THE EARLY AVROM SUTSKEVER – HIS PREWAR AND GHETTO POETRY (ONLINE)
In this course, we will be reading and discussing Avrom Sutzkever’s early poetry — from his beginnings as a young poet in the prewar years to his poetic writings in the Vilnius Ghetto. Based on this corpus, we will try to understand how his poetry developed and was shaped by the poet’s historical experiences.
אין דעם קורס וועלן מיר לייענען און אַרומרעדן אַן אָפּקלײַב לידער, מיט וועלכע דער גרויסער פּאָעט אַַבֿרהם סוצקעווער האָט אָנגעהויבן זײַן , פּאָעטישן וועג אין די פֿריִע 30ער יאָרן. מיר וועלן דערנאָך אַריבערגיין צו זײַן פּאָעזיע פֿון די מלחמהֲ־יאָרן, דער עיקר די לידער וואָס ער האָט געשריבן אין ווילנער געטאָ. אויפֿן סמך פֿון דעם קאָרפּוס וועלן מיר זען, וואָסער אַנטוויקלונג דער פּאָעט האָט דורכגעמאַכט
The course is given in collaboration with Paideia – the European Institute for Jewish Studies in Sweden and Jiddischsällskapet i Stockholm.
Paideia folkhögskola also offers the online courses Yiddish 3, Yiddish 7 and Yiddish conversation (in Yiddish/Swedish) during the spring semester of 2026. Please see more information under each course’s webpage.
Course structure
Participants will be asked to prepare the readings in advance, and read aloud in class, so that you can also work on pronunciation. During class, the teacher will focus on the language, the poetic content, the imagery, as well as the cultural, idiomatic, and historical references and allusions. All discussions will be conducted entirely in Yiddish.
This will be an interactive language course based on advanced reading material, but the main aim will be to enable participants to discover one of the greatest Yiddish poets at their own pace and in the poet’s original language. The course will also provide an opportunity to improve active speaking skills.
Homework
- Mandatory: Preparation of the text to be discussed in the next lesson, which means reading and looking up new words.
- Voluntary: Writing short essays related to the texts discussed in class.
Prior knowledge
The course will be taught entirely in Yiddish, to participants of advanced level. Describe your prior knowledge in your application.
To apply for this course, you need basic computer skills and knowledge of how to use the digital platform Zoom. The school offers Zoom manuals and a training opportunity before the start of the course.
Course material
Course material is included in the cost for this course.
About the teacher
Dr. Miriam Trinh was born in Poland, grew up in Germany, and has lived in Israel since 1995. She holds a PhD from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and her main field of research and teaching is the Yiddish language and modern Yiddish literature, especially poetry with a focus on the Holocaust period. She currently teaches at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem but has also taught over the years in various countries and institutions, including in recent years at Paideia’s Intensive Yiddish Summer School.
מרים טרין איז געבוירן אין פּוילן, אויפֿגעוואַקסן אין דײַטשלאַנד און לעבט אין ישׂראל. זי לערנט די ייִדישע שפּראַך און ליטעראַטור שוין איבער 25 יאָר אין פֿאַרשיידענע לענדער און ראַמען, און באַזונדערש אויף די אינטערנאַציאָנאַלע ייִדיש־זומערקורסן צווישן אַנדערע אין ייִוואָ (ניו־יאָרק) און תּל־אָבֿיבֿער אוניווערסיטעט. אין די לעצטע 3 יאָר האָט זי אויכעט געלערנט אויף די אינטענסיווע זומערקורסן אין פּאַידעיע, שטאָקהאָלם. איר דאָקטאָראַט האָט זי געשריבן וועגן פּאָעטישע טעקסטן פֿון די געטאָס און לאַגערן און בכלל ספּעציאַליזירט זי זיך אין מאָדערנער ייִדישער ליטעראַטור און חורבן־פּאָעזיע.
Photo: Avrom Sutzkever, by Haïm Urison (1905 – 1943).