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This book focuses on the nature and extent of social change, integration and identity transformation within the Jewish community of Britain during the interwar years. It probes the notion - widely articulated by Jewish communal leaders at this time - that the immigrant second generation (i.e. British and foreign-born children of Russian and Eastern European Jews who migrated to Britain in the late Victorian era up to the First World War) had 'estranged' themselves from their Jewishness, Jewish elders and peers and were fast assimilating into the British mainstream.The volume analyses the second generation's developing outlooks and behavioural trends in a variety of environments, effectively charting the changes and continuities present therein. As a whole, the book sheds light on the varied ways in which this group developed new identities that both drew from and reflected their Jewish and British heritage.
List of contents
Chapter One: Introduction.- Chapter Two: Home Life and Family.- Chapter Three: Education and Work.- Chapter Four: Religion.- Chapter Five: Politics.- Chapter Six: Sport and Recreation.- Chapter Seven: Conclusion.- Appendix.- Bibliography.- Index.
About the author
David Dee is Senior Lecturer in Modern History at De Montfort University, UK. He has written widely on the modern History of the Jewish community in Britain and is the author of Sport and British Jewry: Integration, Ethnicity and Anti-Semitism (2013).
Summary
This book focuses on the nature and extent of social change, integration and identity transformation within the Jewish community of Britain during the interwar years. It probes the notion – widely articulated by Jewish communal leaders at this time – that the immigrant second generation (i.e. British and foreign-born children of Russian and Eastern European Jews who migrated to Britain in the late Victorian era up to the First World War) had ‘estranged’ themselves from their Jewishness, Jewish elders and peers and were fast assimilating into the British mainstream.The volume analyses the second generation’s developing outlooks and behavioural trends in a variety of environments, effectively charting the changes and continuities present therein. As a whole, the book sheds light on the varied ways in which this group developed new identities that both drew from and reflected their Jewish and British heritage.
Additional text
“Dee’s well written and richly documented book builds on a number of earlier studies, many of which were broader in scope. His more concentrated focus allows him to offer a detailed assessment of second-generation Jews in Britain … . The author’s extensive use of interviews, memoirs, and autobiographical materials has enabled him to delve into the experiences and attitudes of this pivotal generation.” (Susan Tananbaum, Jewish Historical Studies, Vol. 50 (1), 2019)
Report
"Dee's well written and richly documented book builds on a number of earlier studies, many of which were broader in scope. His more concentrated focus allows him to offer a detailed assessment of second-generation Jews in Britain ... . The author's extensive use of interviews, memoirs, and autobiographical materials has enabled him to delve into the experiences and attitudes of this pivotal generation." (Susan Tananbaum, Jewish Historical Studies, Vol. 50 (1), 2019)
