Avidov Lipsker
Encyclopedia
Avidov Lipsker is a professor of Hebrew Literature
at Bar Ilan University in Israel
.
in 1949. His fields of study are the Hebrew Literature of the Third and Fourth Immigration (Aliyah), as well as ancient and modern Hebrew prose
. From 1998-2002, Lipsker was the chair of the Department of Literature of the Jewish People and as the chair of the Kurzweil
Institute. Since 2007 he was the chair of the 'Inter-Disciplinary Academic Programs' in Bar-Ilan University (Cognitive Studies, Interpretation and Culture, Gender Studies, Science and Society and Conflict Resolution). Since 2007 Lipsker is a senior researcher in Shalom Hartman Institute
– Jerusalem.
From the early 2000s, Lipsker has held the position of chief editor of the research periodical – Criticism and Interpretation (Bar-Ilan University Press). From 1998-2004 held the position of chief editor at the 'Tsafon', a Periodical of Haifa's 'Writer's Association'. He has published dozens of articles and encyclopedic entries (both in Hebrew and English
) about Modern Hebrew prose
and poetry
, as well as studies in the history of the ancient Hebrew narrative
. Lipsker is a chief editor of the 'Thema' series and, a series of publications Uri Zvi Grinberg's Poetry – Researches and Documents at Bar-Ilan University. He has also published several stories and a book of poetry.
and Jewish-Arabic Languages. The Encyclopedia holds an archive
of hundreds of versions of Jewish stories both in print and manuscript
s. The first volume of the Encyclopedia was published in 2005, the second volume in 2009 and the third volume is being concluded. Each volume contains Encyclopedic entries reflecting the unfolding of the different versions of a certain story, from post-biblical
era to the 20th century. The first volume presents the method with which the stories are mapped, as well as the manner in which a multi-version story is handled as a homogenous phenomenon, undergoing changes through time and different cultural
spaces. The Encyclopedia's editorial board gives a constant platform for academic publication in the 'Thema' series which includes comprehensive monograph
s on Jewish fiction
, as well as a collection of studies called Ma'ase Sippur: Studies in Jewish Narrative.
s, out of a new historyographic perspective, according to which the 'average taste' and, at times even the graphomanic writings, represent the style-bar and literary taste from which the contemporary poetic styles can be evaluated and measured. The monographs on the poetry of Sh. Shalom, Yitzhak Ogen and Avraham Broides depict the manner in which esthetic and poetic practices standpoints were imported from Europe
to Eretz Yisrael - mainly symbolism
and expressionism
. These studies also address sociological
questions of affinity to a social and cultural context. This study is supported by a study of letters and dairies
(Yitzhak Lamdan's Collected Letters, as well as his dairy which is being prepared for publishing).
which he named 'Ecology
of Literature'. This model refers to literary texts as items within a widespread cultural system
– not necessarily textual, but also plastic-visual and cultural climate.
In His book The Poetry of Yitzhak Ogen (Magness Publish House), he has published his programmatic study on his ecological historiography (which opposes the totality of the 'Literary Republic
' discourse
). 'The Ecological Discourse on Literature' seeks to describe the literary skill of the author
as an 'ecological niche
', meaning as a form of aptness fitted uniquely to the cultural conditions in which he formulates his literary work. This discourse deals with questions of changing style and preference, in evolution
ary terms while, systematically deconstructing the generalizing narratives on literary revolutions and rebellions. Lipsker's studies in this field deal mainly with the connection between visual designs of literary text, art
istic and literary styles and material culture
.
Hebrew literature
Hebrew literature consists of ancient, medieval, and modern writings in the Hebrew language. It is one of the primary forms of Jewish literature, though there have been cases of literature written in Hebrew by non-Jews...
at Bar Ilan University in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
.
Biography
Avidov Lipsker was born in HaifaHaifa
Haifa is the largest city in northern Israel, and the third-largest city in the country, with a population of over 268,000. Another 300,000 people live in towns directly adjacent to the city including the cities of the Krayot, as well as, Tirat Carmel, Daliyat al-Karmel and Nesher...
in 1949. His fields of study are the Hebrew Literature of the Third and Fourth Immigration (Aliyah), as well as ancient and modern Hebrew prose
Prose
Prose is the most typical form of written language, applying ordinary grammatical structure and natural flow of speech rather than rhythmic structure...
. From 1998-2002, Lipsker was the chair of the Department of Literature of the Jewish People and as the chair of the Kurzweil
Baruch Kurzweil
Baruch Kurzweil was a pioneer of Israeli literary criticism.-Biography:Kurzweil was born in Pirnice, Moravia in 1907, to an Orthodox Jewish family. He studied at Solomon Breuer's yeshiva in Frankfurt and the University of Frankfurt. Kurzweil emigrated to Mandate Palestine in 1939...
