Jewish Life before World War II

Reflect on Groups and Belonging
Have students respond to and discuss the following journal prompts using the Think, Pair, Share strategy: 

• What groups do you belong to? How did you become a member of each of them?
• Can you think of a time when someone made an assumption about you because of your membership in a particular group? Was it a positive or negative assumption? How did it affect you?

Analyze Photos of European Jews before World War II
Tell students that they will analyze a set of images of Jewish life during the time period between World War I and World War II. It is important to help students understand that although these photographs depict a variety of experiences, they do not begin to fully represent the richness and diversity of European Jewish life. Nevertheless, the photos will help students glimpse the everyday lives of some European Jews and get a sense of what life was like for them before World War II.

Ask students to independently view all of the photographs in the gallery Pre-war Jewish Life in Europe and then identify one photo that resonates with them for some reason. For instance, the photograph might remind them of a moment or experience in their own lives, or there might be something about it that surprises or captivates them. Have students reflect on and write about this photo for a few minutes. What draws them to it? What questions do they have about the photo? Then ask them to share their thoughts with a classmate.

After reflecting on one image, ask students to think about the entire set of photographs and write in their journals about what these images collectively suggest about the diverse life of European Jews living before World War II. What conclusions can students begin to draw? What questions do they have? Ask them to share their thoughts with a partner, small group, or as a class, if you have time.

Provide Background on European Jewish Life before World War II
Tell students that in the 1930s, the Nazis isolated Jews in German society, in part by spreading stereotypes, myths, and lies that ignored the diversity of Jewish life and portrayed Jews collectively as a fundamentally different and dangerous group that could not live among those the Nazis considered to be “true Germans.” But the Nazis did not invent antisemitism; they drew upon centuries of hatred and backlash against Jews. Share the following background information with students:

Judaism, a religious faith that has existed for more than 3,000 years, is the oldest monotheistic religion. Throughout much of their faith’s history, Jews lived in territories ruled by other groups. They were often treated as “the Other” and made scapegoats for calamities and misfortunes suffered by the societies in which they lived. Continuous rumors, lies, myths, and misinformation about Jews have circulated throughout history, and many of them persist in the contemporary world. 

Before World War II, Jews lived and thrived in varied communities, spanning eastern and western Europe, with diverse cultures and ways of life. Jews in Europe came from small towns as well as cities, and they were active in music, theater, politics, the military, business, and education. They viewed themselves as members of the nations in which they lived, not as outsiders. Being Jewish was just one aspect of their identity. But the Nazi Party exploited this part of their identity, not only insisting that a Jew could not be a “true German” but also spreading the lie that Jews were dangerous enemies of the German nation. When the Nazis took power in Germany, Jews made up less than 1% of the population. Despite the efforts of the Nazi Party to depict Jews as a homogenous and dangerous enemy, Jewish life before the rise of the Nazi Party was rich and diverse.

Provide an Overview of Antisemitism before World War II
At the beginning of the second day of the lesson, show the class the video Antisemitism from the Enlightenment to World War I. Ask them to consider the following questions as they watch:

After viewing the video, again use the Think, Pair, Share strategy to discuss students’ answers to the questions.

• Why was there a backlash against Jews in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries?
• What myths, lies, and stereotypes about Jews were spread during this period?
• Compare and contrast the images of Jews from the time period shown in the video and the photographs you analyzed earlier. How do the antisemitic images attempt to distort the truth?

Consider the Effect of Antisemitism on Individual Identity
Explain to students that antisemitism took a toll on individual Jews and their communities in large part because the way that they defined their own identities was in conflict with the stereotypes and lies others used to define them.

Share the quotation below from composer Arnold Schoenberg with students. Schoenberg was born to a Jewish family in Austria. He emigrated to the United States in 1934, the year after the Nazis took control of Germany. In 1923, in response to pervasive antisemitism in Germany and Austria, he wrote:

I have at last learned the lesson that has been forced upon me during this year, and I shall not ever forget it. It is that I am not a German, not a European, indeed perhaps scarcely a human being (at least the Europeans prefer the worst of their race to me), but I am a Jew.

Have students journal their reflections to this quote and share with a partner, or have a few share with the class. Then tell students that Arnold Schoenberg saw himself as more German than Jewish, but he emigrated to the United States when the expression of his musical talent were overshadowed by antisemitism and the rise of Nazis. Ask students how his quote reflects this experience.

Remind students of the reflection they wrote at the beginning of this lesson about groups and belonging in their own lives. Have they ever experienced, like Schoenberg, a conflict between how they define themselves and the way others define them?