Response to Tamari / Questions / Final Project Idea

READING RESPONSE

The first article on Popular Music and Modernity was a fascinating look at Jerusalem because it essentially came from a firsthand account. I think the methodology of this paper is really interesting because the author intends to reform the perception of the Jerusalem that existed 80 or more years ago based on the anecdotes of a poet/musician from that time. It’s just interesting that his journals had been available, and I would assume other complementary information as well, and yet the perspective has always been that the city was “grim, conservative, and joyless” (46). As I was reading Jawhariyyeh’s story, however, I couldn’t help but wonder how objectively and broadly a reader should take this perspective. Jawhariyyeh’s experience doesn’t seem to be the norm for an average citizen in Jerusalem- he was rather privileged. How similar were other people’s experiences?

From the second article, one aspect that stuck out to me was the Palestinian emphasis on the pastoral. In general, I find it interesting that in almost every culture I’ve ever studied, people tend to idealize and romanticize the past. It makes sense that if you want to go “back to your roots” then the past would be the place to find them, but I think there’s so much to be said for the present as well. Several hundred years from now, the present will be the past for the past for future generations, and will they look back and idealize our times? I also thought the section that refuted Canaanism was really interesting too, because it says that “Canaanism cancels the assumption that Zionism is a European movement, propelled by modern European contingencies” (7), even though we have discussed how Zionism has existed for a long time. Finally, it was just a minor detail, but I also found it interesting that the author used the term “post-Nakba” (6) without really describing what it meant, also betraying his bias.

QUESTIONS (sorry, I didn't get home from work and see the syllabus until after 11 last night)

In the article about Popular Music you mention that the city was not always divided based on relgious confession but simply by neighborhoods (hara). What would need to happen in Jerusalem for that system to work agian?

How do you think that Jawhariyyeh's social status affected the portrait of Jerusalem as described in his journals?

FINAL PROJECT

For our final project, Kara and I are going to visit places of worship of the three major faiths associated with Jerusalem (a Christian church, Jewish temple, Muslim mosque). We are going to video tape whatever is appropriate to tape and also ask people (hopefully including some of the leaders) at these places various questions about Jerusalem. Then we will compile it all into a video to show the class.