on Berlin

There's quite a bit to disagree with in this piece on Berlin from Tablet, but it's a worthwhile backdrop against which to have your own experience of the city. Berlin is--above other characteristics--a city of contradictions as this piece from The Forward brings out.

Carnival of Cultures

Prepare yourselves: the Carnival of Cultures will be in Berlin while we're there. Sure to be wild (though not quite as much as the Love Parade might have been).

back at the ranch....

Here's a very quick, up-to-date way to familiarize yourself with current German politics.

Aesthetic Smackdown: the Perfect v. the Sublime

Which appeals to you more: the rationalist, pragmatic approach to universal morality of the late 18th century (think the various Mendelssohns even when they change their names to Bartholdy) or the deeply felt emotional romanticism of the early 1th century? How does Jewish involvement with both (and here, "Jewish" can mean Jews or Judaism or Jews and Judaism) create ambivalence for German thinkers of all creeds? Feel free to approach this question from multiple angles--Jews as a part of German culture, Jews as separate from an emerging sense of Germanism, a mutually construction majority culture, etc. From any direction, it begs some reflection on what is at stake for non-Jewish and Jewish Germans regarding integration and Emancipation.

tea and coffee in the afternoon

The salon movement of the early Romantic period is both heralded (for its boundary-crossing, anti-hierarchy, seemingly liberal mode of creating inter-religious, inter-class, and inter-gender spaces) and reviled (for basically the same reasons). How is the salon both de-valued and over-valued because of its association both with women and with Jews? Do you see (or can you make) references (or echoes) of it in either the rise of Liberal Judaism and in (our) contemporary society?

"the Jew is even more man than Jew...."

In his 1781 treatise "On the Civil Improvement of the Jews" von Dohm adjures the Prussian government both to know the religion of Judaism and to create conditions that help weaken Jewish specificity in favor of promoting a more general (that is, universally available) morality. In suggesting--strongly--that his audience not judge the whole of Jews through the actions of a few, Dohm not only elevates the role/value/significance of the individual but also he signals a reorganization of the ways in which non-Jews and Jews should perceive one another. Instead of knowing one another as communities, Prussians of all creeds show know one another as human beings. Sounds great, right? But the drawbacks are plentiful. What kind of negative repercussions does Dohm's piece invoke (however unwittingly)?

Berlin dining

For those of you not in NY (or those in the city not reading The NY Times) Sunday's paper had a big section on European travel. No promises on whether we'll be eating at any of these places, but it's nice to dream, isn't it? Berlin: High and Low Dining.

Money, money, money

It's not all bad news--look how much further your (student) dollars can go! (It's good we're leaving soon.)

Is the Cupcake American?

This reminds me of the irony of the European Starbucks franchise: who's importing whose idea of what?

"In Germany, a Taste of New York, via McDonald’s" (from _The New York Times_, April 11, 2010).

On the power of telling a story in a particular way...

One more thought on this beginning: why the hard sell on the rough conditions of German Judaism and Jews before Mendelssohn's arrival in Berlin? Think about the dichotomies Elon sets up pre- and post-Mendelssohn: intolerance vs. tolerance, introverted Judaism vs. extroverted Jews, poor & spiritually malnourishment vs. secularity, Prussian barbarism vs. German universalism, court Jews vs. free market democratic capitalists, halakhic insularity vs. Deistic cosmopolitanism. What kind/s of Jews does Elon seem to most value in such binaries? (One can decipher an answer by way of the traits and characteristics he praises or demeans.) In other words, what's up with the spin? (And, here's the kicker--how much does his content play into your own assumptions about German Jewish history?)

On my man, Mo

Elon begins with Moses Mendelssohn (1729-1786), whom he describes as barefoot, terribly impoverished, frail, sickly and hunchbacked yet with a mind that powers his long walk from Dessau to Berlin (about 83 miles) and with a beautiful face. By beginning this way, what bias or prejudice or scene does Elon present to the reader about German Jewish life, culture, history and engagement? What is gained by such a portrayal of Mendelssohn as both the representative of -all- German Jewry and an anomalous exemplar of exceptionalism? Again, to the comments....

On Elon's _The Pity_

Reading the beginning of Amos Elon's _The Pity of It All_ begs several questions the most pressing of which might be related to his title. Just what can you determine (or decipher, your call) about his understanding and perception of German-Jewish history from what he has chosen to call his book? Add your reflections and considerations in the comments.

Mapping the past

Confused about Elon's referencing of different German speaking provinces? Until its final national unification in 1871 (under the military and political leadership of Otto von Bismarck and Wilhelm of Prussia) the country we know as Germany was operated as separate provinces with different political, social and economic agendas. Language and dialect variations (along with different local foods, beers, sausages, pastries, cultural ancestries, etc.) as well as different religious alliances helped maintain invisible borders between provinces (and their populations) as well as fostered serious rivalries. A map of the contemporary Germany may help you visualize the different places referenced in our reading. Mendelssohn was born in Dessau (in Sachsen-Anhalt) and walked to Berlin (through Brandenburg to the city-state of Berlin, collectively known as Prussia). Heine was born in Duesseldorf which is in Nordrhein-Westfalen. Worms and Speyer are located in the south part of Rheinland-Pfalz. As Napolean marched across Europe, he brought French Revolutionary reforms from west to east so that Heine's part of Germany felt his impact well before Prussia did.

We're back in business and ready to prep for Germany Close Up 2010! Check here for supplemental information and resources as well ass discussion questions and links to news/updates about Germany and the program. It's going to be a GREAT class & trip!