venerdì 6 dicembre 2013

Call for Papers: “Jewish and Non-Jewish Cultures in Contact: New Research Perspectives”

Call for Papers

X Congress of the European Association for Jewish Studies

“Jewish and Non-Jewish Cultures in Contact: New Research Perspectives”


As an essential part of its mission to promote academic Jewish Studies in Europe, the European Association for Jewish Studies organises every four years a major Congress devoted to all periods and fields of Jewish Studies. The Xth Congress of the EAJS will take place in Paris from 20th to 24th July 2014. Individual applications and panel proposals in all fields of Jewish Studies are welcome
The keynote theme of the Xth Congress is: “Jewish and Non-Jewish Cultures in Contact: New Research Perspectives”.
To propose a paper or a panel, please go to the Congress website and click on “To Apply”.
The Call for Papers closes on January 1, 2014.

martedì 29 ottobre 2013

Le avventure di Caterina, come "Flipbook"

Flipbook: Le avventure di Caterina


Vi presento un "flipbook" fatto di alcune immagini tolte del libro giovanile di E. Morante, conosciuto come Le straordinarie avventure di Caterina e anche come Le bellissime avventure di Caterì dalla trecciolina  
Il libro è stata pubblicata dall’Editore Einaudi nel 1941 e ristampata dallo stesso editore nel 1959.  

Scarsa attenzione critica salvo un saggio di Jo Ann Cavallo, "Elsa Morante and the Adventures of Caterina," Forum Italicum 28.1 (1994).

domenica 16 giugno 2013

CFP NEMLA 2014 - Anti-Semitism on Film


45th Annual Convention, Northeast Modern Language Association (NeMLA) April 3-6, 2014 Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, hosted by Susquehanna University

CFP: Anti-Semitism on Film

Even before the release of Harlan’s notorious Anti-Semitic “historical” 1940 film ‘Jud Süß’ (which was reviewed favorably by Michelangelo Antonioni in Italy), many of the images of Jewish life, culture, and traditions put forth by the film industry contributed to the fabrication of a false, misleading, and prejudiced portrait of the Jewish community in all the countries of the Diaspora. Although dozens (if not hundreds) of films have documented the brutality of the Holocaust during the last 70 years, these works have also not been exempt from criticism and controversy on an international scale, nor do they all paint an equally (or entirely) realistic picture of the Shoah. This panel seeks to look beyond the limitations imposed by national and linguistic borders by focusing on the examination of any works of cinema that are either motivated by a desire to spread Anti-Semitic sentiments among their viewers, or those that, on the other hand, look upon Jewish characters favorably while addressing the impact and the effects of Anti-Semitism on the Jewish community. Papers addressing cinematic reflections of Anti-Semitism outside the context of World War II are especially welcome. 

All papers delivered in the course of this session must be authored in English. Quotes in other languages should be translated for the audience, and presenters should make every effort to use film clips with English subtitles if they are available.

Send a 250 word abstract, along with a description of any technological (A/V) needs to:

Philip Balma – philip.balma@uconn.edu

Giovanni Spani – gspani@holycross.edu

Deadline: September 30, 2013
Please include with your abstract:
Name and Affiliation
Email address
Postal address
Telephone number
A/V requirements (if any; $10 handling fee with registration)

The NeMLA conference website is here.
Interested participants may submit abstracts to more than one NeMLA session; however, panelists can only present one paper (panel or seminar). Convention participants may present a paper at a panel and also present at a creative session or participate in a roundtable.


Philip Balma, PhD
Assistant Professor of Italian Literary and Cultural Studies Affiliated Faculty, Hebrew and Judaic Studies Italian Language Coordinator ECE Italian Faculty Coordinator Department of Literatures, Cultures, & Languages University of Connecticut
(uconn.academia.edu/PhilipBalma) 

giovedì 18 aprile 2013

Call for papers: Italian Jewish Identities, Journal of Jewish Identities, Volume X, Issue X


CALL FOR PAPERS: Italian Jewish  Identities
Monique R. Balbuena & Federica Francesconi (eds.)
Journal of Jewish Identities, vol. X, issue X
Submission deadline: July 30, 2013


