Jewish Journeys (From Philo to Hip Hop)

The journey is central to the Jewish experience and the construction of Jewish identities across time and place. Remarkably, however, it has received almost no scholarly attention. This multi-disciplinary collection - embracing approaches from Jewish studies, migration studies, cultural and historical studies, literary criticism, religious studies, ethnic and racial studies, geography, and anthropology - opens up this important area. The book deals with both physical and spiritual Jewish journeys, as well as cultural and intellectual ones, exploring the relationship between these different categories and demonstrating that it is indeed difficult to separate the process of movement involving mind and body. The scholarly essays are divided into four sections: The Nature of Jewish Journeys; Body, Identity, and Gender; Intellectual and Cultural Transmission; and Journeys and Families. The essays combine theoretical sophistication with detailed case studies and are all accessible to a wide readership reflecting the intrinsic interest of the subject matter. Source material varies from television, popular music, shipping records, and testimony through to ancient religious texts. Jewish Journeys offers a path-breaking contribution to wider scholarship of migration and settlement.