Introduction: Toward a Sociological Gestalt

Abstract

Hebrew has unique sociological interest as the oldest, in some ways most successful, minority literature. It is a Grand Canyon of civilization, with visible strata of most of the major cultures created over the past 3,000 years. While Hebrew is central specifically in the social history of the Jews, it also offers a panoramic view into the general nature of minority literatures, their relationship with the majority culture, and into the significance of literary creativity in ethnic survival.