The area comprising what is now modern Italy is the only Western European region where Jews have lived permanently since antiquity. Dating back to the medieval period, Italian, Sephardic, and Ashkenazi Jews have lived in close proximity to each other and integrated with minimal friction. They have mastered a variety of languages, practiced several minhagim, and privileged multiple cultural goals, social practices, and ethical
ambitions. Italian Jewry epitomizes the cosmopolitanism, multi-ethnicity, and variety within Judaism and Jewish communities throughout the ages. The Italian Jewish diaspora has been profoundly connected to the identity, history and culture of the surrounding non-Jewish majority in spite of local expulsions, ghettoization,
and--turning to the modern era--Fascist-Nazi persecutions. The Italian Jewish experience probes issues of religious identity, acculturation and legal integration, social proximity, language change, ethnicity, and gender, and offers a unique opportunity to explore the complexities of past and contemporary Jewish identities.

This special issue of the Journal of Jewish Identities will focus on representations of Jewishness and Jewish identity in Italy taking into account dynamics of acculturation and seclusion, marginalization and rapprochement. We especially welcome comparative and interdisciplinary contributions that explore multiple areas of  Italian-Jewish studies, including: social and cultural life in the medieval, pre-modern and modern periods; Hebrew and Italian poetry throughout the ages; literature by or relating to Italian Jews; cinema; translation; ceremonial art and artists; architecture; and relations with the Church. Also much encouraged are
essays that address intra-Jewish difference, multilingualism and use of Jewish languages, Jewish and national identities, use of adopted genres, transnational experiences, and representations of the Holocaust. We invite submissions from any discipline within the Humanities and Social Sciences.

SUBMISSIONS

Papers should be sent electronically to guest editor Monique R. Balbuena at balbuena@jewishidentities.org or at Balbuena@uoregon.edu as Microsoft Word e-mail attachments, indicating "Journal of Jewish Identities: Call for  Papers" in the subject line. Manuscripts should be prepared using the Chicago Manual of Style. The preferred length for article manuscripts is 7,000 ­to 10,000 words. Manuscripts will be reviewed following the Journal's standard process. Please include an abstract of no more than 150 words and a biographical note. All articles are anonymously reviewed. Submissions must be in American English and are considered for publication on the understanding that the author(s) offer the Journal of Jewish Identities the exclusive option to publish, and that the paper is not currently under consideration for publication elsewhere. It is the
responsibility of the author  to obtain permission for using any previously published material. Accepted
 manuscripts become the permanent property of the journal. Authors may, of course, use the article elsewhere after publication without prior permission from the Journal of Jewish Identities, provided that acknowledgement is given to the Journal as original source of publication, and that the Journal is notified so that our records show that its use is properly authorized.

BOOK REVIEWS AND REVIEW ESSAYS

Individuals interested in writing book reviews (750-1,000 words) of individual works of recent scholarship on the subject or longer review essays (3,000 words) on multiple works should contact the book review editor, Avinoam Patt at patt@hartford.edu, to propose specific titles. The editorial board of the Journal
of Jewish Identities in turn evaluates these proposals for appropriateness. For this issue we especially welcome reviews on books treating Italian-Jewish themes.

ABOUT THE JOURNAL

The Journal of Jewish Identities is an interdisciplinary peer-reviewed forum for contesting ideas and debates concerning the formations of, and transformations in, Jewish identities in its various aspects, layers, and manifestations. The aim of this journal is to encourage the development of theory and practice in a wider spread of disciplinary approaches; to promote conceptual innovation and to provide a venue for the entry of new perspectives. Submissions are invited from all fields in the Humanities and Social Sciences and from
the full range of methodologies. Diverse theoretical and philosophical approaches and methodologies, interdisciplinary research studies, as well as instructive case studies are particularly welcome. The Journal publishes empirical and theoretical articles, documents, an occasional debate section, as well as review essays and book reviews. The Journal of Jewish Identities is published twice a year.

mercoledì 27 marzo 2013

Sulla storia degli ebrei italiani: New York, Oregon

Beyond The Ghetto. New Research and Perspectives on the History of the Jews of Italy 


