American Jewish History from the Great Migration to the Contemporary Resurgence of Antisemitism

In this course we will explore the forces that have shaped American Jewry and made it what it is today. We will ask how the Jews who came to America as immigrants created a unique form of Jewish life that combined the political and social traditions of their old countries with the ethos and values they found here. We will explore the place of American Jews in the Jewish world prior to World War II and how this affected the American Jewish public arena. Our examination of the post-Holocaust years will focus on the creation of a new American Judaism, as well as the cultural, literary, and ideological accomplishments of American Jews. Finally, we will discuss the development of antisemitism in the US from the 1920s to its contemporary resurgence.