The Poets of Jewish Transformation: The Twentieth Century

The trials and triumphs of the Jewish people in the the twentieth century were monumental, transformative – one could even say biblical in their drama and significance. The voices that found words to describe these Jewish experiences were, unsurprisingly, the great poets of the age.

In this three-session sequence, we will focus on three of these poets, reading some of their verse as well as commentary by thinkers who explain their importance. We will begin with a study of the Zionist poetry of Rahel Bluwstein, whose work encapsulated the longing and despair of 20th-Century Jewry prior to the founding of the Jewish state. We will then continue by looking at Jacob Glatstein, whose poetry grappled with the paradox of Jewish suffering alongside Jewish chosenness.  We will end with an examination of Natan Alterman, whose poetry opens a window into the opening years of the Jewish state.

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