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<p>This thesis seeks to interrogate how Elie Wiesel’s <em>Night</em> and A. M. Klein’s <em>The Second Scroll</em> illustrate the spiritual journeys of their protagonists and depict dehumanization of the Jewish people. Through their interactions with sacred bodies, as well as profane, religious and sacred objects, both novels map the spiritual quests of the protagonists, revealing very different conclusions. Using Virginia Greene’s “‘Accessories of Holiness’: Defining Jewish Sacred Objects” as an analytic framework, I explore how both novels transform sacred bodies into profane “objects” to illustrate various forms of anti-Semitic subjugation and de-personification. I then interrogate how <em>The Second Scroll</em> “textualizes” these objectified bodies, as well as how Klein’s novel turns Israeli society into a sacred text. This “textualization” offers a space to re-affirm God’s providence in a post-Holocaust imagination—an imagination that strongly differs from the rejection of God in <em>Night</em>. Through this exploration of spirituality and dehumanization, both texts humanize those who have been dehumanized in the camps and re-face the victims whose personhood was stripped from them, inviting them to dwell in both the novels and the readers’ memory.</p> / Master of English

Since Ashkenazi Jews in the United States are not a visible minority, it often becomes difficult to distinguish what/who is a Jew. As many Jewish females may appear to be of the dominant culture, they often get overlooked in discussions and courses on teacher education and multiculturalism/multicultural education. However, their identity as both Jewish and White and the absence of conversation regarding their multiple positions in education and in society can contest, as well as support, their connection to multiculturalism. The purpose of this research was to identify how four middle class Ashkenazi females in the greater Los Angeles area understand their identities and experiences as Jews and as public school educators, how these multiple identities impact their perceptions of their pedagogy, and how these women navigate the structures of public schooling. Narrative Inquiry and Listening Guide method of analysis were utilized to present multilayered portraits of these women in order to challenge the status quo of the White female teacher identity and the positioning of Jewish females in regards to the perseverance of Christianity in public education. Story threads emerged from the narratives which indicated that while Jewish identity is fluid and exists on a continuum over time, it was not a primary reason why these women became teachers. Although each woman made individual decisions regarding the degree to which her Jewishness was presented in the classroom and on campus, they did not actively design their curriculum due to them being Jewish; rather they unconsciously incorporated aspects of Judaism in their pedagogy.

Victimes des persécutions du régime national-socialiste, près d’un demi-million d’Allemands et d’Autrichiens furent contraints à l’exil entre 1933 et 1945, en Europe puis outre‑mer. Plusieurs milliers d’entre eux trouvèrent refuge en Bolivie, le pays le plus pauvre d’Amérique du Sud. Nous nous proposons d’étudier la crise identitaire provoquée par la rupture de l’exil chez les personnes concernées ainsi que les stratégies identitaires qu’elles mirent en place pour tenter de la dépasser. Nous avons ainsi choisi d’interroger les difficultés spécifiques des exilés de langue allemande qui furent confrontés dans la république andine à un environnement socio-culturel très différent de celui qu’ils connaissaient en Europe et qui n’offrait que peu de repères identificatoires. Devant l’impossibilité d’une acculturation rapide, les exilés germanophones en Bolivie durent activer des mécanismes de défense et de (re)construction identitaire qu’ils mirent en place dans des espaces interstitiels transnationaux recréés sur place. Cette étude a pour objet l’analyse de la nature de ces espaces et des processus de recomposition identitaire différents, parfois divergents, mis en place chez les exilés de langue allemande en Bolivie. Notre réflexion s’inscrit ainsi dans le cadre de la sociologie des identités en contexte migratoire centrée sur les espaces socio-culturels et politiques collectifs ainsi que sur la (re)définition d’individus victimes d’une assignation identitaire discriminante. / Nearly half a million of German and Austrian nationals, fleeing persecution at the hand of the national‑socialist regime, were forced into exile in Europe and overseas. A few thousands of them found refuge in Bolivia, then the poorest country in South America. In our study, this dissertaition will analyse the identity crisis caused by the rupture of exile as well as the identity strategies those who were affected developed to overcome this crisis. We chose to focus on the specific difficulties of the Germann speaking exile who in Bolivia had to face a sociocultural environment widely different from what they had known in Europe and in which they couldn’t find any references to relate to. Since fast acculturation was nearly impossible, the exiles had to recreate transnational in-between spaces that would enable them to activate defensive mechanisms to (re)build their identities.Our study aims to analyse the nature of these spaces as well as the different - or even divergent - processes of identity reconstruction the German–speaking exiles established in Bolivia. Our work relies on the sociology of identity in a migratory context with a specific focus on collective sociocultural and political spaces and on the redefining of identities for people who were the victims of a discriminating label.

