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Passing Fancies in Jewish American Literature and Culture
Contributor(s): Sasson, Sarah Diane (Author)
ISBN: 025303695X     ISBN-13: 9780253036957
Publisher: Indiana University Press
OUR PRICE:   $89.10  
Product Type: Hardcover - Other Formats
Published: January 2019
Qty:
Additional Information
BISAC Categories:
- Literary Criticism | Jewish
- Literary Criticism | American - General
Dewey: 810.989
LCCN: 2020302438
Series: Jewish Literature and Culture
Physical Information: 0.75" H x 6" W x 9" (1.22 lbs) 262 pages
Themes:
- Ethnic Orientation - Jewish
 
Descriptions, Reviews, Etc.
Publisher Description:

In Passing Fancies in Jewish American Literature and Culture Judith Ruderman takes on the fraught question of who passes for Jewish in American literature and culture. In today's contemporary political climate, religious and racial identities are being reconceived as responses to culture and environment, rather than essential qualities. Many Jews continue to hold conflicting ideas about their identity--seeking, on the one hand, deep engagement with Jewish history and the experiences of the Jewish people, while holding steadfastly, on the other hand, to the understanding that identity is fluid and multivalent. Looking at a carefully chosen set of texts from American literature, Ruderman elaborates on the strategies Jews have used to pass from the late 19th century to the present--nose jobs, renaming, clothing changes, religious and racial reclassification, and even playing baseball. While traversing racial and religious identities has always been a feature of America's nation of immigrants, Ruderman shows how the complexities of identity formation and deformation are critically relevant during this important cultural moment.