Term Paper on "Jewish Civilization Time Periods"

Quoted Instructions for "Jewish Civilization Time Periods" Assignment:

JEWISH CIVILIZATION

MID-TERM PAPER TOPIC *****“*****“ Spring 2007

General Instructions:

Papers should be concise and three to five pages, with a maximum of five pages per paper. Points will be deducted for each page over the five-page maximum. Papers should be typed and double-spaced. The papers will not be graded on grammar, spelling, etc., but a poor presentation may mean that your points are not conveyed as well as they might be. So, do not ignore those factors.

Read Dr. Sophia McClennen*****s General Evaluation Rubric for Papers for a further sense of how to write your papers and how they will be graded: http://www.personal.psu.edu/users/s/a/sam50/rubric.htm. Organize your papers according to standard writing techniques. That is, introduce your topic and themes, discuss them, and describe the conclusions that you have drawn.

You are expected to write this paper on your own.

Paper Topic:

Select two periods in Jewish history that have been discussed in Lessons 1-8. The periods do not need to conform to the beginning and ending dates of the lessons; they may cover a portion of a lesson (at least one century) and may bridge the periods covered in two adjoining lessons. Be specific about place as well as time.

Describe ways in which Jewish identity has changed between one period and another and the factors that contributed to those changes. To address this question, you will need to:

1. Employ the concept of identity in a complex, critical manner;

2. Summarize the key social conditions of the two periods selected; and

3. Explicitly discuss the significant factors that contributed to the differences in Jewish identity in one place and time from that of another. Think in terms of patterns.

In addition, pay attention to any crises that accompanied the changes that you describe.

Be specific, about both your conceptual and factual points. Do not over-generalize. Consider the nuances and complex distinctions to be made about your theme or themes. Draw on events or patterns for which there is scholarly evidence and present them accurately; be aware of distinctions among places, times, events, and patterns. Do not be overly simplistic and refrain from making unsupported opinions. Do not discuss whether a pattern or people have worth or value (i.e., do not discuss Jews or others as *****good,***** *****bad,***** *****proud,***** *****strong,***** etc.).

Better papers will describe a group or constellation of related changes in Jewish identity rather than merely one or two changes. When few changes are discussed in a paper, the periods selected may not have seen significant changes in Jewish identity.

You might consider looking, for example, at how Jews are governed, their sacred texts, religious practices, material culture, gender relations, etc. However, do not merely describe Jewish practices, be sure to discuss how Jewish identity (i.e., what makes a Jew *****Jewish***** in a very broad sense) has changed from your first time period to your second.

The primary consideration in your score will be the quality of the conceptual discussion. In addition, accuracy will be a significant factor in the paper scores.

Citations:

Required course readings do not need to be listed on a separate works cited (references) page. However, quotations and specific figures from course readings should be cited parenthetically, that is, within the body of the text. For example:

*****¢ In 1994, the number of Jews living in Canada was 360,000 (Scheindlin 1998:258).

Or:

*****¢ As Scheindlin (1998:53) writes, *****By decentralizing public worship, the destruction of the Temple thus contributed to the rabbis***** program of putting the responsibility for religious life in the hands of each individual.*****

If you are citing something from one of the virtual lectures, a parenthetical citation is sufficient. For example:

*****¢ (Benjamin Lesson X)

If you wish to list a virtual lecture in a references page, one possible format is:

*****¢ Benjamin, Alan F. Title of Page. In, Jewish Civilization, Lesson X. University Park: Pennsylvania State University. Viewed DATE.

If you quote from materials that are not required in the course, they should be cited in full on a works cited page or in a footnote. Any generally used bibliographic format is ok. I care only that it is correct, complete, and used consistently.

Information about my password and username:

1. Go to

https://cms.psu.edu//frameIndex.htm

2. Choose "Penn State Access Account" then click "log on".

3. Userid : mqy5013

Password : ymx0524ymx0524

Then click "log in".

4. In folder "2006/07 Spring, UNIVERSITY PARK"

Choose "Jewish Civilization--online (Spring 2007)"

5. Click "LESSONS" on the top of the page in a small blue bar.

6. Then choose second option "Lessons -

Drafted by Alan F. Benjamin. Copyright: The Pennsylvania State University, 2006. "

7. Then you can choose any 2 lessons to write about.

Thank you so much. Have a great day! =)

If you have any question, please email me.

*****