2008 Woodie Awards
Rutgers prof discusses rise in Jewish popular culture
Brianna Mulligan
Issue date: 10/12/07 Section: Campus
With the release and success of last year's Borat and the popularity of Adam Sandler's "Chanukah Song," Jewish comedy has been present in American media.
To examine this increasing trend, Jewish dtudies and the department of American Studies co-sponsored a lecture by Jeffery Shandler at 7:30 p.m. Thursday in MacMillan Hall.
Close to 40 students, faculty and others attended Shandler's lecture that explored the importance of Jewish culture in American society, specifically in the media. The lecture concentrated on various aspects of Judaism in the United States and how popular culture has helped to define the American-Jewish population.
"It's about experiencing American history in terms of Jews who have been in the United States for that last century, especially in pop culture," Shandler said. "What most Americans know about Jews is from pop culture."
Shandler's presentation addressed the history and future of the Yiddish language, Jewish celebrities, and the disappearing boundary between Jewish popular culture and religion. Starting with the history of Jewish immigrants, Shandler focused on everyday icons in American society, from episodes of The Simpsons to Madonna and Britney Spears' interest in Kabbalah.
"How does the rest of the American population understand Jews within U.S. culture?" Shandler asked. "Jewish popular culture is a large part of understanding what it means to be Jewish."
According to Shandler, the American populace often associates Jews with what they have seen on television, heard in music or on the radio, or read in magazines and books.
"You don't know (Jews) as people you live with and interact with, but more as people in media," Shandler said.
This formation of a stereotypical Jewish population has also enabled Jews to form a mean of self-portraiture, he said.
"Because so many people know about Jews through culture, how does that enable Jews to portray themselves?" Shandler asked.
To examine this increasing trend, Jewish dtudies and the department of American Studies co-sponsored a lecture by Jeffery Shandler at 7:30 p.m. Thursday in MacMillan Hall.
Close to 40 students, faculty and others attended Shandler's lecture that explored the importance of Jewish culture in American society, specifically in the media. The lecture concentrated on various aspects of Judaism in the United States and how popular culture has helped to define the American-Jewish population.
"It's about experiencing American history in terms of Jews who have been in the United States for that last century, especially in pop culture," Shandler said. "What most Americans know about Jews is from pop culture."
Shandler's presentation addressed the history and future of the Yiddish language, Jewish celebrities, and the disappearing boundary between Jewish popular culture and religion. Starting with the history of Jewish immigrants, Shandler focused on everyday icons in American society, from episodes of The Simpsons to Madonna and Britney Spears' interest in Kabbalah.
"How does the rest of the American population understand Jews within U.S. culture?" Shandler asked. "Jewish popular culture is a large part of understanding what it means to be Jewish."
According to Shandler, the American populace often associates Jews with what they have seen on television, heard in music or on the radio, or read in magazines and books.
"You don't know (Jews) as people you live with and interact with, but more as people in media," Shandler said.
This formation of a stereotypical Jewish population has also enabled Jews to form a mean of self-portraiture, he said.
"Because so many people know about Jews through culture, how does that enable Jews to portray themselves?" Shandler asked.
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