April 12, 2013- 10:30 am - 1:30 pm
Casa Italiana Zerilli Marimò | 24 West 12 Street
The seminar is free and intended for students and faculty. Seats may be available to the general public pending availability.
Registration is mandatory: rsvp@primolevicenter.org  
Presented in collaboration with Casa Italiana Zerilli Marimò and the Department of Italian and the Department of Hebrew and Jewish Studies at NYU. In association with the Center for Jewish Studies at CUNY Graduate Center, the Center for Jewish and Israel Studies at Columbia University and the Center for Jewish Studies at UCLA. 
The Jewish experience in the Italian peninsula, though subject to rules and restrictions, appears as an essential component of the society at large. In Italy, the lack of attention on the intersection and parallelisms between Jewish history and Christian history has meant that the Jews have long been "invisible" from the overall historical narrative. This led historians to neglect the valuable wealth of information that emerges from the analysis of institutions, norms and behaviors related to the Jews, which today prove essential for a deeper comprehension of Italian society from a national and European perspective. Within this interpretative framework, Marina Caffiero will discuss the relationships and exchanges - cultural, social and institutional - between the Jewish minority and the Christian majority.  

Research Seminar on the History and Cultures of Italian Jews: a Multi-Disciplinary Exchange.
April 10, 2–4:30 pm.
University of Oregon, Prince Lucien Campbell Hall, room 159
Chair: Deborah Green (University of Oregon) 


Presenters: Monique Balbuena (University of Oregon), Lucia Finotto (Brandeis University and Kalamazoo College), Federica Francesconi (University of Oregon), Dana Katz (Reed College), Scott Lerner (Franklin and Marshall College), and Valerie Wilhite (University of Oregon).
Respondents: Judith Baskin (University of Oregon) and Kenneth Stow (University of Haifa).

2013 Singer Family Lecture"Anxieties in Conflict: The Diary of Anna del Monte"
Kenneth Stow
April 10, 7:30 pm.
University of Oregon, Knight Library Browsing Room
Refreshments will be provided. 


AAIS Conference, Oregon
Clicca qui per il programma del convegno AAIS. Ecco alcuni panels che potrebbero interessarvi:

Voices of Memory from the Ghetto to the Shoah
Organizers: Gabriele Boccaccini, University of Michigan, Federica Francesconi, University of Oregon and L. Scott Lerner, Franklin and Marshall College
Chair: Lucia Finotto, Brandeis University.
  • Sibilla Destefani, University of Zürich, “Il fumo di Birkenau: un affresco femminile dell’antimondo. Descrizione linguistica e tematica di un capolavoro tragico.”
  • Federica Francesconi, University of Oregon, “Defining and Defending Boundaries: Jewish Women in Eighteenth-Century Italian Ghettos.”
  • Michele Sarfatti, Fondazione Centro di Documentazione Ebraica Contemporanea CDEC, Milano, “Hanno fatto tutto i tedeschi? La Shoah italiana nella storiografia internazionale, 1946-1986.”
From Caesar to the Popes: Boundary Crossings in Rome
Organizer: Gabriele Boccaccini, University of Michigan, Federica Francesconi, University of Oregon and L. Scott Lerner, Franklin and Marshall College
Chair: Federica Francesconi, University of Oregon
  • Miriam Ben Zeev, Ben Gurion University, “Roman Law and the Jews of Rome in the First Century BCE.”
  • Serena Di Nepi, Università di Roma, La Sapienza, “Per fiere e per città. Mobilità ebraica nello Stato della Chiesa di età moderna (XVI-XVIII sec.).” 
  • L. Scott Lerner, Franklin & Marshall College, “The Bishop and the Synagogue of Rome."
Italian-Jewish Studies, II: Literary Expression Across the Centuries
Organizers: Gabriele Boccaccini, University of Michigan, Federica Francesconi, University of Oregon and L. Scott Lerner, Franklin and Marshall College
Chair: Judith Baskin, University of Oregon
  • Lucia Finotto, Brandeis University, “Translating Islamic Philosophy in Renaissance Venice: Visible Jews, Christian Patrons and the City.”
  • Will Wells, Rhode State College, “Keeping Faith in Word and Spirit: Translating the Poems of Sarra Copia Sulam.”
  • Angela Fabris, Alpen-Adria-Universität Klagenfurt, “L’Ottavo Distretto di Budapest nella narrativa di Giorgio Pressburger."
Italian-Jewish Studies, IV: Jews and the Spaces of Italian Culture
Organizers: Gabriele Boccaccini, University of Michigan, Federica Francesconi, University of Oregon and L. Scott Lerner, Franklin and Marshall College
Chair: L. Scott Lerner, Franklin & Marshall College
  • Cristiana Facchini, Università di Bologna, “The ghetto – lieu de la memoire. An Inquiry into Christian and Jewish Narrative.”
  • Gabriella Romani, Seton Hall University, “Italian Jews and the Formation of a National Culture in Post-Unification Italy.”
  • Roberta K. Waldbaum, University of Denver, “Alice Hallgarten Franchetti: American Pragmatism in a Franciscan Soul.”

