The classes in this list are only the selection of MEMS courses that have been cross-listed with the “MEM” prefix. Numerous other classes being offered in the fall term may also count towards the MEMS Minor and IDS Major. For more information, contact Will Hasty <hasty@ufl.edu>.
MEM 3300 (1062, 2F49, 2F59): “Castles and Cloisters: An Introduction to Medieval European Communities.” (H, I)
Instructor: Valerie Hampton, Department of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures
Asynchronous online course description:
https://ufl.instructure.com/courses/339981
MEM 3931 (8A89) / FRW 3100: “Introduction to French Literature 1,” Theme: Literature and Food. (H and N)
Instructor: Rori Bloom, Department of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures
Gastronomy is central to French culture, and in this course we will read texts written in the 17th through 19th centuries to better understand why their authors represent the acts of eating and drinking. We will examine the representation of food in several literary genres: fairy tale, fable, letter, autobiography, poem, short story, novel. In the course of our readings, we will work on developing skills in literary analysis through discussions, presentations, and several types of writing. This class is taught in French; Pre-req FRE 2220 or equivalent).
MEM 3931 (7NC0) / EUH3671: “Jewish History: 1492-1750.”
Instructor: Nina Caputo, Department of History
This course will survey major trends in Jewish society from the break-up of the medieval world to the emergence of a new order in 18th century Europe. We will trace the transition of Jewish society towards
modernity by following the varieties of cultural, social, and religious life among communities of Jewish exiles from Spain from 1492 through the early 18th century. Prerequisites: None.
MEM 3931 (7FC1) / EUH 3473: “Medieval Germany.”
Instructor: Florin Curta, Department of History
Course description:
https://people.clas.ufl.edu/fcurta/medieval-germany/
MEM 3931 (087H)/ JST3930: “Jews in the Muslim World.”
Instructor: Yehoshua Ecker, Center for Jewish Studies
A survey of the history of Jews in Muslim societies and under Muslim rule, from the conquests of the 7th century to the dispersions and transformations of the 20th century. Including: Social, political, economic and legal developments; Demographic trends; Interactions between communities; Impacts of Imperialism, Nationalism and modern State-Building. The Arab-Muslim conquests brought most Jews in the world under one political entity and fundamentally affected Jewish history. As the early Muslim empire broke down to smaller states and gave rise to subsequent imperial structures, this history became much more complex. In the first millenium of the Muslim world, the vast majority of Jews still lived within its bounds. This reality has only began to change a few centuries ago, and has drastically altered in the past 100 years. This is an overview of a crucial and central period in Jewish history, which uses the political history and chronology of the Muslim world as a scaffold for outlining and contextualizing the Jewish experience within this world, and the impact of this experience on Jews beyond it.
MEM 3931 (088H) / JST 3930: “Ottoman Palestine (1516-1917).”
Instructor: Yehoshua Ecker, Center for Jewish Studies
The modern Middle East has its roots in the long period of Ottoman rule that ended with the First World War. The Ottoman centuries left a lasting impact on the region and shaped many of the political realities, movements, ideologies and actors of the post-Ottoman century which has recently come to an end. Focusing on the region that would become British Mandate Palestine, the contested territory at the heart of the Arab-Israeli conflict, this course explores it as a territory in the Ottoman Empire, as a religious center, a destination for pilgrims, visitors and immigrants, as a site of daily life, a site of change, and as a coveted geopolitical asset. It offers a close look at Ottoman regional realities, the workings of the Ottoman state and society, and the interactions of imperial, local and foreign trajectories, during the four tumultuous centuries of Ottoman imperial rule.
MEM 3931 (8A90) / ARA (1B10), “The Arab Woman.”
Instructor: Sarra Tlili, Department of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures
This course explores the roots and motives of the stereotypes attached to Arab women and assesses the impact of these stereotypes on Arab societies. It also examines the historical, economic, political, and social factors that shape Arab women’s experiences and gender relations in the Arab world both in the premodern and modern periods. Through the study of social institutions and structures and the legacies of individual women, students will gain more nuanced and critically informed appreciation of gender relations in the Arab world.
MEM 3931 (07CE) / CHT 3513 (287H): “TAOISM & CHINESE CULTURE.”
Instructor: Richard Wang, Department of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures
Taoism (now often written “Daoism”) is a Chinese cultural tradition focused primarily on methods, strategies, and communities for individual and socio-political integration with the totality of reality,
including its transcendent dimensions. Taoism encompasses a broad array of moral, social, philosophical, religious and cultural ideas, values, and practices. Like other religions around the world, Taoism included some contemplatives, whose orientation often seems attractive to modern people— particularly to Westerners looking for alternatives to their own cultural traditions. In this course, you will learn that Taoism is an ancient and immense tradition of great subtlety and complexity. You will see how its many dimensions evolved to answer the needs of people of different periods and different propensities, and you should learn respect for, and understanding of, the teachings and practices of all those people. Taoism is not some abstract “timeless wisdom” that simply consists of a set of warm, fuzzy ideas. Rather, Taoism is a specific set of cultural traditions that evolved within the historical context of ancient, medieval, and modern China, evolving to meet the spiritual needs of people in specific historical situations. The multi-sources and complexity of Taoist belief systems and ritual practice, and the influence of Taoism upon Chinese thought, religion, art, culture and society will also be covered.
MEM 4931 (7FC2) / EUH 4584: “Medieval Russia.”
Instructor: Florin Curta, Department of History
Course description:
https://people.clas.ufl.edu/fcurta/medieval-russia/
MEM 4931 (2C28) / CHT 4111 (), “The Chinese Novel: Dream of the Red Chamber.”
Richard Wang, Department of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures
This class explores the social and intellectual culture of traditional China through a 120- chapter novel known variously as Dream of the Red Chamber and Story of the Stone. Conceived and substantially completed by Cao Xueqin (c. 1724-1764), the novel is believed to reflect the author’s own upbringing in an eminent family that enjoyed close ties with the Manchu rulers of the last dynasty, the Qing. The Dream is generally considered the finest masterpiece of traditional Chinese fiction, and is also China’s first psychologically penetrating novel (H, I, & 4 units of Gordon Rule