Institute. Since 2007 he was the chair of the 'Inter-Disciplinary Academic Programs' in Bar-Ilan University (Cognitive Studies, Interpretation and Culture, Gender Studies, Science and Society and Conflict Resolution). Since 2007 Lipsker is a senior researcher in Shalom Hartman Institute
Shalom Hartman Institute
Shalom Hartman Institute is a Jewish research and education institute based in Jerusalem, Israel, that offers pluralistic Jewish thought and education to scholars, rabbis, educators, and Jewish community leaders in Israel and North America...
– Jerusalem.
From the early 2000s, Lipsker has held the position of chief editor of the research periodical – Criticism and Interpretation (Bar-Ilan University Press). From 1998-2004 held the position of chief editor at the 'Tsafon', a Periodical of Haifa's 'Writer's Association'. He has published dozens of articles and encyclopedic entries (both in Hebrew and English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
) about Modern Hebrew prose
Prose
Prose is the most typical form of written language, applying ordinary grammatical structure and natural flow of speech rather than rhythmic structure...
and poetry
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
, as well as studies in the history of the ancient Hebrew narrative
Narrative
A narrative is a constructive format that describes a sequence of non-fictional or fictional events. The word derives from the Latin verb narrare, "to recount", and is related to the adjective gnarus, "knowing" or "skilled"...
. Lipsker is a chief editor of the 'Thema' series and, a series of publications Uri Zvi Grinberg's Poetry – Researches and Documents at Bar-Ilan University. He has also published several stories and a book of poetry.
Thematology of the Literature of the Jewish People
In 1982, Lipsker joined Prof. Yoav Elstein – founder of the Encyclopedia of the Jewish Story – with whom he has shaped the research methodology 'Thematology of Jewish Narrative'. Since the foundation of the Encyclopedia, he has served as its chief editor. Since 2007, has been the director of the Encyclopedia of the Jewish Story: Sippur Okev Sippur (Bar-Ilan University Press). This field of study addresses the phenomenon of the multi-version appearance of the Jewish story in the Hebrew, Aramaic, Yiddish, LadinoJudaeo-Spanish
Judaeo-Spanish , in Israel commonly referred to as Ladino, and known locally as Judezmo, Djudeo-Espanyol, Djudezmo, Djudeo-Kasteyano, Spaniolit and other names, is a Romance language derived from Old Spanish...
and Jewish-Arabic Languages. The Encyclopedia holds an archive
Archive
An archive is a collection of historical records, or the physical place they are located. Archives contain primary source documents that have accumulated over the course of an individual or organization's lifetime, and are kept to show the function of an organization...
of hundreds of versions of Jewish stories both in print and manuscript
Manuscript
A manuscript or handwrite is written information that has been manually created by someone or some people, such as a hand-written letter, as opposed to being printed or reproduced some other way...
s. The first volume of the Encyclopedia was published in 2005, the second volume in 2009 and the third volume is being concluded. Each volume contains Encyclopedic entries reflecting the unfolding of the different versions of a certain story, from post-biblical
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
era to the 20th century. The first volume presents the method with which the stories are mapped, as well as the manner in which a multi-version story is handled as a homogenous phenomenon, undergoing changes through time and different cultural
Culture
Culture is a term that has many different inter-related meanings. For example, in 1952, Alfred Kroeber and Clyde Kluckhohn compiled a list of 164 definitions of "culture" in Culture: A Critical Review of Concepts and Definitions...
spaces. The Encyclopedia's editorial board gives a constant platform for academic publication in the 'Thema' series which includes comprehensive monograph
Monograph
A monograph is a work of writing upon a single subject, usually by a single author.It is often a scholarly essay or learned treatise, and may be released in the manner of a book or journal article. It is by definition a single document that forms a complete text in itself...
s on Jewish fiction
Fiction
Fiction is the form of any narrative or informative work that deals, in part or in whole, with information or events that are not factual, but rather, imaginary—that is, invented by the author. Although fiction describes a major branch of literary work, it may also refer to theatrical,...
, as well as a collection of studies called Ma'ase Sippur: Studies in Jewish Narrative.
Modern Hebrew Poetry
In his monographic studies, Lipsker intentionally dealt with 'marginal' poetPoet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
s, out of a new historyographic perspective, according to which the 'average taste' and, at times even the graphomanic writings, represent the style-bar and literary taste from which the contemporary poetic styles can be evaluated and measured. The monographs on the poetry of Sh. Shalom, Yitzhak Ogen and Avraham Broides depict the manner in which esthetic and poetic practices standpoints were imported from Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
to Eretz Yisrael - mainly symbolism
Symbolism (arts)
Symbolism was a late nineteenth-century art movement of French, Russian and Belgian origin in poetry and other arts. In literature, the style had its beginnings with the publication Les Fleurs du mal by Charles Baudelaire...
and expressionism
Expressionism
Expressionism was a modernist movement, initially in poetry and painting, originating in Germany at the beginning of the 20th century. Its typical trait is to present the world solely from a subjective perspective, distorting it radically for emotional effect in order to evoke moods or ideas...
