Imperfect sympathies : Jews and Judaism in British Romantic literature and culture / by Judith W. Page.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Page, Judith W., 1951-

Contributor:

Sabin W. Colton, Jr., Memorial Fund.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

English literature--19th century--History and criticism.

English literature.

Jews in literature.

English literature--Jewish authors--History and criticism.

Jews--Great Britain--Intellectual life.

Jews.

Judaism and literature--Great Britain.

Judaism and literature.

Romanticism--Great Britain.

Romanticism.

Intellectual life.

English literature--Jewish authors.

Great Britain.

Sympathy in literature.

Judaism in literature.

Physical Description:

xiv, 257 pages : illustrations ; 22 cm

Place of Publication:

New York : Palgrave Macmillan, 2004.

Summary:

In Imperfect Sympathies, Judith W. Page argues that the cultural revolution of sympathy and sentiment in British literature from 1770-1830 influenced the representation of Jews and Judaism. Page draws on historical materials and primary documents by and about Jews of the period, as well as a variety of authors and literary genres. She argues that there is a tension between the Romantic impulse to admire and sympathize with Jews and Judaism on the one hand, and the traditions of anti-Semitism and conversionist philo-Semitism on the other. This often unresolved tension in the literature reflects the political and cultural struggles of the time, as well as the dilemma of Romanticism, which advocates sympathy but does not always accommodate difference.

Contents:

1 Introduction: Jews and the Romantic Culture of Sympathy 1

2 Blessing and Curse: Imaginary Jews and Romantic Texts 21

3 Reinventing Shylock: Romanticism and the Representation of Shakespeare's Jew 53

4 Hyman Hurwitz's Hebrew Tales (1826): Redeeming the Talmudic Garden 81

5 Judith Montefiore's Private Journal (1827): Jerusalem and Jewish Memory 105

6 Maria Edgeworth's Harrington (1817): Jews, Storytelling, and the Challenge of Moral Education 133

7 "Nor yet redeemed from scorn": Wordsworth and the Jews 159

8 "The Historical Moment": Jewish Scholars and Romanticism 179.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [231]-248) and index.

Local Notes:

Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Sabin W. Colton, Jr., Memorial Fund.

ISBN:

0312295707

OCLC:

53476680