A Permanent Beginning: R. Nachman of Braslav and Jewish Literary Modernity

242 Pages·2020·2.269 MB·English

by  Yitzhak Lewis

A Permanent Beginning

A Permanent Beginning
R. Nachman of Braslav
and Jewish Literary Modernity
YITZHAK LEWIS
Cover image: Experiment made at Annonay, June 4, 1783, by the
Montgolfier brothers (1868)
Published by State University of New York Press, Albany
© 2020 State University of New York
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Printed in the United States of America
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For information, contact State University of New York Press, Albany, NY
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Lewis, Yitzhak, 1981– author.
Title: A permanent beginning : R. Nachman of Braslav and Jewish literary
modernity / Yitzhak Lewis.
Description: Albany : State University of New York Press, [2020] | Includes
bibliographical references and index.
Identifiers: LCCN 2019013092 | ISBN 9781438477671 (hardcover : alk.
paper) | ISBN 9781438477688 (ebook : alk. paper)
Subjects: LCSH: Naḥman, of Bratslav, 1772–1810. | Jewish literature—
History and criticism. | Judaism and literature. | Rabbis—Ukraine—
Biography. | Hasidim—Ukraine—Biography. | Jews—Europe,
Eastern—History—18th century. | Jews—Europe, Eastern—History—19th
century. | Ukraine—Biography.
Classification: LCC BM755.N25 L49 2020 | DDC 296.8/332092—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019013092
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
To A.
and to N., K., and R.
with love

Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction: What Is Jewish Literary Modernity? 1
Part I
PolItIcal-aesthetIc QuestIons
Chapter 1 Positioning R. Nachman 21
Chapter 2 Representing Difference 37
Chapter 3 The Secret of Our Wisdom 59
Part II
QuestIons of socIal and Intellectual hIstory
Chapter 4 Was R. Nachman an Innovation Such as the
World Had Never Seen? 75
Chapter 5 Was R. Nachman a “Jewish Intellectual”? 91
Part III
lIterary QuestIons
Chapter 6 Was R. Nachman the Messiah? 117
Chapter 7 Poetics of Intransitivity 137
viii Contents
Conclusion: Reading outside Modernity 161
Notes 167
Bibliography 211
Index 223
Acknowledgments
Writing often appears to be a solipsistic activity. Nothing could be
further from the truth. There are many mentors, teachers, friends,
and colleagues who have labored with me on this project. Their
thoughts and feedback have been integral parts of shaping this
book. I cannot purport to offer an account of the “origins” of this
project. It found its many beginnings in the multiple conversations
I have been privileged to have with all those whose support and
insights I am delighted to acknowledge.
I am grateful to my graduate school advisors at Columbia
University: Dan Miron, Gil Anidjar, Graciela Montaldo, and Edna
Aizenberg (z”l), whose boundless support and rigorous critique
have made me a better reader and, hopefully, a better writer. I
am thankful for the long-standing support from Sudipta Kaviraj,
Hamid Dabashi, and Alan Mintz (z”l). The mentorship of Miryam
Segal and Hannan Hever has given me guidance in the process
and confidence to stay the course. Susan Last-Stone taught this
student of literature how to read law and why it’s important. All
of these people were invaluable to me as a young scholar finding
his way in the ethereal world of the mind and the practical world
of academia.
I benefited from the brilliant mind and open heart of my friend
and collaborator Yuval Kremnitzer at Columbia University’s Jewish
Studies Graduate Student Association (JiGSA). Co-organizers and
participants Kali Handelman, Elik Elhanan, Suzy Schneider-Reich,
and Roni Henig were all invaluable in the process of giving articu-
lation to my thoughts, as were Owen Cornwall, Casey Primel, Omar
Farahat, Sahar Ullah, Aditi Surie von Czechowski, Foad Torshizi,
ix