While The Merchant of Venice has long been one of Shakespeare's most popular plays, it has also been one of the most controversial with Shylock being the hub of the conflict. Critics have long been arguing whether this great character is a tragic hero or a larger-than-life villain. Those opting for the first often believe the playwright guilty of anti-semitism, and those following the latter consider Shylock the embodiment of evil. Very few critics have viewed this character as three dimensional, possessing human dignity as well as a capacity for evil. The first chapter reveals the many sources for both the plot of the play and for Shylock's character. Chapter II deals with the subject of usury historically and in relationship to Shylock's character. The third chapter reveals the humanness of Shylock, his supposedly fierce dedication to his values and his relationship with the Christians. Included also in this chapter is Shakespeare's use of imagery, particularly animal imagery in the revelation of Shylock's character, and the Jew's diabolic nature. Shylock as a scapegoat in the traditionally Jewish sense is the topic of Chapter IV. The discussion of these pertinent areas of the play show that Shakespeare did not have to be antisemitic to write about an evil man who happened to be a Jew. It is shown that Shylock may be viewed consistently on three levels: the historic, the archetypal, and the literal. The point being made here is that the modern reader, particularly due to the fact that twentieth century man has perpetrated more atrocities on the Jewish people than all past centuries combined, is perhaps incapable of total objectivity where this play is concerned. We tend to view the play either offensively or defensively on an emotional level rather than intellectually and literally. This reaction is explored in the Conclusion using the philosophy of Jung and his studies of the collective unconscious.

Scholars have often seen the interpretation of the Son of Man as crucial in discovering Jesus’ self-understanding, given that the expression occurs so frequently and almost exclusively on Jesus’ lips. After ascertaining the authenticity of the Son of Man sayings, I carry out the exegesis in the Gospel of Mark using a methodology consisting of examining Biblical passages within the context of the Bible as a whole and of historical-critical and philological perspectives. Also, the narrative context of the saying is taken into account. I show that the Son of Man is a Messianic title derived from Daniel 7:13, and that the book of Daniel’s content and themes were used as a basis for the Son of Man sayings themselves. In addition to using the Son of Man as a Messianic title, Jesus used the title as a claim for divinity.

People of the Jewish faith base their belief on the written word of the Torah. Presented in this paper are fine artists that produce work within these laws. The Torah sets guidelines for life and morality. The belief system within this domain is that visual images have an impact on the viewers, and artists are accountable for what they produce. This is in opposition with art education, where freedom of expression takes precedence over morality. The results of this study will form the basis for a curriculum for the community college. The researcher's area of inquiry is directed to painting and sculpture made by artists of the Jewish faith who follow the Torah, meaning those who are observant of their faith and practices. Their skills and perceptions will be presented to educate the viewer about their visions. The research questions were posed to rabbinical authorities and artists in order to establish a clear and defined statement of what the Jewish law is regarding the fine arts. The evidence presented was obtained by questionnaires, personal interviews, articles, and opinions from Jewish scholars. Four rabbis were selected based on their erudition on Torah law, and their strong leadership positions in Jewish educational institutions. The ten artists were selected based on recommendations from art historians, and art and gallery directors. The artists and the rabbis were mailed questionnaires, which was followed by an interview. The conclusion from this study is that fine artists are encouraged to use their talents, this is supported by the Torah text, and rabbinic explanation. The restriction for the Jewish artist is in making a replication of a realistic full-scale figure, making a visual rendition of G-d, a nude, or violent image. Art is made by the observant Jew with the intention of enhancing the world with visions inspired by their belief in the Torah. A crucial belief in Judaism is that there is but one G-d, and all man-made images should reflect the majesty of G-d's creations.

