Here is a text set I developed for studying the German Jewish Experience in Berlin. German Jews have influenced culture more than most students and even teachers realize. The number of intellectuals, writers, artists, political figures, and scientists within this community is impressive. Here is just a sampling of texts one could use in the classroom.

The Virtual Jewish History Tour Berlin

David Shyovitz

http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/vjw/berlin.html

This interactive site gives a brief overview of German Jewish history from the middle ages to the present. It includes information about important locations and famous Berlin Jews.

This site would be a really great activity to introduce a thematic unit on German Jewish Culture in Berlin. It provides students with a framework to organize information they will learn from the other texts.

Reading Level: 7-12

Jewish Museum Berlin

http://www.jmberlin.de/main/EN/homepage-EN.php

The Jewish Museum Berlin contains permanent and special collections pertaining to the German Jewish experience. Even the architecture of the building evokes emotions associated with the Holocaust. The shape of the building reminds one of Kristallnacht and a broken star of David. The interior of the building even when filled with exhibits and visitors takes the abstract idea of void and makes it tangible.

I choose this as part of the text set because the architect Daniel Libeskind is of Jewish descent. His most famous accomplishment is winning the competition to be the lead architect on the World Trade Center in New York.

Reading Level: 7-12

Nathan the Wise (1779)

Gotthold Ephraim Lessing

This play set in Jerusalem eloquently argues for religious tolerance through a fictitious meeting during the Third Crusade between a Jewish merchant, an enlightened Muslim sultan, and a Templar. The play was first performed in 1783 in Berlin and was later banned by the church.

I am including this text because the central character Nathan was modeled on the famous German Jewish philosopher, Moses Mendelsohn. Mendelsohn, a Berliner, was the first to translate the Pentateuch into German. The point of view in Lessing’s work reflects the belief in religious tolerance shared by most educated, upper-middle class, Berlin Jews.

Reading Level: 9-12

Gedichte (1821)

Heinrich Heine

This is Heine’s first published collection of poetry. This collection appeared while he was living in Berlin.

This collection is important to my text collection because Heine is one of the most well-known German poets of all time who also happens to be Jewish. Heine did not consider himself a Jew and converted to Christianity as a young man, however, he began to explore Judaism later in life. While in Berlin, Heine played a large role in the café culture of Berlin. He influenced and was influenced by other important writers and artists of the time.

Reading Level: 11-12

The Jewish State (1896)

Theodor Herzl

This work addresses the “Jewish question” and the anti-Semitism that permeated European society. It is a call to Jews around the world to create a Zionist state in Israel. It was highly controversial and widely read.

Even though Herzl was Austrian, I have included his work in this collection because it would have been widely read by Berlin Jews and influenced their thinking about the “Jewish question.”

Reading Level: 10-12

Man Equals Man (1926)

Bertolt Brecht

This play examines the role of war on the human condition. It belongs to the post-Expressionist movement, Neue Sachlichkeit, that developed in Berlin during the Weimar Republic.

I am including this text because it deals with identity and human nature and it was written by one of the most famous Jews in Berlin, although he did not consider himself Jewish, in the time leading up to World War Two.

Reading Level: 11-12

Mother Courage and Her Children (1939)

Bertolt Brecht

This is considered by many to be the greatest play of the 20^th century. It is in the genre of Exile literature. It was written by Brecht while in Switzerland and speaks out against fascism and Nazism.

I am including this work because I consider Brecht the best example of an intellectual Berlin Jew who used his craft to speak out against the Nazis and the ugly side of human nature in general. It helped bring the severity of life under the Nazi regime into the international consciousness.

Reading Level: 10-12

The Minutes of the Wannsee Conference (1942)

Translation by the US government

The Wannsee Conference is the meeting Nazi leaders held to determine the “Final Solution” to carry out the extermination of the Jews.