martedì 19 marzo 2013

NeMLA Italian Studies 2014 Special Issue: The Jewish Experience in Contemporary Italy


Even before his untimely passing in 1987, Primo Levi's contributions to the Italophone literary panorama inspired a significant amount of critical responses. One could argue that his name has become synonymous with contemporary representations of the Italian Jewry, including (but not limited to) artistic reflections of World War II and the Shoah. This volume aims to highlight new or underexplored approaches to the study of the Italkim, but also to properly contextualize and further the extant critical discourse on Italian-speaking, foreign-born authors such as Edith Bruck and Giorgio Pressburger who (among others) have had an undeniable impact on how Italian and European audiences perceive the modern Jewish experience. Contributions will be informed by the most recent scholarship on the subject (Gordon, Salah, Rothberg, Quercioli-Mincer, Serkowska, Speelman, Minuz, Marcus, Sodi, Perra and many others) and will endeavor to move beyond the barriers that all too often have helped create a compartmentalized scholarly inquiry with respect to Jewish artists operating in Italy. Essays exploring the literary and cinematic representations of the Italophone Jewish experience will constitute the principal focus of this issue. Submissions addressing unstudied/understudied artists and themes are especially welcome. Manuscripts must be submitted electronically no later than March 1, 2014.

Possible topics include, but are not limited to:


  • Male and Female Jewish Identities, Migration, Transationalism and Translingualism, the Shoah, World War II and Fascism, Cinema, Theater.


Submissions can be authored in English or Italian. Authors must comply with MLA standards for citation and documentation of sources.

Articles may not exceed 10,000 words. Book reviews should not exceed 1,200 words.

Editorial communications should be addressed to the editors, preferably via e-mail, or mailed to Simona Wright, Dept. of Modern Languages, The College of New Jersey, 2000 Pennington Road, NJ 08628-0718. Manuscripts should be sent via e-mail attachment (Microsoft Word for PC). Attachments should be marked with the last name of the contributor, followed by the name/subject of the paper (Dunne/Boccaccio - Dunne/Postmodern). All submissions must be accompanied by a cover letter/message that includes the author's relevant affiliations, a U.S. or international postal address, and an e-mail address. Contributors need to submit, in order, their name and work affiliation at the end of the article. NeMLA Italian Studies has a blind reader policy and the editorial staff will erase the personal information from the copy sent for evaluation to each of the readers.

NeMLA membership is not required to submit to NIS; however, membership is required for publication. Please consult this webpage for details.

Interested authors should contact the editors by e-mail:

Philip Balma
University of Connecticut
philip.balma@uconn.edu

Simona Wright
The College of New Jersey
simona@tcnj.edu

lunedì 18 marzo 2013

Colpa del sole, di Alberto Moravia


Il blog di Nuovi Argomenti ha appena scritto sul film "Colpa del sole," il solo film mai diretto da Alberto Moravia. Assieme a un videoclip, presenta il racconto che Moravia utilizzò come soggetto nella sua unica prova da regista.

