Hebrew (Modern)

Prof. Livny really stressed the importance of open-mindedness at the beginning of this course. I was naturally a fan of this idea as I adopted views that would presumably differ from hers. That being said, throughout the semester, if someone made any form of comment (either in favor of/against the Israeli state) she would just stare out into the room blankly and let the classroom's atmosphere shrivel up. There was also a specific in-class assignment where she had us "redraw" a two-state solution—which is ridiculous in its own right. After my group shared our work to the class, she pointed at Tel Aviv and asked (I am speaking in paraphrase), 'so you're saying my family and I can't live there?' in a passive-aggressive tone. Our final for this class was creating/revamping an underdeveloped Wikipedia page for an element of Zionism. I thought it was a fun, alternative to a final exam/paper. My group did not submit this assignment correctly. She proceeded to take off a major chunk of our final grade two weeks later without telling us a thing. I emailed her quickly after receiving our grade. She was kind enough to give us partial credit. While we messed up on our end, there was still a lack of clarity regarding the final throughout the latter end of the semester. Overall, I think Prof. Livny is a great person—and, of course, an expert about the subject. Some final thoughts: although this class was intentionally grounded in a "Jewish perspective," I do find teaching a class (mostly) about an Israeli state should include the actual history (yes, I am talking about Palestinians). I did really enjoy learning about "Cultural Zionism." We delved into topics of Hebrew revival within diasporic Jewish communities. As a student of Arabic and Religion, I am always fascinated with Judaism and its rich history. In the end, however, I did not enjoy a great majority of this course.

Prof. Livny really stressed the importance of open-mindedness at the beginning of this course. I was naturally a fan of this idea as I adopted views that would presumably differ from hers. That being said, throughout the semester, if someone made any form of comment (either in favor of/against the Israeli state) she would just stare …Read more

Professor Livny is a great professor who revealed both sides of the conflict clearly. Some of the lectures can be tedious and the readings can be a handful, but it broadened my perspective about the Israel-Palestine Conflict and this was the most insightful class I've ever taken at Middlebury. There are no exams, there are two short papers, a presentation assignment, and a policy brief assignment. Her grading, in my opinion, was fair.

Professor Livny is a great professor who revealed both sides of the conflict clearly. Some of the lectures can be tedious and the readings can be a handful, but it broadened my perspective about the Israel-Palestine Conflict and this was the most insightful class I've ever taken at Middlebury. There are no exams, there are two short …Read more

If you need to fill your class I would recommend this with Adi Livny. Lecture can be dry at times and very slow but there is never any homework. You have one small quiz in the semester then a presentation at the end where you get to pick your team and topic.