Scribner Seminar Program
Course Description
Popular Kabbalah and Contemporary Culture
Instructor(s): Marla Segol, Religion
Why does kabbalah, a medieval system of Jewish mysticism, suddenly seem to be everywhere
in popular culture? How do these popular forms of kabbalah compare with its traditional
practice? Does Madonna do “real” kabbalah? Is the Kabbalah Center a cult? Is Superman
a Golem? At the end of the 19th century, artists began to use kabbalistic texts and
images imaginatively, as they created literature, film, comic books, and art. Today,
emerging Jewish and non-Jewish groups and even conventional congregations use kabbalistic
texts and images as the basis for New Age religious practices, using portions of traditional
texts to generate new understandings of the self and of the cosmos. In this seminar,
we will study a small selection of traditional Jewish mystical sources in historical
and cultural context, and then trace their use in 20th and 21st century culture. Students
will learn to evaluate popular artistic use of kabbalah in the creation of new public
symbols, and will also critically examine the cultural production of new religion
as old forms interact with contemporary cultural forces.
Course Offered