Conference: ‘Ah, Reality’: New Approaches to Hebrew Poetics and Literature

'Ah, Reality': New Approaches to Hebrew Poetics and Literature

This conference is for Hebrew Literature post-doctoral candidates and new PhDs. It will include 9-10 speakers discussing their current theoretical challenges, and their attempts to find new approaches to burning questions.

As we near a second generation of thought, already rooted in the current century, the different literary departments' theoretical courses are still heavily reliant on 20th century theory. Against the backdrop of political upheavals, climate crisis, and the attempts to appropriate Judaism in Israel in the name of nationalistic ideas and forces, we ask: What are the urgent tasks of the study of Hebrew Literature? What can contemporary Hebrew literature scholarship contribute to these ongoing discussions? What are the current theoretical approaches that could be of use to us?

In this conference, we aim to discuss the possibilities and "embarrassments" of our particular point in time. This point in time being, both on a meta level: our own in-between career stage as post-docs and new PhDs, but also of this stage in history of Hebrew Literature, the current reality that might shape the thought of Hebrew literature, our field, in the near future.

A keynote lecture by Saskia Ziolkowski, Associate Professor of Romance Studies at Duke University will open the conference.

The conference includes participants from the United States, as well as participants arriving from Israel and Europe and is comprised of emerging scholars.

Discussions will be held alternately in both Hebrew and English.
הוֹ מְצִיאוּת, רוּחַ רְפָאִים קְטַנָּה שֶׁלִּי, פִּצְפּוֹנִית שֶׁלִּי, יָבוֹא
יוֹם שֶׁאֲנָשִׁים יַבְחִינוּ בָּךְ. יָשִׂימוּ לֵב אֵלַיִךְ. יְדַבְּרוּ עָלַיִךְ.
יִמְחֲאוּ לָךְ כַּפַּיִם. יָרִיעוּ לָךְ. יִרְצוּ לְהִתְקָרֵב אֵלַיִךְ. לָגַעַת
בָּךְ. לָחוּשׁ אוֹתָךְ. לִשְׁמֹר עָלַיִךְ. לְשׂוֹחֵחַ אִתָּךְ. לְהָבִין. אַחַר
כָּךְ תַּחְלִיטִי

(חדוה הרכבי)

Ah Reality, my little ghost, my teeny-tiny one, the day will come
when people will notice you. Pay attention to you. Will speak of you.
Applaud you. Cheer for you. Will want to be near you. To touch
you. Feel you. Protect you. Talk to you. Understand. And then later
on you will decide

(Hedva Harechavi)