Modern Hebrew revival [“Techiya”] poetry emerged as part of an overall national and cultural revolution that took place within the Jewish world in east Europe at the turn of the twentieth century. Under its influence, all aspects of life, including sexuality, gender roles and the body were perceived and understood anew. Furthermore, the encounter with the social, ideological, and aesthetic values of European cultures, specifically, with conceptions regarding subjectivity and passion, served as an important source for the Hebrew poets. For the first time in the history of Hebrew poetry, poets were required to form a modernistic, intimate and erotic "I" that would be psychologically credible.

The seminar will address the ways in which Modern Hebrew poetry withstood with issues of sexuality and carnal lust. We will acquaint ourselves with the two traditional models of eroticism in Hebrew poetry: the Song of Songs and the Hebrew erotic poetry of medieval Spain. We will then turn to the poetry of Y.L Peretz, H.N. Bialik, Shaul Tchernichovsky, Jacob Steinberg, David Vogel, Rachel Bluwstein, and Esther Raab, seeking to illuminate their attitudes toward the power relations between the sexes, while considering the changing norms in Jewish society regarding lust, intimacy, and the sexual body. We will also examine the influence of the entry of women into the field of Hebrew lyrical poetry on conceptions of sexuality and passion, and consider the differences in the expression of passion and power among various groups and generations. The theoretical discussion will be based on contemporary psychoanalytical, feminist, queer and gender perspectives.