[DOWNLOAD] "The Transatlantic Connection: The American Jewish Committee and the Joint Foreign Committee in Defense of German Jews, 1933-1937 *." by American Jewish History # eBook PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: The Transatlantic Connection: The American Jewish Committee and the Joint Foreign Committee in Defense of German Jews, 1933-1937 *.
- Author : American Jewish History
- Release Date : January 01, 2002
- Genre: Social Science,Books,Nonfiction,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 276 KB
Description
Modern Jewish historiography abounds with national histories. We turn out countless books on the history of the Jews in England, France, Germany, and the United States. I would like to suggest that historians focus more specifically on the international dimension of those national histories, that is, on how the links between Jews in country A and those in country B influenced Jewish policy and behavior in both A and B. To be sure, some subjects by definition, like the well-known stories of Zionism or relief for the persecuted Jews in czarist Russia, were international in scope and involved Jews worldwide. But other subjects ranging from the arts to religious responsa beg for greater attention. We need to evaluate the role of individuals and organizations who consciously looked to foreign sources for guidance and aid, as well as the role of impersonal social and intellectual forces, such as anti-Semitism or biblical criticism, that transcended national boundaries. When our focus is on the transnational connections of individuals and organizations, the international dimension is manifested in a variety of ways. Two examples: I) A common pattern is that of teacher-student, which posits that the student seeks and follows the guidance of the teacher. In such instances we face obvious questions. Why did the student pick that specific mentor; does the instruction he receives take the form of example, advice, or outright directive; what is the impact or effect of the lesson on subsequent student behavior? 2) On an entirely different level, the transnational connection can connote the cooperation of equals. Here we need to determine the reasons why each of the two parties sought out the other and what their shared characteristics and objectives were. Among other things, we question how well the two contenders were matched and to what extent cooperation replaced independent action by the partners; we also consider the immediate or long-range advantages (or disadvantages) that an alliance brought to each. These examples, although hardly exhaustive, indicate the many ways in which the international dimension can be explored.