CU/HS 399 - Jewish Life in Berlin: Past and Present

Jewish life has always been a driving force of German and Berlin history and culture. Berlin was a center for the development of Jewish life and Judaism in Germany and beyond. Berlin was the capital of the Jewish enlightenment and emancipation movement in the 18^th century, and the city was the birthplace of Reform Judaism and Orthodoxy in the 19^th century. Jewish Berliners have strongly influenced the city's cultural and literary life, from the 18^th century salon to the cabarets of the Weimar Republic. They set standards in German politics, arts, and its economy, led the way in the sciences, and inspired social and intellectual movements which have shaped European history. Jewish citizens and organizations were forerunners of modernity at a time when Berlin was the place where the multiple crises of modernity were being most acutely felt. In the late 19^th century, Berlin also became the center of an emerging “modern” Antisemitism and, just a few decades later, of the determination policies of the Holocaust. After World War II, Jewish life in the divided city reflected the different approaches of coming to terms with Holocaust history in Germany. Since the 1990s, Berlin has hosted the fastest growing Jewish community in Europe due to immigration from the former Soviet Union and from Israel. This trend brought heightened visibility in society and challenged preexisting notions of Jewish identity in the former “land of the perpetrators.” Today, Berlin hosts a vibrant multicultural Jewish community – alongside its rich historical heritage and memory sites. This course will discuss the most important trends, continuities and turning points in the history of Berlin Jewish life from the Age of Enlightenment to the present. Taking the Jewish perspective, it goes beyond the binary of contribution and exclusion. The course offers insights in the rich history and culture of Berlin, a critical reflection on the changing interpretations of “German-Jewish” relations, and analyses of current debates on “Jewish identity”. Topics include the struggle for emancipation, the rise of anti-Semitism and Zionism, the cultural bloom of the German Empire and the interwar period. Case studies and biographies will shed light on Jewish underground life during the Holocaust, in occupied Berlin, and Jewish life in divided Germany. Exploring the diversity of Jewish life today, we will analyze Jewish self-perceptions and constructions of intersectional belonging, not merely in the light of Holocaust remembrance but also in conversation with recent political challenges. The course seeks to critically engage with concepts such as religious and cultural identity, interreligious dialogue, secularization, (anti)emancipation, and memory marketing. As much as possible, we will draw on the people and history of the city to contextualize our discussion. The city offers the students ample opportunity to further explore various facets of Jewish Life then and now.