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The Jew in the Text: Modernity and the Construction of Identity
What does the Jew stand for in modern culture? The conscious or unconscious, often hysterical repetition of myths and exaggerations, and the repertory of cliches, fantasies and phobias surrounding the stereotypes of the Jew and the Jewess, have meant that they are figures frequently represented both in the world of literature and art and in the industries of popular culture.
Hardcover
First published March 1, 1996
77 people want to read
About the author
Linda Nochlin
83 books170 followersLinda Nochlin was an American art historian, university professor and writer. A prominent feminist art historian, she was best known as a proponent of the question "Why Have There Been No Great Women Artists?", in an essay of the same name published in 1971.
Her critical attention has been drawn to investigating the ways in which gender affects the creation and apprehension of art, as evidenced by her 1994 essay "Issues of Gender in Cassatt and Eakins". Besides feminist art history, she was best known for her work on Realism, specifically on Gustave Courbet. Complementing her career as an academic, she served on the Art Advisory Council of the International Foundation for Art Research. In 2006, Nochlin received a Visionary Woman Award] from Moore College of Art & Design.
Her critical attention has been drawn to investigating the ways in which gender affects the creation and apprehension of art, as evidenced by her 1994 essay "Issues of Gender in Cassatt and Eakins". Besides feminist art history, she was best known for her work on Realism, specifically on Gustave Courbet. Complementing her career as an academic, she served on the Art Advisory Council of the International Foundation for Art Research. In 2006, Nochlin received a Visionary Woman Award] from Moore College of Art & Design.
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February 9, 2017
This book is a collection of essays on the perception of Jewishness in modern culture. It is not limited to one aspect of Jewish existence, such as Jews' religious traditions or their history as a nation. Nor is it limited to any one discipline, but covers many: art, literature, music, theatre, history, politics, economics, psychology, architecture and others. In this sense, the book is impressively interdisciplinary.
Although in some ways the book is forced by definition to provide a general overview of Jewish contributions to history and culture, it provides intense and highly nuanced considerations of some important issues. For instance, how does anti-Semitism threaten or even taint a Jew's perception of him- or herself? How can you tell whether paintings, book illustrations and political cartoons are intentionally prejudiced or not? Why did the actress Sarah Bernhardt, who was technically Christian, attract all kinds of malevolent commentary on her life because of her Jewish roots? How was it possible for Jean-Paul Sartre to write a widely acclaimed work in defense of Jews, while being at the same time an anti-Semite? What do the psychological theories of Freud have to do with Jewish traditions of storytelling? How does an American monument to the Holocaust faithfully reflect the American experience of this European catastrophe, and how can it be used to foster understanding between Jewish Americans and other ethnic groups?
This volume provides fascinating studies of various aspects of Jewishness. Although I found some of the contributions more readable than others, on the whole, the book rewards the time and effort spent on it.
Although in some ways the book is forced by definition to provide a general overview of Jewish contributions to history and culture, it provides intense and highly nuanced considerations of some important issues. For instance, how does anti-Semitism threaten or even taint a Jew's perception of him- or herself? How can you tell whether paintings, book illustrations and political cartoons are intentionally prejudiced or not? Why did the actress Sarah Bernhardt, who was technically Christian, attract all kinds of malevolent commentary on her life because of her Jewish roots? How was it possible for Jean-Paul Sartre to write a widely acclaimed work in defense of Jews, while being at the same time an anti-Semite? What do the psychological theories of Freud have to do with Jewish traditions of storytelling? How does an American monument to the Holocaust faithfully reflect the American experience of this European catastrophe, and how can it be used to foster understanding between Jewish Americans and other ethnic groups?
This volume provides fascinating studies of various aspects of Jewishness. Although I found some of the contributions more readable than others, on the whole, the book rewards the time and effort spent on it.
Displaying 1 of 1 review