Gideon Reuveni

By closely examining the interaction between intellectual and material culture in the period before the Nazis came to power in Germany, the author comes to the conclusion that, contrary to widely held assumptions, consumer culture in the Weimar period, far from undermining reading, used reading culture to enhance its goods and values. Reading material was marked as a consumer good, while reading as an activity, raising expectations as it did, influenced consumer culture. Consequently, consumption contributed to the diffusion of reading culture, while at the same time a popular reading culture strengthened consumption and its values.

Literature and Consumer Culture in Germany Before 1933

Reading Germany

Edward Madigan

This book explores the variety of social and political phenomena that combined to the make the First World War a key turning point in the Jewish experience of the twentieth century. Just decades after the experience of intense persecution and struggle for recognition that marked the end of the nineteenth century, Jewish men and women across the globe found themselves drawn into a conflict of unprecedented violence and destruction. The frenzied military, social, and cultural mobilisation of European societies between 1914 and 1918, along with the outbreak of revolution in Russia and the collapse of the Ottoman Empire in the Middle East had a profound impact on Jewish communities worldwide. The First World War thus constitutes a seminal but surprisingly under-researched moment in the evolution of modern Jewish history. The essays gathered together in this ground-breaking volume explore the ways in which Jewish communities across Europe and the wider world experienced, interpreted and remembered the ‘war to end all wars’.

The Jewish Experience of the First World War

Sarah Wobick-Segev

Jewish historiography tends to stress the religious, cultural, and political aspects of the past. By contrast the "economy" has been pushed to the margins of the Jewish discourse and scholarship since the end of the Second World War. This volume takes a fresh look at Jews and the economy, arguing that a broader, cultural approach is needed to understand the central importance of the economy. The very dynamics of economy and its ability to function depend on the ability of individuals to interact, and on the shared values and norms that are fostered within ethnic communities. Thus this volume sheds new light on the interrelationship between religion, ethnicity, culture, and the economy, revealing the potential of an "economic turn" in the study of history.

New Perspectives on the Interrelationship between Ethnicity and Economic Life

The Economy in Jewish History

Nils H. Roemer

The Institute of Jewish Studies, founded in 1954 by the late Alexander Altmann, is dedicated to the promotion of all aspects of scholarship in Jewish Studies and related fields. Its programmes include public lectures, seminars, and annual conferences. All lectures and conferences are open to the general public. Jewish history has been extensively studied from social, political, religious, and intellectual perspectives, but the history of Jewish consumption and leisure has largely been ignored. The hitherto neglect of scholarship on Jewish consumer culture arises from the tendency within Jewish studies to chronicle the production of high culture and entrepreneurship. Yet consumerism played a central role in Jewish life. This volume is the first of its kind to deal with the topic of Jewish consumer culture. It gives new insights on Jewish belongings and longings and provides multiple readings of Jewish consumer culture as a vehicle of integration and identity in modern times

Longing, Belonging, and the Making of Jewish Consumer Culture

Nils Roemer

The collection of essays illustrates the varied functions of consumer culture in the modern Jewish experience.

Michael Brenner

Although the study of Jewish identity has generated a growing body of work, the topic of sport has received scant attention in Jewish historiography. Emancipation through Muscles redresses this balance by analyzing the pertinence of sports to such issues as race, ethnicity, and gender in Jewish history and by examining the role of modern sport within European Jewry. The accomplishments of Jews in the intellectual arena and their notable presence among Nobel Prize recipients have often overshadowed their achievements in sports. The pursuit of sports among Jews in Europe was never a marginal phenomenon, however. In the first third of the twentieth century numerous Jewish sport organizations were founded throughout Europe, and prowess in the realm called muscle Jewry by the Zionists was a symbol of widespread pride among European Jews. Some Jewish teams were remarkably successful: the legendary Austrian soccer champion Hakoah Vienna was arguably the most visible Jewish presence in interwar Vienna, and many readers will be surprised to learn that outstanding soccer teams such as Ajax Amsterdam and Tottenham Hotspur are still considered Jewish teams. The contributors to this volume, an international group of scholars from a variety of fields, explore the diverse relationships between Jews and modern sports in Europe.

Jews and Sports in Europe

Emancipation Through Muscles

Diana Franklin

Germany's acceptance of its direct responsibility for the Holocaust has strengthened its relationship with Israel and has led to a deep commitment to combat antisemitism and rebuild Jewish life in Germany. As we draw close to a time when there will be no more firsthand experience of the horrors of the Holocaust, there is great concern about what will happen when German responsibility turns into history. Will the present taboo against open antisemitism be lifted as collective memory fades? There are alarming signs of the rise of the far right, which includes blatantly antisemitic elements, already visible in public discourse. But it is mainly the radicalization of the otherwise moderate Muslim population of Germany and the entry of almost a million refugees since 2015 from Syria, Iraq, and Afghanistan that appears to make German society less tolerant and somewhat less inhibited about articulating xenophobic attitudes. The evidence is unmistakable--overt antisemitism is dramatically increasing once more. The Future of the German-Jewish Past deals with the formidable challenges created by these developments. It is conceptualized to offer a variety of perspectives and views on the question of the future of the German-Jewish past. The volume addresses topics such as antisemitism, Holocaust memory, historiography, and political issues relating to the future relationship between Jews, Israel, and Germany. While the central focus of this volume is Germany, the implications go beyond the German-Jewish experience and relate to some of the broader challenges facing modern societies today.

Memory and the Question of Antisemitism

The Future of the German-Jewish Past

Dan Diner

Yfaat Weiss

Beiträge renommierter HistorikerInnen zu Themen der deutsch-jüdischen Geschichte, zum Nationalsozialismus und der Einordnung deutscher Geschichte in der Moderne.

Geschichte und Lebenswelt. Festschrift zur Emeritierung von Moshe Zimmermann

Deutsche Zeiten

Mit Blick auf die Verwerfungen deutscher Geschichte im 19. und 20. Jahrhundert befassen sich namhafte Historikerinnen und Historiker unterschiedlicher Generationen, darunter Norbert Frei, Hans Mommsen, Wolfgang Schieder und Hans-Ulrich Wehler, mit Themen der deutsch-jüdischen Geschichte, des Nationalsozialismus und der Nachkriegszeit. Dabei behandeln sie Fragen der Theorie und Methodik ebenso wie Fragen der Biografie- und Gesellschaftsgeschichte und Alltagskultur. Die Beiträge widmen sich u. a. dem deutsch-jüdischen Zusammenleben in Mittelalter und Früher Neuzeit, der Rolle des Sports – insbesondere des Fußballs – im Nationalsozialismus sowie der Einordnung deutscher Geschichte in der Moderne. Mit diesem Buch würdigen Freunde, Kollegen und Schüler den israelischen Historiker Moshe Zimmermann anlässlich seiner Emeritierung.

Gideon Reuveni

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