(just kidding I'm only in כיתה ב׳. But my sad attempt at speaking Hebrew is relevant to this תיול!!)
Yesterday we drove to Tel Aviv and Yaffa to follow the path of the cultural zionists from the 20th century. Tel Aviv started out as an ancient port that served as a gateway to the holy land; it even served as such before the times of David). This port is where people would pass
through as they made Aliyah to Israel. We started off our day in יפו, the area in which many Jews would settle as they came through תל אביב. Unfortunately, this area still lacked hygiene and Jewish culture, so in 1906, a group of Jews doubt the lands until they come upon sand dunes and decide to establish an ער עברית (a Hebrew city) filled with a בית כנסת, בית ספר, museums, restaurants, music, and newspapers. Their goal is to create a culturally Jewish city.
Led by ארוד העם, the cultural Zionist movement seemed to create a Jewish cultural center because they feared that in exile, the Jewish people left the עם aspect of the triangle.
Meanwhile, coming back to my attempt at a coherent Hebrew sentence, Eliezer Ben Yehuda, fearing that the Jews had lost identity and nationality, he travels to Jerusalem to further develop the Jewish language. In fact, not only did he want to develop the language, but he made a pact to live and only speak the language. Eventually he goes far enough to develop the first מילון, the first dictionary. For the words that did not exist in the Hebrew texts that already existed, the Torah for example, Ben Yehuda worked for a logical way to name the words. גלידה (I hope you all know what this means), for example, came from the Aramaic word for cold, and the word for water bottle came from the sound that water makes when you pour it out. Though people thought he was crazy, who knows whether Hebrew would still be around if not for him.
Though Eliezer and Arad did not work together, they both had the common goal of Jewish nationality by going back to the land and the language.
Sixty-six families began the cultural Zionist Aliyah to Israel. They had a raffle to decide which plots of land each family would recieve. As we saw in our simulation of this event, some were thrilled with their location while some were entirely less happy. Furthermore, there were ups and downs to each location.
The major institutions of this neighborhood originally consisting of two streets were the גימנסיה הרצליה (a non-religious high school that, while taught in Hebrew, did not teach Hebrew as a language) and the first kiosk that sold coffee and still does today!
Towards the middle of the day, we got to visit the Evans wife to learn about Soluto, the hi-tech startup company she works at. Though the company is clearly very modern, Ariella still managed to draw the stretched connection between this and Ben Yehuda only speaking Hebrew and his movement in the early 20th century. We got a tour and all left with the dream of one day getting to work at a place like this that allows dogs at works, prefers bean bags to desk chairs, and offers a variety of employee benefits. We also got excited about the somewhat ironic street crossing between Arad-Haam street and Hertzel street because of the conflict between the views of the two men; Arad-Haam a strong cultural Zionist and Hertzel being a strong political Zionist.
Throughout the day we had a series of simulations to demonstrate life in the עד עברית. We tried to go about 15 minutes with only talking in pure עברית (I definitely had trouble with this) and then interviewed random citizens about תל אביב today. Some of us found that even people today still consider Hebrew such an important language because of the language of their ancestors and because it is more than just a language, but a nation and a belief as well. It was thrilling to discover that to most, Hebrew is still so important and even more so meaningful. Those that decided to switch to עברית made such a sacrifice because it was considered an old dead language that the Jewish people led by Ben Yehuda managed to revive. For me personally, I loved being able to make the connection between Tel Aviv as it was founded and the people that inhabit it now. It was truly a culturally fulfilling and beautiful Tiyul.
At the end of the day, Ariella tried to show us a song about the little friendly competition between Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. Check the song by Sarah's cousin here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNwJFLkoX80
Some questions to make you חושב :
1.) Is Tel Aviv today the fulfillment of the Zionist dream? why or why not?
2.) Is Hebrew to you just a language? why or why not?
Modern-day Tel Aviv, in my opinion, had definitely fulfilled the cultural Zionist vision. There is a range of un-religious people to very religious people in Tel Aviv. But religion was not the center focus in cultural Zionism. The enter is the unity of the people in the nation. The fact that the majority of the people in Tel Aviv speak Hebrew fulfill Ben-Yehuda's dream. The way that Tel Aviv is a successful community also fulfills the Zionist dream. Hebrew is, in a way more than just a language. Hebrew being spoken fluently represents the unity of the Jews. The Jews could still be unified without the language, but I believe it also connects us to ancient ancestors of the Jews.
ReplyDeleteModern day Tel Aviv is a beautiful balance between the old and the new. It's name alone says it all. Modern culture blends with observant Judaism in spots and it's easy to see the influences of the early pioneers. It seems like a fulfillment of the zionist dream because Tel Aviv is a bustling hub of culture and the primary language, as with the rest of Israel, is Hebrew. As I'm learning more of the language, I'm finding that I feel more and more connected to Hebrew. I believe that it's the language of our people and I'm glad that it's taking a larger part in my life.
ReplyDeleteI think that Tel Aviv is definitely fulfillment of the Zionist dream. There is so much diversity wherever you go in the area. The culture is absolutely Jewish, but not everyone practices the same way, if at all. The people there are so different from each other in various ways but still manage to live together and keep up a beautifully functioning society. I don’t think that Hebrew is JUST a language. I think that it is a language that represents a people. Hebrew also represents a culture. The Jewish people all over the world speak Hebrew words (mostly in prayer), and consider it to be their language. The people of Israel also speak Hebrew, however it is the national language not just the language of prayer. At times, I think that Hebrew is just a language. For example, everyday conversation to me can be said in any language and it is just a language. When used in prayer, I believe that Hebrew is more than just a language. Prayer is when it becomes a culture, a sign of the Jewish people.
