Elias Bickerman as a Historian of the Jews (2010 Baumgarten), book

Elias Bickerman as a Historian of the Jews (2010) is a book by Albert I. Baumgarten.

Abstract

"This biography of Elias Bickerman (1897-1981), one of the foremost historians of Graeco-Roman antiquity active in the twentieth century, focuses on his role as a historian of the Jews. Bickerman had an extraordinary life. He was born in Kishinev and grew up in St. Petersburg. He arrived in Berlin in 1922, where he pursued an academic career (Doctorate, 1926; Habilitation, 1930). With the rise of the Nazis, he moved to Paris in 1933, then to the USA in 1942. He died in Tel Aviv and was buried in Jerusalem. Albert Baumgarten explores the connections between Bickerman's life and his scholarly work on the Jews in its different cultural and academic contexts (Russian, German, French, and American). He argues that Bickerman intended to create a usable Jewish past. He further shows that Bickerman conceived the ancient Jewish encounter with Hellenism and the modern Jewish entry into European civilization in light of each other. He demonstrates that Bickerman argued that there were some ancient Jews who were wrong in the way they tried to bridge the gap between Judaism and Hellenism, while there were other ancient Jews who found the right solution. He illustrates the contemporary significance of these conclusions concerning the past for Bickerman himself and for other Jews of his time. Bickerman saw the circumstances of his life as a series of unfortunate dislocations. This book emphasizes the intellectual and academic benefit Bickerman derived from his life experience in the twentieth century."--Publisher description.

"Die vorliegende Biographie über Elias Bickerman (1897-1981), einem der führenden Historiker der griechisch-römischen Antike, konzentriert sich auf seine Rolle als Historiker der Juden. Bickerman führte ein außergewöhnliches Leben. Er wurde in Kishinev geboren und wuchs in St. Petersburg auf. 1922 kam er nach Berlin, wo er eine akademische Karriere verfolgte (Promotion 1926, Habilitation 1930). Mit dem Emporkommen der Nazionalsozialisten zog er 1933 nach Paris, 1942 in die USA. Er starb in Tel Aviv und wurde in Jerusalem beerdigt. Albert Baumgarten untersucht die Verbindungen zwischen Bickermans Leben und seiner Forschung über Juden in ihren verschiedenen kulturellen und akademischen Kontexten (russisch, deutsch, französisch und amerikanisch). Bickerman verfolgte die Absicht, eine nutzbare jüdische Vergangenheit zu entwerfen. Es wird gezeigt, daß er die Begegnung der frühen Juden mit dem Hellenismus und den neuzeitlichen Entritt der Juden in die europäische Zivilisation in Beziehung zueinander setzt."--Publisher description (German).

Editions and translations

Published Tübingen, Germany: Mohr Siebeck, 2010 (Texts and Studies in Ancient Judaism, 131).

External links

• [ Google Books]