Women Writing Jewish Modernity, 1919 - 1939 | Allison Schachter, PhD at Fairfield University
Channel: Fairfield University
Date: 2023-05-01

In this insightful lecture, Professor Allison Schachter delves deep into the rich tapestry of Yiddish literature, uncovering the overlooked contributions of female authors and the cultural significance they held in Jewish life during the 20th century. Highlighting the systemic erasure of women's experiences from the study of Jewish modernity, Schachter brings to light the biases and expectations placed upon female writers and poets, and the subsequent challenges they faced in male-dominated literary circles. This video offers a comprehensive look into the struggle for recognition by Jewish women writers. This lecture is a must-watch for those interested in Jewish literature, feminism, and the reclamation of lost voices.


0:35:  Professor Allison Schachter discusses the importance of celebrating Jewish life and culture through Yiddish literature.
6:16:  The absence of women in the study of Jewish modernity has led to an incomplete and flawed understanding of the culture in the 20th century.
12:40:  Male Jewish writers sought to include women in the literary world while maintaining their own authority and status as authors.
17:35:  Women poets were expected to write only about women's concerns, while women prose writers were largely ignored until the 1990s and early 2000s when anthologies and translated works started to appear.
23:26:  Fradl Shtok was a Yiddish poetess and writer who emigrated to New York from Scala in 1907 and achieved critical acclaim for her poetry and short stories.
28:22:  Women writers were excluded from male intellectual and literary circles, but they did form private literary friendships.
33:53:  The video discusses the reviews and criticisms of Sholem Aleichem's collection and the failure of male critics to recognize her contributions.
39:56:  This passage highlights the objectification of women and challenges masculinist notions of modernity.
44:55:  The video discusses the exclusion of women in the literary scene and the criticism faced by Fradl Shtok's first English language novel.
50:58:  The study of Jewish history and culture has traditionally focused on masculinity and male writers, but there is a growing movement to include more women writers and offer alternative perspectives.
56:17:  The challenge of creating a feminist archive for Eastern European Jewish writers and gathering information about their lives from the archives.

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