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356 books match the query 'Jewish Studies' and 3 start with y

cover of Yehuda Amichai: The Making of Israel's National Poet

Yehuda Amichai

The Making of Israel's National Poet

Nili Scharf Gold

Brandeis University Press, 2008

Yehuda Amichai is one of the twentieth century’s (and Israel’s) leading poets. In this remarkable book, Nili Scharf Gold offers a profound reinterpretation of Amichai’s early works and reconstructs his poetic biography. Her close reading of his oeuvre, untapped notebooks, and a cache of unpublished letters to a woman identified as Ruth Z. that Gold discovered convincingly demonstrates how the poet’s German past infused his work, despite his attempts to conceal it as he adopted an Israeli identity.
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cover of Yiddish Culture in Greater Romania (1918-1940)

Yiddish Culture in Greater Romania (1918-1940)

Camelia Craciun

Central European University Press, 2025

Yiddish culture was an important part of the cultural landscape of Eastern Europe from the Baltic Sea to the Danube, connecting the scattered Ashkenazi Jewry, the overwhelming majority of the Jews living in this geographical area.
In the newly created Greater Romania, the Jewish community included more than half a million individuals still speaking Yiddish. Building on pre-war trends, the new nation-state faced an antisemitism problem since its inception. This continued in the period that followed, culminating in the horrors of the Holocaust, which destroyed most of the Yiddish-language community. Most survivors were discouraged from continuing to use a language that reminded them of a painful past.
This volume examines the socio-cultural mechanisms responsible for restructuring the Yiddish cultural life after the changes brought about by the end of World War I and the creation of Greater Romania. It describes how this process evolved until the political regimes banned the activity of Yiddish theaters, press and, ultimately, the usage of Yiddish, thus making cultural life impossible.

The four authors identify the main institutions, individuals and projects that promoted Yiddish cultural life in interwar Romania. They also trace the impact of Yiddish within Romanian society through joint projects, events, and initiatives. Special attention is given to Yiddish theater, which played a key role both within the community and in its interaction with the Romanian-speaking public.
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cover of You Shall Tell Your Children: Holocaust Memory in American Passover Ritual

You Shall Tell Your Children

Holocaust Memory in American Passover Ritual

Gubkin, Liora

Rutgers University Press, 2007

Passover is among the most widely observed holidays for American Jews. During this festival of redemption, Jewish families retell the biblical story of Exodus using a ritual book known as a haggadah, often weaving modern tales of oppression through the biblical narrative. References to the Holocaust are some of the most common additions to contemporary haggadot. However, the parallel between ancient and modern oppression, which seems obvious to some, raises troubling questions for many others. Is it possible to find any redemptive meaning in the Nazi genocide? Are we adding value to this unforgivable moment in history?

            Liora Gubkin critiques commemorations that violate memory by erasing the value of everyday life that was lost and collapse the diversity of responses both during the Shoah and afterward. She recounts oral testimonies from Holocaust survivors, cites references to the holiday in popular American culture, and analyzes examples of actual haggadot. Ultimately, Gubkin concludes that it is possible and important to make a space for Holocaust commemoration, all the time recognizing that haggadot must be constantly revisited and “performed.”

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