Theodor Herzl: From Europe to Zion

This book-series, initiated in 1992, has an interdisciplinary orientation; it is published in English and German and comprises research monographs, collections of essays and editions of source texts dealing with German-Jewish literary and cultural history, in particular from the period covering the 18th to 20th centuries.

The closer definition of the term German-Jewish applied to literature and culture is an integral part of its historical development. Primarily, the decisive factor is that from the middle of the 18th century German gradually became the language of choice for Jews, and Jewish authors started writing in German, rather than Yiddish or Hebrew, even when they were articulating Jewish themes. This process is directly connected an historical change in mentality and social factors which led to a gradual opening towards a non-Jewish environment, which in its turn was becoming more open. In the Enlightenment, German society becomes the standard of reference – initially for an intellectual elite. Against this background, the term German-Jewish literature refers to the literary work of Jewish authors writing in German to the extent that explicit or implicit Jewish themes, motifs, modes of thought or models can be identified in them.
From the beginning of the 19th century at the latest, however, the image of Jews in the work of non-Jewish writers, determined mainly by anti-Semitism, becomes a factor in German-Jewish literature. There is a tension between Jewish writers’ authentic reference to Jewish traditions or existence and the anti-Semitic marking and discrimination against everything Jewish which determines the overall development of the history of German-Jewish literature and culture. This series provides an appropriate forum for research into the whole problematic area.

Die 1992 gegründete Buchreihe ist interdisziplinär ausgerichtet; sie umfasst wissenschaftliche Monographien, Aufsatzsammlungen und kommentierte Quelleneditionen vom 18. Jahrhundert bis zur Gegenwart.

Der Begriff deutsch-jüdische Literatur bzw. Kultur verweist auf Werke jüdischer Autoren in deutscher Sprache, insoweit jüdische Aspekte erkennbar sind. Aber auch das häufig vom Antisemitismus geprägte Judenbild nichtjüdischer Autoren wird zu einem Faktor der literarisch vermittelten deutsch-jüdischen Beziehungsgeschichte. Der Erforschung des gesamten Problemfelds bietet die Reihe ein angemessenes Forum.

In 2004 the one-hundredth anniversary of Theodor Herzl’s death was commemorated throughout the world. The myth of Herzl, as it has developed over the last century, has perhaps become more important than the historical figure. This volume contains revised and expanded essays, which were originally delivered as lectures at international Herzl centennial conferences in Antwerp, London, and Jerusalem. Topics treated include the Herzl myth, Herzl’s nationalism and Zionism, his self-understanding and image, his authorship of comedies and philosophical tales, Herzl and Africa, as well as his reception in Israeli and other literature. Zweig films are also considered within this same context.

Introduction ‒ Robert S. Wistrich: Theodor Herzl: Between Myth and Messianism. Denis Charbit: Herzl's Nationalism: Is it Ethnic or Civic? Jacques Kornberg: Theodor Herzl: Zionism as Personal Liberation.
Benno Wagner: Leaders 1904. Masaryk ‒ Herzl ‒ Kafka. Michael Berkowitz: Re-Imagining Herzl and other Zionist Sex Symbols. Eitan Bar-Yosef: A Villa in the Jungle: Herzl, Zionist Culture, and the Great African Adventure. Daniel Hoffmann: "Dieses schlicht verschwiegene Bekenntnis". Gustav G. Cohen, ein unbekannter Freund Theodor Herzls. Jacob Golomb: Transfiguration of the Self in Herzl's Life and in his Literary Fiction. Klaus Hödl: Theodor Herzl and the Crisis of Jewish Self-Understanding. Bernhard Greiner: „What Will People Say?” Herzl as Author of Comedies. Vivian Liska: A Vision out of Sight. Theodor Herzl's Late Philosophical Tales. Mark H. Gelber: The Life and Death of Herzl in Jewish Consciousness: Genre Issues and Mythic Perspectives. Frank Stern: Der Wandernde Jude ‒ Herzl und der Zionismus auf der Leinwand. Na'ama Rokem: Making Use of Prose: The Politics of Genre in Theodor Herzl and H. N. Bialik: Gershon Shaked: Mythic Figure or Flesh and Blood? The Literary Reception of Herzl in Hebrew Poetry and in Nathan Bistritzki's „The Secret of Birth”. Anat Feinberg: "Mein Kampf": George Tabori's Subversive Herzl Variation. List of Contributors. Index