<p>Ethnic Germans and Jews lived alongside one another in Southern Ukraine for over a century prior to the Holocaust. They were as Shimon Redlich observes of Jewish-Gentile relations in his Polish hometown, "together and apart." Both groups started out the twentieth century closer together than they had ever been, and interactions between them were and remained comparatively normalized and less violent than Jews' experiences with the other groups surrounding them on Ukraine's pre-Revolutionary landscape. Yet, by 1941, with the joint Romanian-German occupation of the region, ethnic Germans enthusiastically plundered, exploited, and murdered their Jewish neighbors with little prodding from the Romanian and Nazi occupation regimes. How did over a century of ethnic German-Jewish coexistence devolve into local violence? Which historical processes fueled some ethnic Germans' conversion from neighbors to murderers, and when exactly did this transition begin?</p><p><br></p> <p>This project examines coexistence, confluence, and conflict between ethnic Germans and their Jewish neighbors in Southern Ukraine from the late Tsarist period through the Holocaust. It builds upon the work of formidable scholars like Jan Gross, Jan Grabowski, Jeffrey Kopstein and Jason Wittenberg, Timothy Snyder, Wendy Lower, Karl Berkhoff, Eric Steinhart, and Doris Bergen, all of which examine the impact of double, sometimes triple or more, occupations on intergroup relationships and/or local collaboration in occupied territories. However, unlike many of these case studies, which root collaborators’ motives in the years immediately predating the war, or in the war itself, this project seeks to understand the impact of decades of occupation and revanchist policies (Austro-German, Soviet, Romanian, Nazi) on the groups’ interactions with and perceptions of one another. Moreover, as opposed to splitting the region into two separate entities, as the Romanian and Nazi regimes did, this project illuminates some of the continuities across the river Buh, as lived and died, by ethnic Germans and Jews in Ukraine prior to and during the Holocaust. This longue durée analysis illuminates the roles sustained violence and occupational policies played in disrupting centuries of interactions between ethnic Germans and Jews. By 1941, the two groups had been violently reconfigured, pulled together, and pushed apart in profoundly consequential ways. The Nazi and Romanian occupiers, equipped with vernaculars of violence and nation erected by the Soviet state and its predecessors, capitalized on ongoing historical processes, quickly incorporating ethnic Germans into their genocidal machine. </p> <p> </p> <p> </p>

The Oregon Territory and later the State of Oregon have had a well-deserved reputation for encouraging free thought and liberal ideas. By tradition, Oregon has been the scene of rugged individualism, a proving ground for ideas and movements. The commune of New Odessa was one of the lesser known attempts of a group of immigrants coming from persecution in Russian to a new way of life in America. This thesis is a study starting with the background of Russian Jewry, the social climate in the United States and particularly Oregon which allowed for the development of communes, the story of New Odessa, and the reason for its disappearance. New Odessa was unique in Oregon as it was a Marxist commune founded by Russian Jews. The portion of the thesis on New Odessa was based on original research: the studying of periodicals of the time, original documents, and field research in the geographical location. The more accepted and productive New Odessa became, the faster the disintegration. The geographical and cultural isolation of Oregon proved to be too great for the members of the community, most of whom had been students and urban residents in Russia. A difference in ideology between the two leaders resulted in a gradual decline in membership. By 1887, the community had been declared bankrupt.

<p>  </p> <p>My dissertation demonstrates the Jewish tradition’s significance for rhetoric by analyzing Biblical ‎encounters with the divine—the ultimate Other. Thus, this dissertation responds to calls such as Steven B. Katz’s to continually redefine what ‎‎“rhetoric” means to us (“Hebrew Bible” 134). In the past several decades, there has been ‎increasing interest in rhetorics that challenge ‎our preconceived notions of what constitutes ‎‎“rhetoric,” both loosening the Greeks and Romans from a skewed reception history and calling ‎for definitions of rhetoric to move “beyond the Greeks” (Lipsom and Binkley). Both these ‎approaches highlight the need for a more diverse understanding of rhetoric—an understanding ‎that better foregrounds the import of the Other. The still-germinal field of Jewish rhetorics has ‎emerged as one response to these calls to diversify and decolonize the rhetorical tradition. As ‎such, this dissertation is also a reclamation of a Jewish tradition that has been—inadvertently ‎and explicitly—ignored, misunderstood, and suppressed.‎</p> <p><br></p> <p>I argue that representations of divine ‎encounters in the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible) offer a rhetorical framework for encountering the ‎Other—human and divine—as holy. Neither appropriative nor obeisant, this framework offers a ‎uniquely Jewish perspective on encountering the Other—one that has not received adequate ‎academic attention. In a moment where the imperative to engage with Others is so pressing, I ‎address that call to action by bringing together a breadth of scholarship in Jewish studies, ‎rhetorical theory, and Biblical studies to develop a Jewish rhetorical framework for encountering the Other—human and divine—as holy, which I call a “covenant rhetoric.”</p> <p><br></p> <p>This covenant rhetoric, I ‎assert, is not reserved for encounters with the divine, but is also applicable to human rhetorical ‎interactions. My dissertation thus offers a rhetorical model for encountering as holy the human ‎Others with whom we share our existence. As our diverse society continues to wrestle with the ‎ethical imperative towards the Other, I show how the Tanakh prompts us to reconsider the ‎rhetorical potential of encountering Otherness as holiness. In the process, I demonstrate ‎rhetoric’s centrality to religion, to spirituality, and to living an ethically-informed life. ‎</p>