the (auto)biography as a prism through which history can be understood—in our case, the history of Zionism and the State of Israel. We will analyze the lives of individuals in connection with Zionism—a collective Jewish national project. We will address methodological questions about the role of the individual in history and historiography, about the relationship between the biographer and their subject, and about the differing strategies and objectives of autobiographical versus biographical writing. We will read chapters from biographical literature on individuals such as Theodor Herzl, David Ben-Gurion, Golda Meir, Moshe Dayan, and others.

Readings, oral presentation with handout, written paper, discussions, formal lecture, exercises

Course with continuous performance assessment: attendance at all sessions, active participation in discussions, oral presentation, written paper.

Literature/reading-list will be discussed in class. Guided research of selected literature will be part of the required tasks.

Positive assessment of compulsory module 1.