Ilana Roginsky L&S Social Sciences
Describing Self: An Analysis of Jewish Youth in Interwar Poland
My research will investigate the complex, divergent and rapidly evolving Jewish political ferment in the pre-war period which found a sudden end and offers a foil to the impression of modern Jewish thought and identity as a united monolith especially with the development of the state of Israel. I will explore this question through the primary source material from the autobiographical contests held in the 1930s by YIVO( or the Yidisher Visnshaftlekher Institut) in Vilna, which were halted abruptly on September 1, 1939, the day that the winners of the final contest were to be announced, when Nazi forces invaded Poland. Of the 627 original submissions, only 302 survived, by the often life-endangering efforts of YIVO staff who smuggled the precious materials out of Europe. These documents, now preserved at YIVO in New York, provide an intimate glimpse into the lives, struggles, and dreams of Jewish youth on the precipice of catastrophe. My historical research question is: How did social divisions affect the involvement of youth in political activities; and broadly how did the different political factions interact with one another?
Message To Sponsor
Dear___, I am very excited to have the opportunity to do historical research at the YIVO archive in New York this summer and be a part of the SURF academic community. I first found out about the interwar Jewish youth autobiographies two years ago and have wanted to do more serious research on them ever since. The SURF program grants me the ability to engage in the laborious but fascinating work of reading these precious documents and gleaning insights from them. Sincerely, Ilana Roginsky