Food and Identity in Early Rabbinic Judaism

by Jordan D. Rosenblum

Overview

Food often defines societies and even civilizations. Through particular commensality restrictions, groups form distinct identities: Those with whom “we” eat (“Us”) and those with whom “we” cannot eat (“Them”). This identity is enacted daily, turning the biological need to eat into a culturally significant activity. In this book, Jordan D. Rosenblum explores how food regulations and practices helped to construct the identity of early rabbinic Judaism. Bringing together the scholarship of rabbinics with that of food studies, this volume first examines the historical reality of food production and consumption in Roman-era Palestine. It then explores how early rabbinic food regulations created a distinct Jewish, male, and rabbinic identity. Rosenblum’s work demonstrates how rabbinic food practices constructed an edible identity.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781107666436
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	02/20/2014
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	238
Product dimensions:	5.98(w) x 9.02(h) x 0.55(d)

About the Author

Jordan D. Rosenblum is Belzer Assistant Professor of Classical Judaism at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. He has contributed to the Journal for the Study of Judaism, the Jewish Quarterly Review, and the Journal of Jewish Studies.

Table of Contents

Introduction; 1. Realia; 2. Jewish identity; 3. Jewish male identity; 4. Jewish male rabbinic identity; Conclusion.

Editorial Reviews

"Rosenblum presents a rich, usable survey of all that relates to foodways for tannaitic Judaism. Rosenblum offers an excellent synthesis that helps correct explorations of rabbinic identity that neglected either a sufficiently theoretical view of foodways or, alternately, recognition of the textual nature of evidence for food practices. By making important connections between disparate fields and studies, this book makes a strong contribution to the study of Jewish identity. —H-Judaic (May 2011)

"...there is much to learn from Rosenblum’s analyses, and students of early rabbinic Judaism and of foodways in general will be richer for considering his contribution." —Journal of Religion

From the Publisher