»The Secret of the Movement’s Strength:«

This seminar will focus on the women and men behind the symbol of the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, the members of the Jewish Fighting Organization. In the historical aspect, we will study the composition of this group as a reflection of “Modern Jewish Politics,” and especially of Jewish socialism. In the theoretical aspect, we will examine the uprising as a manifestation of a distinct sociological formation, the “Jewish youth movement.” In the methodological aspect, we will practice the reading of autobiographical testimonies, written from different perspectives, in terms of time, political affiliation and gender.

Literature:

Zivia Lubetkin, In the Days of Destruction and Revolt, Ghetto Fighters’ House 1981 (1946/47); Marek Edelman, The Ghetto Fights: Warsaw 1941–1943, London 1990 (1945); Yisrael Gutman, Resistance: The Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, Boston 1994; Judy Batalion, The Light of Days: The Untold Story of Women Resistance Fighters in Hitler’s Ghettos, New York 2020; Avinoam Patt, The Jewish Heroes of Warsaw: The Afterlife of the Revolt, Detroit 2021.