“For Far and Near”, an international literary festival convened by Agnon House in Jerusalem and the Truman Institute for the Advancement of Peace, is dedicated to themes of peace, war, conflicts and possible resolutions, as they are represented in Hebrew, Palestinian, and international literature. The festival will include both online events and hybrid real-world events that will be broadcasted.
During the festival’s events, we will discuss struggles in light of literature, political poetry as love poetry, writing and translation, S. Y. Agnon’s story “From Foe to Friend”, Leonard Cohen’s experiences in Sinai, life and writing embedded in the feminist movement, and the play “Year Zero” about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The festival’s advisory board includes Prof. Vered Vinitzky-Seroussi, Prof. Ifat Maoz, Dr. Oreet Meital, Prof. Ariel Hirschfeld, Prof. Ilana Pardes, Prof. Ayman Agbaria, Bilha Ben Eliyahu, Rabbi Jeffrey Saks and others.
Sun כ"ו בחשון תשפ"ג 20.11.2022 18:00
From Near and Far
Festival’s Opening Night at Agnon House with Bilha Ben Eliyahu, Rabbi Jeffrey Saks, Prof. Ariel Hirschfeld and other
Mon כ"ז בחשון תשפ"ג 21.11.2022 18:00
From Foe to Friend: Reading S.Y. Agnon’s Story Together
Prof. Haviva Pedaya, Rana Abu Fraiha, and Ron Cahlili in conversation on Agnon’s famous story
Online event in Hebrew with simultaneous translation into English.
Mon כ"ז בחשון תשפ"ג 21.11.2022 19:15
Leonard Cohen in Sinai: Conversation with Matti Friedman on his book Who By Fire
Matti Friedman and Benjamin Balint Leonard Cohen’s experiences with IDF soldiers during the Yom Kippur War.
Online event in English with Hebrew subtitles
Tue כ"ח בחשון תשפ"ג 22.11.2022 18:00
Political Poetry as Love-Poetry: Reading together in Taha Muhammad Ali’s poems
Anat Sharon-Belais, Prof. Ayman Agbaria, Reem Ghanayem and Noa Yaron-Dayan on territory, poetry, history, and love.
Online event in Hebrew with simultaneous translation into English.
Tue כ"ח בחשון תשפ"ג 22.11.2022 19:15
Living, thinking, writing: Conversation with Vivian Gornick
Author Vivian Gornick and Kathrine Tschemerinsky on living and writing as feminist struggles
Online event in English with Hebrew subtitles
Tue כ"ח בחשון תשפ"ג 22.11.2022 20:30
Translating myself and others: Conversation with Pulitzer Prize-awardee Jumpa Lahiri
Author Jumpa Lahiri and Dr. Chiara Caradonna about translating beyond borders and conflicts
Online event in English with Hebrew subtitles.
Wed כ"ט בחשון תשפ"ג 23.11.2022 18:30
Closing event in Truman Institute: Year Zero
The play Year Zero is based on historian Hillel Cohen’s book, which deals with the acts of hostility and violence that occurred between Jews and Arabs in August 1929. At the end of the bloody days, hundreds of dead and wounded were counted on both sides. The uniqueness of the book is in bringing and interpreting the voices of all parties (Jews, Arabs, and British). Cohen claims in his book that the conflict as we know it today is rooted in that time and those events. While the play is based on Cohen's book, it also differs from it, as Cohen's arguments are presented on the stage alongside additional testimonies found in archives and libraries. The mosaic of voices told by Jews and Arabs, together on one stage, composes a story of mutual enmity and violence as well as of help and closeness that crossed national borders. The play also includes testimonies from the difficult events that took place in Jewish-Arab cities during May 2021 and thus points to the relevance of the play’s event. Following the play, Prof. Vered Vinitzky-Seroussi will lead a discussion with the author of the book, the playwright, the director, and one of the actresses. The conversation will revolve around what was behind the research, the relationship between art and conflicts, the translation of academic research into a performance, cooperations in a conflicted space, and the possibility of learning something from the past.
