The Center for Jewish Studies at Harvard University is pleased to share the abstracts for the winning essays of the 2024 Selma and Lewis Weinstein Prize in Jewish Studies:
Julia Maria Tellides ’24
First Place
“The Failure of Minority Rights in Thessaloniki: Sunday Closing Law of 1924”
Abstract:
For centuries, all trade seemed to halt on Saturdays in Thessaloniki, where observing the Sabbath was deeply ingrained in the identity of this predominantly Jewish city. However, in 1924, the Greek government enacted the Sunday Closing Law, mandating Sunday as the compulsory day of rest for all residents. Faced with a dilemma between economic survival and religious observance, the Jewish community fought to overturn this discriminatory law through both domestic and international channels. These efforts culminated with a petition to the League of Nations, arguing that the Sunday Closing Law violated the Greek Minority Treaty. Utilizing archival materials from international Jewish organizations, this study reconstructs the exchanges between Jewish activists, the League of Nations, and the Greek government to understand why the attempt to overturn the Sunday Closing Law in Greece failed. This paper represents the first in the scholarly literature to investigate the role of the Greek Minority Treaty within Jewish mobilization efforts. It reinforces broader arguments concerning the failure of international institutions in enforcing minority rights in interwar Europe through the case study of one city and one community
Shira Hoffer ’25
Second Place
“Maimonides as a Contextual Darshan”
Abstract:
This paper examines Maimonides as a contextual interpreter of Jewish law, focusing on his innovative interpretations against the backdrop of 12th-century Spain’s deteriorating religious climate. In examining Maimonides’ use of both peshat and derash exegesis on topics such as God’s power, incorporeality, and emotionlessness, it argues that he stretched the plausibility of his interpretations to address contemporary religious crises and sustain the Jewish community. It then compares Maimonides’ methods to those of Rav Yosef Soloveitchik, highlighting Maimonides as an early example of what has become a longstanding pattern of creatively and intentionally interpreting prooftexts on specific issues based on contextual religious needs.
Serena Frances Jampel ’25
Third Place
“‘I am the Jewish King Lear’: Adapting Shakespeare for the Immigrant Experience”
Abstract:
Written in 1892 by Jacob Gordin, “The Jewish King Lear” significantly influenced New York’s Yiddish theater, ushering in a new era of realism and aesthetic seriousness to the Yiddish stage. Gordin’s adaptation of Shakespeare’s “King Lear” resonated deeply with immigrant audiences, addressing themes of assimilation, tradition, and Americanization. Through textual analysis of Gordin’s play alongside Shakespeare’s work, contemporary reviews and historical contextualization, this essay explores Gordin’s strategic use of Shakespeare to emphasize the resilience of Jewish literature and storytelling in the diaspora. Gordin’s work, often compared to Shakespeare in literary value for the Yiddish-speaking community, highlights the complexities of maintaining cultural identity amidst assimilation pressures. The play’s reception underscores the negotiation of Jewish American identity, advocating for a balance between old traditions and new cultural dynamics.
Kristin King ’24
Third Place
“A Brief Feminist History of Autism”
Abstract:
Initially examined as a subtype of schizophrenia, Autism Spectrum Disorders are a site of various epistemologies. This essay will follow the women and mothers, many of whom were Jewish and resided in Russia, Austria, Britain, and the United States, who fought for a humanizing approach to Autistic children’s lives, and the famed researchers who argued otherwise. This essay will examine the story from the researchers who coined and defined the term “Autism” in the early twentieth century to contemporary community-driven understandings and the diagnostic entry in the DSM-5 in 2013. I will examine Autism’s inception through the Viennese model of the 1930s, the American model of the 1940s and 1950s, and the British model of the 1970s to illuminate avenues for contemporary Autistic equity. This essay will show how community-driven rhetorics are overshadowed by policies imbued in the history of eugenics, coloniality, sexism, and antisemitism. The Autistic community is interconnected, albeit siloed, stratified, and predominantly, spoken for. This essay will present a brief feminist history of Autism in the twentieth century and operates in conjunction with my broader thesis to evaluate the implications of sexist obfuscation of Autistic minds and bodies through eugenicist population control by introducing the method of transing as the optimal theoretical exercise and practical evaluation of Autism disability policy to advocate for critical academic engagement in disability equity.