I am including this in my text set because no treatment of the Jewish experience is complete without it. The Wannsee House where the conference was held is located in a very upscale neighborhood on the outskirts of Berlin. The house originally belonged to a Jewish family and was confiscated the by Nazis. Today it is a center for historical education and contains a permanent exhibit documenting the experience of Berlin Jews during Nazi Germany.

Reading Level: 7-12

The Holocaust Education and Archive Research Team

http://www.holocaustresearchproject.org/

H.E.A.R.T. is an organization that documents the events from the Holocaust from beginning to end. The site also provides survivor testimonies and transcripts from the Wannsee Confernce.

I am including this website in my collection because it is an excellent and comprehensive tool for students to learn about the social climate that allowed the Holocaust to happen, the experience during the Holocaust and the impact of the devastation of the Jewish population.

Reading Level: 7-12

The World As I See It (1949)

Albert Einstein

This book is a collection of interviews, correspondence, and reflections. Einstein reveals his thoughts about everything from science, politics, and religion, to the meaning of life.

I am including this work in my collection because Einstein lived and worked in Berlin. He never considered himself Jewish by religion and had difficulty believing he was in danger during the Nazi regime. Finally, friends persuaded him to leave and come to the United States where he played a very important role in convincing our leaders of the advanced technology possessed by Nazi Germany. While Einstein detested war, he realized that the world could not afford for the Nazis to create the atom bomb first. His research and work here allowed us to create the atom bomb first and changed the course of history. Students in East Tennessee may relate particularly to this work due to our close proximity to Oak Ridge, a key location of the Manhattan Project.

Reading Level: 9-12

“Die Lösung” (1953)

Bertolt Brecht

This poem written by Brecht in East Germany after the uprising of 1953 is a searing commentary on government. The poem was not published at that time because Brecht was an official supporter of the Stalinist government.

I am including this in my text set as an example of the German Jewish in East Berlin. Brecht was one of the few public figures who had the courage to continue to thumb his nose at the political powers in spite of his earlier experiences.

Readig Level: 7-12

Rahel Varnhagen: The Life of a Jewess (1958)

Hannah Arendt

This biography examines the life of the most famous European salon hostess. She was good friends with the daughters of Moses Mendelsohn and hosted such notable figures such as Schlegel, Schelling, the Humboldts and countless others. She was also acquainted the most celebrated of all German authors, Goethe.

I am including the text because of Varnhagen’s prominent place in society and prolific correspondence with other intellectuals and political figures. She was born in Berlin to a very wealthy family and married a Christian. She converted to Christianity and never really considered herself to be Jewish. However she continued to work to better the position of her colleagues and acquaintances of her former religion and willed a large sum to the poor Jews of Berlin upon her death.

Reading Level: 7-12

The Invisible Wall: Germans and Jews: A personal exploration (1998)

W. Michael Blumenthal

The author shares his story of German-Jewish identity, what it means to be both German and Jewish, by tracing his family through the changes that shaped modern Germany. Blumenthal escaped Nazi Germany in 1939 via the Shanghai Ghettos.

I chose this text because Blumenthal became an extremely influential world renowned political figure. He was the 64^th Secretary of the United States Treasury under Jimmy Carter. He currently directs the Jewish Museum in Berlin.

Reading Level: 9-12

Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe (2005)

http://www.holocaust-mahnmal.de/en

The memorial opened in 2005, after 20 years of debate, discussion, planning, and construction. Peter Eisenman’s creation occupies a very prominent space in the government quarter of Berlin. The exhibit consists of a Field of Stelae and a subterranean information center. The exhibit documents the persecution and extermination of the Jews during the Third Reich.

I included this in the text selection because it continues to be a point of contention among Germans, Berliners in particular, still today.

Reading Level: 7-12

Jewish Community of Berlin

http://www.jg-berlin.org/en.html

This website is maintained by the Jewish community in Berlin. It contains information about events and articles that are relevant to Berlin daily life as well reflections on the past.

I have included this site in my text set because it provides students with an up-to-date context for the daily life and concerns of Jews living in Berlin today.

Reading Level: 9-12