Language:
English
Year of publication:
2020
Titel der Quelle:
Journal of Modern Jewish Studies
Angaben zur Quelle:
19,2 (2020) 224-246
Keywords:
Baron, Devorah,
;
Baron, Devorah, Political and social views
;
Hebrew prose literature History and criticism
;
Jews Migrations
;
Jews Attitudes 20th century
Abstract:
Dvora Baron’s “America” is a poetic essay expressing the author’s views on the emigration of East European shtetl communities at the beginning of the twentieth century and their successful integration into American society. Published in Israel in 1949 in the aftermath of the Holocaust, “America” is an elegy to the annihilated shtetl and a eulogy to the revival of its spirit in America. Baron’s contemporaries predominantly disengaged themselves from discussion of Jewish emigration to destinations other than Palestine/Israel. Against this background “America” stands out as it looks closely at the process of Jewish immigration, its motivations and strategies of relocation that led to a thriving community away from the Zionist destination. The richly textured language of the essay disguises the confrontation with hegemonic conventions, but a close reading reveals Baron’s radical stance towards the concepts of homeland, immigration, and gender of the national narrative.
DOI:
10.1080/14725886.2019.1648412
URL:
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