History: Antisemitism/Zionism in Europe

Topics examining themes in Holocaust Studies and Modern European history. Representative topics: The Holocaust & Memory; Auschwitz; The Holocaust in Poland. May be repeated for credit with different content. Topics vary by offering; periodic offering at intervals that may exceed four years. Credit not awarded for both HST 4790 and HST 5700. Prerequisites: Twelve hours of History; minimum Junior standing.

Prerequisite: 12 hours History; Minimum Junior standing; Graduate students register for Hst 5700 A PACE students by permission and override

This seminar will address antisemitism and Zionism in Europe from the late 18th century to the Second World War. After a section offering background on European Jewish history from the Middle Ages into the Age of Enlightenment, we will look at the debates over Jewish emancipation. As we explore the long 19th century, we will examine the divergent developments in western and central Europe, where emancipation unfolded, and in the Russian Empire, where official persecution of Jews persisted. We will then look at the emergence of new forms of economic, political, and racist antisemitism that arose in response to Jewish emancipation. Jewish responses to the above-described developments included a turn toward socialism, emigration to the United States, and Zionism. Focusing on the last of these, we will trace the development of Zionism, which originated in the 1880’s as a form of Jewish nationalism and a response to antisemitism, and which then unfolded against the background of European colonialism as well as the Jewish refugee crisis engendered by post-World War One antisemitism and the rise of Nazism. Some developments in the Middle East will be covered for the sake of context in the Zionism section, but the focus of the seminar will be on Europe. Students will be expected to read multiple book-length works, participate in weekly discussions, and carry out a substantial research project resulting in an oral presentation and a research paper.

Read and discuss several books and historical documents

Regular participation in class discussions, major oral presentation on research project, major research paper