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A Convenient Hatred: The History of Antisemitism
"A Convenient Hatred" chronicles a very particular hatred through powerful stories that allow readers to see themselves in the tarnished mirror of history. It raises important questions about the consequences of our assumptions and beliefs and the ways we, as individuals and as members of a society, make distinctions between "us" and "them," right and wrong, good and evil....more
Paperback, 405 pages
Published
December 6th 2011
by Facing History & Ourselves National Foundatio
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I've always wondered where anti-Semitism came from, and this thoroughly researched book answers that question and many more. For the first few hundred years after Jesus died, Jews and Christians got along beautifully. Christians frequently went to synagogues and observed Jewish rites such as Passover, just as Jesus had. They knew they sprang from the same tradition and mostly respected each other. Animosities toward Jewish people before the Middle Ages tended to be tribal - the sort of conflict...more
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A Convenient Hatred, with foreword by Sir Harold Evans, chronicles the evolution of anti-Semitism from the time of Alexander through the Holocaust and modern Israel.
This powerful treatise explores with exquisite detail the pernicious foundations of bigotry against Jews, from ancient times through the dark ages, the enlightenment and into contemporary examples. A Convenient Hatred could just as easily been called A Convenient History, as it illustrates the magnitude of anti-Jewish vitriol, loath...more
This powerful treatise explores with exquisite detail the pernicious foundations of bigotry against Jews, from ancient times through the dark ages, the enlightenment and into contemporary examples. A Convenient Hatred could just as easily been called A Convenient History, as it illustrates the magnitude of anti-Jewish vitriol, loath...more
This book took a WHOLE LOT of information from basically all of time and did a really great job of putting it all together and making it not only informative but also interesting.
In this book you learn about the beginnings of anti-semitism, the evolution of the idea, and what it looks like today. You start with Judaism before Christ. When Christ enters the picture in the first century of the common era, you begin to learn about the relationship between Jews and Christians. This relationship is...more
In this book you learn about the beginnings of anti-semitism, the evolution of the idea, and what it looks like today. You start with Judaism before Christ. When Christ enters the picture in the first century of the common era, you begin to learn about the relationship between Jews and Christians. This relationship is...more
Everyone should read this book. In an objective, straight forward way, Goldstein tells the story of two thousand years of prejudice and bigotry against a people. There is no hyperbole here. She tells the story with detailed historical fact highlighting the forced exile of whole communities, the adoption of laws that take away citizenship or basic rights, and the incidents of ethnic hatred and murder (in both small and massive scale).
It is the litany of incidents - year after year, decade after...more
It is the litany of incidents - year after year, decade after...more
Whereas I was initially quite excited to read this book when it first arrived at my house, I found the text less than an exhilarating and intellectually stimulating basis than what I had hoped for. Goldstein provides a broad and wide spectrum of the history of Antisemitism, from the beginnings of Western civilization with the Greek Empire up to the modern day. This wide sweep of history provides many historical examples of "the oldest hatred" that I had never heard of, and I would suspect many o...more
Phyllis Goldstein's A Convenient Hatred offers a thorough and readable survey of the history of antisemitism, even though it does not provide any information or insights that will be particularly new to anyone who is at least generally familiar with the arc of Jewish history. The book reads much like a textbook for a college course on antisemitism and, in that regard, accomplishes its task quite well.
I would recommend it to anyone who may be wondering whether or not anti-semitism is really much...more
I would recommend it to anyone who may be wondering whether or not anti-semitism is really much...more
"A Convenient Hatred" chronicles a very particular hatred through powerful stories that allow readers to see themselves in the tarnished mirror of history. It raises important questions about the consequences of our assumptions and beliefs and the ways we, as individuals and as members of a society, make distinctions between "us" and "them," right and wrong, good and evil. These questions are both universal and particular.
Excellent introduction to and history of AntiSemitism. Goldstein provides a sweeping overview of the history of antisemitism and how it has continued to be a force in contempary times as well its development through human history. A great book for those who whish to get a sound basic idea about this topic and how it has impacted upon human history.
How does one say that he liked or really liked a book about bigotry. There was little I didn't already know, but a review of the besetting sin of Western Civilization is, I suppose, always in order. I am placing it in my classroom book collection where it can do some good.
A nice introduction for the general reader, judicious in tone and striking an effective balance between facts, anecdotes, and extended quotations. The authors trade depth of analysis for breadth of scope, covering the 2700 year period from the Babylonian Exile to today,
Although the book is not particularly well written, and is fairly repetitive, it is certainly a comprehensive in its history of anti-semitism. If you are looking to better understand the history of the Jews, and how they have been oppressed over time, this book is well worth your time.
Dec 03, 2012
Miniver Cheevy
added it
I own this on Kindle, but haven't read yet.
I heard about this on Morning Joe on MSNBC.
$3.99
There is so much information in this book that it's amazing the author could fit it all into 400 pages. This booked is arranged chronologically and thematically. I really learned a lot about the roots of anti-Semitism, which are rarely discussed, including the history of the term "anti-Semitism." Readers will be amazed to discover exactly how far back in time this prejudice is rooted, and the number of variations that a few basic lies have manifested as over centuries.
Interesting. Well organized and and very readable.
Brilliant, focused, remarkably researched.
May 10, 2013
Hibatalla
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