Io non ho ancora visto il film ma mi piace l'idea di includere il racconto.
Inoltre il titolo mi fa pensare della luce accecante del sole (in particolare del sole di mezzogiorno) nella scrittura di Elsa. Per esempio la morte di Anna nel primo romanzo viene accompagnata da questa luce di pieno sole. O la luce orribile di Aracoeli quando Manuele si mette gli occhiali per la prima volta.

lunedì 25 febbraio 2013

Non-Christian Identities in the Italian Context



   

MLA 2014 Convention


Non-Christian Identities in the Italian Context
MLA Division: Seventeenth-, Eighteenth-, and Nineteenth-Century Italian Literature
This session welcomes papers that address Atheist, Jewish, Libertine, Muslim, and Protestant identities as expressed and negotiated in Christian and non-Christian texts. Please submit 1 page abstract by 15 March 2013. Organizer/contact: Nathalie Hester (nhester@uoregon.edu).

venerdì 8 febbraio 2013

Szenische Lesung: Elsa Morantes 'La Storia' als ICI Kulturlabor Berlin

Jetzt koennen Sie die szenische Lesung, die im Januar 2013 abrollte, des Roman 'La Storia' schauen! Es gibt fünf Videos das kann man direkt über die Webseite der ICI Kulturlabor Berlin schauen.

Scusatemi--visto che questa 'puntata' del blog si tratto di un performance in Germania non potevo resistere alla tentazione di scrivere qualche frase in tedesco e ahimè, ho dimenticato quasi tutto di quello che avevo imparato di quella bellissima lingua...!

Insomma, ora si possono guardare alla vostra convenienza i cinque video girati della lettura in gennaio della Storia sul sito web dell'Istituto Kulturlabor a Berlino!


Ecco il link da seguire: http://www.ici-berlin.org/docu/morante/?tx_bddbflvvideogallery_pi1[video]=0





giovedì 7 febbraio 2013

Congresso AISG 2013, a Ravenna, 22-24 settembre

Cari lettori, eccovi la data definitiva del congresso dell'AISG del settembre 2013, e i termini del call for papers.



Il Consiglio Direttivo dell'Associazione Italiana per lo Studio del Giudaismo (AISG) a deciso il tema e la data del prossimo Congresso AISG 2013, che si terrà a Ravenna, nella solita sede del Dip.to di Conservazione dei Beni Culturali, vicolo degli Ariani 1, Ravenna, nei giorni 22-24 settembre 2013. Il tema sarà il seguente:


Strategie e normative per la conversione degli Ebrei
dal Medio Evo all'età contemporanea



È aperto il call for papers fino al 31 marzo 2013. Chi volesse presentare una relazione, solo su materiali nuovi e inediti, può inviare la sua proposta con titolo e un breve abstract. Le proposte saranno valutate dal comitato scientifico che comunicherà l'accettazione o meno entro il 31 maggio 2013.
Per quanto riguarda le spese di viaggio e soggiorno c'è una fondata speranza di poterle rimborsare almeno dall'Italia; più difficile per i voli dall'estero, ossia da Europa, USA e Israele. Chi potesse utilizzare suoi fondi universitari di ricerca, è invitato a farlo.

Le proposte vanno inviate a: mauro.perani@unibo.it & enrica.sagradini@unibo.it
Prof. Mauro Gabriele Perani
Prof. Ordinario di Ebraico, Università di Bologna
Dip.to di Conservazione dei Beni Culturali, Ravenna Campus
vicolo degli Ariani, 1 - 48121 Ravenna - ITALIA
Member of the Executive Committee of the European Association for Jewish Studies (EAJS) 
Presidente, AISG

lunedì 28 gennaio 2013

Nel centenario della nascita di Elsa Morante, la siciliana

Dal Corriere di Gela...

Eccovi una novità di Gandolfo Cascio, che ha scritto un saggio interessante sull'estetica "dell'ebreo e del cristiano" nei racconti de Lo scialle andaluso.

Scrivendo, "Questa sua provenienza viene evocata, e rivendicata, per quanto indirettamente, in alcune delle sue opere," Casco ci sottolinea qui alcuni aspetti siciliani del primo romanzo (Menzogna e sortilegio), del racconto "Il soldato siciliano" e "Lo scialle andaluso."

lunedì 21 gennaio 2013

Copertine--un video

Oggi vi presento un video che ho "girato" con delle immagini delle copertine di traduzioni morantiane...

sabato 19 gennaio 2013

La serata a Colono, sul palcoscenico fra poco!


