Jewish and Holocaust Studies Minor | MTSU

Jewish and Holocaust Studies Minor

College of Liberal Arts
Director: Elyce Rae Helford
, Ph.D., professor of English

The Jewish and Holocaust Studies minor requires 15 hours and offers students the opportunity to study the diasporic culture of the Jews and Judaism as well as the Holocaust in an interdisciplinary program. Students will explore these subjects via studies in history and culture, the arts and social sciences, and the methodologies of Jewish Studies and Holocaust Studies disciplines. Along the way, students will confront such vital topics central to local and global awareness as multiculturalism and the meanings of diversity, religious tolerance and cultural intolerance, and genocide studies.

Interdisciplinary Minors

Interdisciplinary minors require the student to complete a minimum of 15 to 21 hours from a list of specific courses. Unless otherwise noted, a student may take no more than 6 hours of courses from a single department until he or she surpasses the required minimum number of hours necessary for completing the minor. Exceptions to this rule may be found within the discussions of several of the minors. In most cases, a student is also limited to just 3 hours of credit toward the minor in the same department or discipline in which he or she is taking a major. Students must fulfill all departmental prerequisites for any course within an interdisciplinary minor. In some cases, advisors may approve course substitutions within these program requirements.

Required Courses (9 hours)

Students will take the following courses:

  • JHS 2010 - Jewish Culture and Civilization

    3 credit hours

    Interdisciplinary study of the development of Jewish culture and civilization from the pre-Biblical period to the present.

  • JHS 3020 - The Holocaust  3 credit hours  

    JHS 3020 - The Holocaust

    3 credit hours

    An interdisciplinary survey of the origins, development, course, and consequences of the Nazi genocide.

 

  • JHS 4500 - Current Trends in Jewish and Holocaust Studies  3 credit hours  
    OROR  dotslash:OR title:OR 
    OR 

    JHS 4500 - Current Trends in Jewish and Holocaust Studies

    3 credit hours

    Prerequisites: Junior standing; JHS 2010; JHS 3020. Explores Jewish and Holocaust Studies scholarship and methodologies with emphasis on recent developments. Serves as capstone course for Jewish and Holocaust Studies.

  • JHS 4970 - Independent Research in Jewish and Holocaust Studies

    3 credit hours

    Prerequisites: Junior standing; JHS 2010; JHS 3020; permission of department only. Individualized research on a specific Jewish and/or Holocaust Studies topic developed by student in conjunction with faculty supervisor.

General Electives (6 hours)

Select 6 hours from the following:

  • ENGL 2020 - Themes in Literature and Culture

    3 credit hours

    Prerequisites: ENGL 1010 and ENGL 1020. Traces a specific theme or idea through a number of literary texts that reflect different historical and cultural contexts. Subject will vary.

(Jewish American Literature and Culture or Holocaust Survivor Literature)

  • ENGL 3440 - The Bible as Literature

    3 credit hours

    Prerequisite: Completion of 1000- and 2000-level English requirements with a grade of C- or better. Origin and nature of the Bible; cultural and historical backgrounds, influence on English language and literature; history of texts and canon; major religious and philosophical concepts and literary features.

  • ENGL 4780 - Topics in War and Culture

    3 credit hours

    Prerequisite: Completion of 1000- and 2000-level English requirements with a grade of C- or better. An inquiry into war or related conflict through the study of literature, film, and/or popular culture. Topic will vary by term.

(Literature and the Holocaust)

  • ENGL 4860 - Special Topics in Film Studies

    3 credit hours

    Prerequisite: Completion of 1000- and 2000-level English requirements with a grade of C- or better. A selected director, genre, period, aspect, or theme. The subject will vary each time course is taught.

(Film and Holocaust)

  • GEOG 4500 - Geography of the Middle East and North Africa

    3 credit hours

    Prerequisite: Junior standing. Situated at the intersection of Europe, Africa and Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa together form a complex and dynamic region linked by similarities such as environment, culture, and religion. Explores the geography of the region emphasizing current issues such as population and migration, religion, conflict, natural resources, geo-political alliances and globalization. (Spring odd-numbered years)

  • HEBR 1010 - Elementary Hebrew I

    3 credit hours

    Foundation course in reading, writing, speaking, and aural comprehension.

  • HIST 3080 - Topics in Modern Middle East History

    3 credit hours

    Prerequisite: Three hours of HIST 1010, HIST 1020, HIST 1110, or HIST 1120. A major problem or political or social development in the contemporary Middle East. May be taken more than once for credit with different topic (up to six credit hours).

(Arab-Israeli Conflict only)

  • HIST 3090 - Topics in European History  1 to 3 credit hours  
    (3 credit hours)(3 credit hours)  dotslash:(3 credit hours) title:(3 credit hours) 
    (3 credit hours) 

    HIST 3090 - Topics in European History

    1 to 3 credit hours

    Prerequisite: Three hours of HIST 1010, HIST 1020, HIST 1110, or HIST 1120. A detailed examination of a topic pertinent to European history. May be taken more than once for credit with different topic.