. These studies also address sociological
Sociology
Sociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
questions of affinity to a social and cultural context. This study is supported by a study of letters and dairies
Dairy
A dairy is a business enterprise established for the harvesting of animal milk—mostly from cows or goats, but also from buffalo, sheep, horses or camels —for human consumption. A dairy is typically located on a dedicated dairy farm or section of a multi-purpose farm that is concerned...
(Yitzhak Lamdan's Collected Letters, as well as his dairy which is being prepared for publishing).
Ecological Discourse on Literature
Lipsker has developed a historiographic modelMental model
A mental model is an explanation of someone's thought process about how something works in the real world. It is a representation of the surrounding world, the relationships between its various parts and a person's intuitive perception about his or her own acts and their consequences...
which he named 'Ecology
Ecology
Ecology is the scientific study of the relations that living organisms have with respect to each other and their natural environment. Variables of interest to ecologists include the composition, distribution, amount , number, and changing states of organisms within and among ecosystems...
of Literature'. This model refers to literary texts as items within a widespread cultural system
System
System is a set of interacting or interdependent components forming an integrated whole....
– not necessarily textual, but also plastic-visual and cultural climate.
In His book The Poetry of Yitzhak Ogen (Magness Publish House), he has published his programmatic study on his ecological historiography (which opposes the totality of the 'Literary Republic
Republic
A republic is a form of government in which the people, or some significant portion of them, have supreme control over the government and where offices of state are elected or chosen by elected people. In modern times, a common simplified definition of a republic is a government where the head of...
' discourse
Discourse
Discourse generally refers to "written or spoken communication". The following are three more specific definitions:...
). 'The Ecological Discourse on Literature' seeks to describe the literary skill of the author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
as an 'ecological niche
Ecological niche
In ecology, a niche is a term describing the relational position of a species or population in its ecosystem to each other; e.g. a dolphin could potentially be in another ecological niche from one that travels in a different pod if the members of these pods utilize significantly different food...
', meaning as a form of aptness fitted uniquely to the cultural conditions in which he formulates his literary work. This discourse deals with questions of changing style and preference, in evolution
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
ary terms while, systematically deconstructing the generalizing narratives on literary revolutions and rebellions. Lipsker's studies in this field deal mainly with the connection between visual designs of literary text, art
Art
Art is the product or process of deliberately arranging items in a way that influences and affects one or more of the senses, emotions, and intellect....
istic and literary styles and material culture
Material culture
In the social sciences, material culture is a term that refers to the relationship between artifacts and social relations. Studying a culture's relationship to materiality is a lens through which social and cultural attitudes can be discussed...
.
As Author
- The Poetry of Sh. Shalom (1922-1941), Ha'Poalim Publish House, Tel Aviv 1992.
- Born Unto Trouble: The Poetry of Abraham Broides (1919-1974), The Haifa University Press, Ben-Gurion University Press, Haifa and Beer-Sheba 2000.
- The Poetry of Yitzhak Ogen: Literary Ecosystem in Eretz Yisrael 1930-1940, The Hebrew University Magnes Press, Jerusalem 2006.
- Red Poem\ Blue Poem: Seven Essays on Uri Zvi Grinberg and Two Essays on Else Lasker-Schüler, Bar Ilan University Press, Ramat-Gan 2010.
As Editor
- Nili Sadan, Prose of the Twenties in Eretz Yisrael, Hebrew: Poalim Library Press, 1991
- Nili Sadan, Aharon Reuveni : Monography, Hebrew: Poalim Library Press, 1994
- Gideon Katzanelson, Essays on Uri Zvi Grinberg’s Poetry, Hebrew: Yaron Golan Press, Tel-Aviv, 1993
- Isaac Lamdan: Selected Letters, Hebrew: Israel Matz Foundation and the Asher Barash National Institute ‘Gnazim’, New York, Tel-Aviv 1998
- Encyclopedia of the Jewish Story: Sippur Okev Sippur, Vol I-II, Hebrew: Bar-Ilan University Press, Ramat-Gan 2005-2009.
- Ma'aseh Sippur: Studies in the Jewish Narrative, Vol I-II, Hebrew: Bar-Ilan University, Ramat-Gan 2005-2009.
- Rechovot ha-Nahar by Uri Zvi Grinberg: Studies and Documents, Hebrew: Bar-Ilan University Press, Ramat-Gan, 2007.
External links
- The homepage of Prof. Lipsker at Bar-Ilan university
- The lecturer page of Prof. Lipsker at Bar-Ilan university
- The site of 'Encyclopedia of the Jewish Story'
- The Rena Costa Center for Yiddish Studies
- 'The Poetry of Yitzhak Ogen' – on 'Magnes Press' site
- Michael Gluzman, "Writing the history of literature through marginal poets", about Lipsker's book The Poetry of Yitzhak Ogen: Literary Ecosystem in Eretz Yisrael 1930-1940", haaretz, January 29, 2007