Honorable Mention
Zeynep Bromberg ’24
“Black Suffering in Yiddish Literature as a Site for Jewish Moral Quandary”
Abstract:
This paper examines the portrayal of Black suffering in Yiddish literature as a reflection of Jewish moral quandaries, focusing on the intersection of Jewish and Black narratives.
Through an analysis of Joseph Opatoshu’s short story “Lintsheray,” Avrom Reisen’s poem “A Little Negro,” and Anita Scott Coleman’s “Black Baby,” the paper explores themes of generational differences and the symbolism of children. While Opatoshu and Reisen use Black suffering to elicit Jewish empathy, their works reveal underlying biases and perpetuate stereotypes. In contrast, Coleman’s poem, translated into Yiddish, presents a hopeful and empowering view of Blackness. This comparative analysis underscores the complexities and ethical challenges in the portrayal of Black experiences in Yiddish literature, calling for a critical re-evaluation of these works within the context of mid-20th century Black-Jewish relations.
Isaac Mansell ’26
“The Price of Patriotism: Dual Loyalty and the American Jewish Soldier in World War II”
Abstract:
This essay focuses on American Jewish soldiers who fought in World War II, studying the influence that their conception of dual loyalty had on their service through written testimonies about their wartime experience.
These soldiers employed both their service and their writings as vehicles for quashing ideas of dual loyalty. In their writings, they were explicitly American. They acknowledged their Judaism and the Holocaust but expressed that they were fighting for
America and not the Jewish people, undermining expectations of dual loyalty in a subtle and personal manner. Conversely, they overtly desired to be perceived as equally patriotic to the average American. Therefore, American Jewish soldiers in World War II clearly not only took a deep pride in their service but recognized it as an opportunity to expose dual loyalty as a falsehood.
Lauren Perl ’25
“Intergenerational Revisionist Zionist Activism: The varied legacies of the Sakarya Mission”
Abstract:
In 1925, Ze’ev Jabotinsky established the revisionist Zionist Movement, which advocated for the establishment of a Jewish majority on both sides of the Jordan River.
William R. Perl was a protege of Jabotinsky and from 1938 to 1940, in an operation he called “Die Aktion”, he smuggled 42,000 Jews out of Nazi-occupied Europe into the British Mandate of Palestine. William Perl was a Viennese lawyer who forged immigration visas and collaborated with Greek smugglers to obtain ships for the Jewish refugees to travel to Palestine. The largest of William Perl’s missions was the Sakarya, which carried 2,175 Jewish refugees from Constanta, Romania, to Palestine in 1940. The Sakarya mission was directed by William Perl, Ze’ev Jabotinsky, and Eri Jabotinsky (Ze’ev’s son). Lauren Perl’s paper addresses the following research questions:
- How did the Sakarya mission put into practice Ze’ev Jabotinsky’s ideas of revisionist Zionism? How did those involved conceive of the connection between ideology and practice?
- What did the communication between Ze’ev Jabotinsky, Eri Jabotinsky, and William Perl entail leading up to, during, and immediately after the Sakarya mission? Based on their correspondence, in what way did intergenerational and familial dynamics shape the making of the Sakarya mission? How are these relationships remembered in the 21st century?
In order to explore the chains of influence and familial dynamics within the Sakaya mission, the essay draws upon a mix of primary sources, including contemporary accounts and documents, interviews conducted with the friends and family of the Perl family, and manuscript correspondence between the Jabotinskys and William Perl. By examining these three layers of history (contemporary records, memoirs by key figures, and oral histories from the Perls’ family and friends), this paper develops a nuanced understanding of the organizational structure and familial dynamics that shaped the Sakarya mission, while addressing the challenges of writing about secret wartime activities and the differing perceptions they create.