(Approved topics only)

  • HIST 3190 - The History of the Holocaust

    3 credit hours

    Prerequisites: Six hours of HIST 1010, HIST 1020, HIST 1110, or HIST 1120. Examines the genocide of European Jews during the Second World War. Explores the history of antisemitism in Europe, the Nazi Party's rise to power, and themes related to collaboration, resistance, and rescue. 

  • HIST 4185 - Twentieth Century Europe

    3 credit hours

    Prerequisites: Six hours of HIST 1010, HIST 1020, HIST 1110, or HIST 1120. Explores the conflicts of twentieth century Europe that impacted and shaped the world. Themes include European Colonialism, Russian Revolution, World War I and World War II, Cold War, economic unity, postwar social changes, collapse of the Soviet Bloc, and emergence of post-communist nations. 

  • HIST 4840 - World War II  3 credit hours  

    HIST 4840 - World War II

    3 credit hours

    Prerequisite: HIST 1010, HIST 1020, HIST 1110, or HIST 1120. Examines various aspects of the military, diplomatic, social, economic, and cultural changes caused by the global cataclysm of World War II.

  • HUM 2610 - World Literatures  3 credit hours  

    HUM 2610 - World Literatures

    3 credit hours

    Prerequisites: ENGL 1010 and ENGL 1020. Representative works of French, German, and Hispanic authors in English translation. No foreign-language proficiency required. Carries General Education credit.

(Jewish Literature in Translation)

  • HUM 3600 - Israeli Cinema  3 credit hours  

    HUM 3600 - Israeli Cinema

    3 credit hours

    Prerequisite: ENGL 2020, ENGL 2030, or HUM 2610 or permission of instructor. Explores differing viewpoints held by Israelis about their history, politics, and society through major films from Israel. May be taken for the Minor in Jewish and Holocaust Studies or the Minor in Middle East Studies.

  • JHS 4970 - Independent Research in Jewish and Holocaust Studies

    3 credit hours

    Prerequisites: Junior standing; JHS 2010; JHS 3020; permission of department only. Individualized research on a specific Jewish and/or Holocaust Studies topic developed by student in conjunction with faculty supervisor.

  • MES 2100 - Introduction to Middle East Studies

    3 credit hours

    An introduction to the people, culture, geography, and history of the Middle East from the distant past to the present. Includes ancient history, the rise of Islam, Arab nationalism and formation of the modern states, the creation of Israel, oil and natural resources, social structures and family life, international diplomacy and peacemaking, problems of Westernization and modernization, and political Islam.

  • RS 2030 - Religion and Society

    3 credit hours

    Introduces the academic study of world religions with an emphasis on the ways religion both influences and is influenced by society and human behavior.

  • RS 3010 - The Bible: Its Origin and Content

    3 credit hours

    Studies the historical development of biblical and extra-biblical texts with an emphasis on cultivating the skills of critical textual analysis, an understanding of reception history, and the emergence of diverse canons and interpretive approaches across different communities, both Jewish and Christian.

  • RS 3020 - Comparative Religion

    3 credit hours

    Employs central categories and concepts from the academic study of religion to analyze case studies from Western, Eastern, and Indigenous religions.

  • RS 4020 - Jesus of Nazareth  3 credit hours  

    RS 4020 - Jesus of Nazareth

    3 credit hours

    Surveys the diverse portraits of Jesus reflected in the socio-culture interface of the first century CE, early Christian literature, the modern scholarly quest for the historical Jesus, and in light of recent discussions, movements, films, and books

  • RS 4050 - Judaism, Christianity, and Islam

    3 credit hours

    Explores historical and socio-cultural developments within Judaism, Christianity, and Islam; their relation to other religions of the world.

  • SOC 4150 - Topics in Sociology

    3 credit hours

    An in-depth study of a special topic which is significant in current sociological literature.

(Hate Crimes)

  • SOC 4550 - Sociology of Religion

    3 credit hours

    Religion as social process and institution. An ideological, structural, and functional analysis. Specific U.S. religions examined in detail.

  • WGST 4206 - Symposium in Women's Studies: Women and the Holocaust

    3 credit hours

    Additional prerequisites may apply to individual courses within the series. A variable-content course highlighting contributions of women to various fields and disciplines and exploring special problems which may be encountered by women.

Additional Information

To add a JHS minor, contact the JHS minor director and advisor, Dr. Elyce Rae Helford.

The minor can also be added when you complete your Upper-Division form with your major advisor (after 60 hours of coursework) and share it with Dr. Helford for her signature. 

Remember to keep in touch! Regular advising will inform you of updates to the minor and new course options. Dr. Helford will always be happy to meet with you to discuss your plans and ensure all the courses you take count for the minor,