ReplyDelete-Rachael Coleman
I think that Tel Aviv is one of the zionist dreams. In class we learned that there were many different forms of zionism and this would be more of a goal for cultural zionism. Cultural zionism believed that we should have a cultural center that will spread its jewish influence all over the world and Tel aviv has accomplished just that. I believe Hebrew is more than just a language because in the past it has also become part of are people as well. Example being back to middle ages when there were many jewish merchants all over the world that could still communicate because they all spoke the same language.
ReplyDeleteI feel that modern day Tel Aviv represents both the "old and the new". I feel that is has accomplished or fufilled the Zionist dream. In Tel Aviv many different aspects of Zionism are prevalent. Cultural Zionism in my opinion is the most profound in Tel Aviv. The basis for Cultural Zionism is that there should be a Jewish center in which its beliefs will be spread world wide. I think that that is what makes up all of Tel Aviv. I feel strongly that Hebrew is more than just a language. It is something spiritual that has kept our people bonded together for so long. The Torah was written in Hebrew which is our most sacred document, so Hebrew represents not only a language for the Jewish people but also the words of God.
ReplyDeleteI think that Tel Aviv fulfills the Zionist dream because of the diversity of people that live there as well as their views on the importance of the Hebrew language. When we got ask people the question about the importance of Hebrew, the majority of them said that it was extremely important because it connects us to our ancestors and because it is important to our religion. To me, Hebrew is more than just a language. Hebrew is important to our religion, unifies Israeli culture, and keeps modern day society connected to our Jewish roots.
ReplyDelete1) I think that Tel Aviv is abolsutely the fulfillment of the Zionist dream. Yes, signs are in Hebrew, English, and many different languages. There are many different languages on the street as well. You could see that as assimilation or an ignorance of the original dream, but I think it's just where modern culture is as today. You could feel the Jewish culture everywhere we went in Tel Aviv. To me, the whole city is a beautiful representation of the light and beauty of this country. It's a thriving city full of israeli and Jewish culture, along with it's mass diversity. To me, that's a true fulfillment of the Zionist dream. Hebrew is not just a language to me. Even though I'm not as good as speaking as I wish I was, hearing it and speaking the little I can means so much to me. The sanctity and importance of the lnaguage makes me feel lucky that I can even hear it everyday.
ReplyDeleteI can't say that Tel Aviv is the fulfillment of the Zionist dream, not because of the influx of foreign culture, but because the feel I got from our short stay there was that it was just another city to its residents. A good one, of course, but not particularly different from New York City or Paris. It is the cultural hub of Israel and of much of the Middle East. There are remnants of the original zionist power that built the city up from the ground, but if they only exist in museums and monuments, I don't think that the spirit of the city can be equated with its original.
ReplyDeleteFor me, Hebrew is just a language that rose from the dead. It's a spoken language that has lost the power it once commanded as the connecting force between Jews across the world. Though it's reconstruction is admirable, I also disagree with Ben Yehuda's philosophy that it must be completely separate from any other language, particularly English and Yiddish. The lack of cognates and grammar that most languages share is apparent when we learn Hebrew--I think it only serves to make it more difficult. In addition, while it is a completely "Israeli" language, the distance between it and Yiddish or any other language spoken by a large number of Jews serves to delegitimize the thousands of years of Jewish history prior to the birth of the state of Israel. Saying that Yiddish or Jewish Farsi should not be spoken in a Jewish state is saying that those languages aren't inherently Jewish. This is a preposterous idea, and the only way to reconcile that in my mind is to say that Hebrew is not a Jewish language either, that there is in fact, no Jewish language at all.
-Noah Arnold
I believe that Tel-Aviv today fulfills the Zionist dream. There are many religious and non-religious Jews that live there today. Tel-Aviv is not considered to be one of the very religious cities in Israel today but I don't think this matters. Religion was not one of the main goals or issues for Zionists. The Zionists were very focused on the aspect of unity. I also think that Hebrew is more than a language. It is part of the Jewish culture, and even more than that it is part of the Jewish ancestry. It is history and tradition. It is important to me that Hebrew as a spoken language lives on.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Tel Aviv is the fulfillment of the Zionist dream. It is a fully culturally Jewish city, with Hebrew as the main language. The founders of Tel Aviv were adamant about making a cultural center, and I believe Tel Aviv exemplifies that goal. To me, Hebrew is more than a language because it is tied so much to the holy books and knowledge of Judaism. Although modern Hebrew is very different from ancient Hebrew, I think it is a beautiful testament to the tenacity of the Jewish people that Hebrew lives on.
ReplyDeleteתל אביב has the dream of the Zionist movement. The problem though is that it has not fulfilled all parts of the Zionist movement. Such as Religious Zionism. Culturally and politically, it has; but not religiously.
ReplyDeleteWhen I think of Hebrew, I think of a language which throughout the course of history, it has been made to identify a whole nation. Not only this, but people have made a culture from it. But in my opinion, the true essence of Hebrew is that it is just a language.
I don't consider Tel Aviv to be a sucess in the eye of the zionist movement, because there is so many different streams of zionism. I believe it is the closest thing to a success in the eye of cultural zionism, but thats about it. On the other hand, I do consider that Hebrew is just a language, the only difference is the history behind our language.
ReplyDeleteI think modern day Tel Aviv is a fulfillment of the Zionist Dream. The Zionist dream was to have a city where Judaism and Jewish life is thriving. When in Tel Aviv it is very apparent that this is true. Wherever you go there are people speaking hebrew. There are religious. secular, and non-religion people in the city. To me Hebrew is much more than a language. Hebrew for me is a direct connection to my ancestors. When I learn and speak hebrew I feel a sort of connection to the the religion, and I feel like I'm not just a Jew, I'm a good, practicing Jew.
ReplyDelete