Regia e scene  Mario Martone

con Carlo Cecchi (Edipo)
Antonia Truppo (Antigone)
Angelica Ippolito (Suora)
Coro (in ordine alfabetico) Giovanni Calcagno, Salvatore Caruso, Dario Iubatti, Giovanni Ludeno, Rino Marino, Paolo Musio, Franco Ravera
guardiani Victor Capello, Vincenzo Ferrera, Totò Onnis
dottore Rino Marino
Francesco De Giorgi (tastierista), Andrea Toselli (percussionista)

musiche Nicola Piovani
fondale  Sergio Tramonti
costumi Ursula Patzak
luci Pasquale Mari
suono Hubert Westkemper
aiuto regia Paola Rota
foto di  Mario Spada

Teatro di Roma - Fondazione del Teatro Stabile di Torino - Teatro Stabile delle Marche

orari spettacolo
ore 21.00
giovedì e domenica ore 17.00
sabato ore 19.00
lunedì riposo

durata
1 ora e 30 minuti senza intervallo

Unica opera teatrale della Morante, mai rappresentata, ma con molti tentativi andati a vuoto, la sua messa in scena a trentacinque anni dalla pubblicazione, è una vera e propria sfida:  in una corsia d’ospedale degli anni ’60 due portantini depositano una barella su cui giace un vecchio ricoverato d’urgenza con occhi avvolti da garze insanguinate. È un accattone, ex proprietario, di radici contadine, vedovo con quattro figli, affetto da mitomanie epico-classiche, soggetto a squilibri, sorvegliato con devozione da una figlia quattordicenne zingarella e che reca i segni dolci “delle creature di mente un poco tardiva”. Lei è Antigone. Lui è la reincarnazione di un Edipo trasandato, logorroico, accolto in un reparto Neuro-deliri dove stazionano tre guardiani, un dottore-Teseo e una suora-Ismene. La tragedia sofoclea Edipo a Colono, ovvero il concludersi del lungo e tormentato esodo di un sovrano parricida e incestuoso, è, in questa Serata a Colono, un calvario rivissuto oggi con scabri accenti misti a deliri d’alta e remota nobiltà violata, con l’Edipo attuale pervaso da un dolore furioso, affetto da miraggi. 

mercoledì 9 gennaio 2013

ICI Kulturlabor Berlin presenta Szenische Lesung: Elsa Morantes 'La Storia'

ICI Kulturlabor Berlin / Institute for Cultural Inquiry 


Christinenstr. 18/19, 10119 Berlin

14 Jan. 2013, 19:30
Szenische Lesung: Elsa Morantes 'La Storia' 


Un giorno di gennaio dell’anno 1941 un soldato tedesco camminava nel quartiere di San Lorenzo a Roma. Sapeva 4 parole in tutto di italiano e del mondo sapeva poco o niente. Di nome si chiamava Gunther. Il cognome rimane sconosciuto. 

Im von Hitlers Soldaten besetzten Rom wird ein Kind durch Gewalt gezeugt. Die Mutter, Ida, ist eine jüdische Frau. Der Vater, Gunther, ein deutscher Soldat. Vergewaltigung, Verkündigung, Zufall. Zeugnis ablegen. „Eine politische Aktion“ nannte Elsa Morante ihr mit kühler Distanz geschriebenes Buch 'La Storia', das 1974 erschien, heftige Auseinandersetzungen hervorrief und sofort ein breites Publikum eroberte. Mit Magdalena Fitzi und Anne Lisa Nathan Konzept: Agnese Grieco Auf Deutsch und Italienisch. Eine Veranstaltung des Istituto Italiano di Cultura di Berlino in Kooperation mit dem ICI Berlin.


Mit Magdalena Fitzi und Anne Lisa Nathan
Konzept: Agnese Grieco

Auf Deutsch und Italienisch.
Eine Veranstaltung des Istituto Italiano di Cultura di Berlino in Kooperation mit dem ICI Berlin.