Dear Jerome,
Happy New Year to you and yours, dear friend! Yes, yes, yes, to your comments! Last in, first out:
• Yes, no doubt about, your comments have definitely merit and should go to the list, since they could initiate an interesting discussion.
• Yes, the "Historical Overview" seems to be undifferentiated and Yosi discovered another inaccuracy concerning the definition of Transnistria. On the other hand, I read the chapter "Jews and the Local Economy" [p. 204 - 208] and partly the "Summary and Coclusion" [p. 433 - 436]. In my eyes H. F. van Drunen tries to dispel the myth, that the social coexistence under Austrian rule was tension-free and anti-Semitism is a phenomenon of the 1920s/1930s. In this respect I'm following his drift.
• Yes, you are completely right, "usury, usurer, usurers" are not at all neutral terms and are inextricably linked with anti-Semitism. Therefore you are of course not "too sensitive around this issue". "Usury" was - is still? - a common stereotype and an upcoming Book of the Month (perhaps as early as March 2015) will be Julius Platter's "Ursury in Bukovina" [Der Wucher in der Bukowina] from the year 1878, an anti-Semitic tractate. On the other hand, his book suggested to me by our fellow member Sasha Wolloch, is an important contemporary document and enlightening with respect to the rise of anti-Semitism in Bukowina; therefore I believe H. F. van Drunen is quoting Julius Platter quite frequently anf therefore I'm going to publish "Ursury in Bukovina" at the Czernowitz Book Corner as well, of course accompanied by the appropriate comments/warnings.
Despite my still poor English and considering that I didn't read much more than the passages mentioned above, I hope that I didn't misinterpreted H. F. Drunen's intentions but even though it's an interesting thesis worth to be "disassembled" by us. What do you think about that?
Warmest wishes as always, dear Jerome!
Edgar Hauster
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> Date: Fri, 2 Jan 2015 09:21:27 -0800
> From: romers_at_shaw.ca
> To: bconcept@hotmail.com
> Subject: Re: [Cz-L] Book of the Month, January 2015: "A Sanguine Bunch"
>
> Hi Edgar.... Thanks for this! I think if one reads nothing else of
> this thesis, the 'Historical Overview', is very readable. Some of the
> language though, I find disturbing -- for example:
>
> " ...Jewish property steadily increased once the 1867
> Constitution had eliminated the last possession restrictions for Jews.
> Many peasants lost their
> only recently acquired land to (often Jewish) usurers when they were
> unable to repay their
> loans in the difficult years 1866-68. Until the savings bank (Sparkasse)
> was founded, only
> private money lending was possible and mainly provided by usurers which
> in turn provoked
> outbursts of anti-Semitism. The Orthodox Church Fund continued to be the
> biggest landowner
> throughout the years and while it had the opportunity to improve the
> situation by leasing land
> to small farmers, it chose to lease land and forests to (again, mostly
> Jewish) entrepreneurs
> who were financially able to engage in long-term contracts."
>
> 'Usurer(s)', is not a value neutral term, and coupled with the
> parenthetical remark(s) 'usually, mostly, again mostly Jewish', seems
> like setting up the Jews to be responsible for their own eventual
> demise. Although the author never makes this case, the way this part of
> his history was constructed, left me with a feeling that I've heard all
> this before, and it doesn't end up well.
>
> It's probably the case that I'm too sensitive around this issue, or that
> I'm misreading the intent of the author, still, something doesn't sit
> right. I sent this privately to you as I'm not sure if it should go to
> the list or not. If you feel my comments have merit, let me know and
> I'll send it to the list.
>
> The best for 2015, of course,
> jerome
>
>
>
>
>
>
> On 2015-01-01 7:54 AM, Edgar Hauster wrote:
>> Czernowitzers, dear friends...
>>
>> Happy New Year to all of you! Let's inaugurate the new year by the release of the Book of the Month, January 2015, at our Czernowitz Book Corner:
>>
>>
http://czernowitzbook.blogspot.de/2015/01/a-sanguine-bunch.html
>>
>> "'A Sanguine Bunch' - Regional Identification in Habsburg Bukovina, 1774-1919" is the doctoral thesis - in English language [!] - defended by Hieronymus Franciscus van Drunen at the University of Amsterdam in September 2013; Prof. Dr. J. Th. Leerssen and Prof. Dr. D. J. Deletant were the prominent thesis advisors.
>>
>>
>
Received on 2015-01-03 06:51:55