SOCI 210 Lecture Notes - Lecture 7: Stereotypes Of Jews, Gertrude Berg, Orthodox Judaism
3 May 2018
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Department
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SOCI 227 – Jews in North America
Family Life, Social Relations, and Intermarriage – Feb 26th
Readings: Weinfeld chapter 5, Fishman, Saxe et al
Sociology of marriage and the family – including sexuality
Role of Judaism or Jewish condition in any of the following:
• Courtship
• Marriage – traditional conception
• Partnering – common law, may or may not be married
• Pre and extra marital sex
• Divorce
• Child rearing and child bearing
• Family size and fertility
• Multiple generations/elderly
• Living arrangements
• Dysfunction – domestic abuse, child abuse, spousal issues, used to be an image that
Jeish failies hae less of this ad o theres ore of a deate o it
• LGBTQ
Extended vs. Nuclear family
Intermarriage: Some argue one of the most important issues
• Causes, consequences, conversion, negotiation
• Originally part of a process of planned assimilation, historically
o Often accompanied with conversion out of Judaism
o But then conversion out of Judaism declines
o Strange phenomena
▪ Either conversion into Judaism or mixed marriages
Jewish family
• Stereotype of the Jewish family being warm and nurturing
o Fiddler on the roof – example of this
o Some argue these are too involved or enmeshed – too much warmth, etc.
• We can argue that Jewish parenting tries to combine overprotected and independence
• All of the Abrahamic religious traditions (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam) are absolutely
patriarchal and conservative
o This is not provocative; this is historic
• Orthodox Jewry – morning blessings said by men thanking God for not making them a
woman
o At its root, its dichotomous, separate, and equal
o Men are obligated more than women to do these commandments
o Services – gender segregated
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• Traditional prayer books – praise 3 biblical patriarchs, not the 4 matriarchs, men are
defied as the so of a father… ot a other
o No mention of mother, in Hebrew religious tradition you belong to your father,
in non-orthodox they now include the mother
• All examples of this change from orthodoxy and male domination to modernity
• In some cases, usually orthodox and ultra-orthodox Jews and Islam, there are attempts
to argue that in fact these so called restrictions are indeed forms of equality and
liberation
o Ex. no women Rabbis – not a negative, the role of women is separate but equal,
different role
o This leads to interesting feminist debates
o Argue the importance of being a mother in some cases
Jewish Mother Stereotype
• Major stereotype in scientific and cultural literature
• Different btw. harmful and proper nurturing
• Helicopter parents – protect children, hovering over them all the time, watching and
regulating everything they do
• Bulldozer parents – the dot fl aoe the kid, the go efore ad ulldoze any
possible difficulties the child may face
o A step further in terms of overprotectedness
Cultural history:
• In the US, well known Jewish woman who was a creative artist, writer, Gertrude Berg
o Involved in a radio play and TV show that became very famous in the US – The
Goldbergs
o She was a typical warm, immigrant, Jewish mother
o Positive impact – comes after the war and Holocaust
o This was an iconic moment in the history of American Jewish culture
• Gertrude berg herself – highly literate, fully Americanized person – no thick Jewish
immigrant accent, but spoke with one in the show
o In original show, occasional references to the Holocaust but rare
o Famous tenor Jan Peerce – regularly to sing on Jewish holidays, and also a cantor
o Show ran into trouble under McCarthyism, cancelled for a while, then renewed
• Then negative stereotypes of the Jewish mother developed via American literature
o Emerged around similar time, just as this positive stereotypes emerged
o Mothers using guilt, nagging mother and wife
o Lots of them would veer off into nasty sexism
o Some famous Jewish comedians would appear on TV shows (i.e. the Ed Sullivan
show) – show was religiously watched by American Jewish households
o Ed Sullivan – Irish American but liked Jews, and was a showcase for a lot of
Jewish comedians
o At this time, American and Canadian Jews are still insecure
o But some comedians told sexist jokes on this show
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• Two works: both had young spoiled Jewish women and archetypical domineering Jewish
mothers
o Marjorie Morningstar by Herman Wouk – mother and daughter
o Philip Roth, wrote early book Goodbye Columbus, upper class Jewish protagonist
• After Molly Goldberg phenomenon, there were less attractive Jewish mothers, eg.
mother on Ronda, offshoot of Mary Tyler Moore show
o Nagging Jewish mother
• BUT – Article by Zena Smith Blau, 1967 – argument that maybe these overprotected
interferences could have positive, and nurturing impacts o hilds deelopets ad
later educational success
o In defense of the Jewish Mother
JAP Stereotype
• Materialism, over-protecting, common among the nouveau niche
Other cultures: Chinese American mothers, very controlling, bugging children to achieve things,
very demanding, not simply just Jewish mothers wrestling with this stereotype
Sexuality
• By every measure, American Jews are highly liberal on average on most kinds of
measures – i.e. sexual activity, attitude, view, etc.
• In the US, lots of literature on attitudes in the following areas – abortion rights, pre-
marital sex, gay rights, sex ed, civil rights for gays, free speech for pornography
o Generally, much more liberal in all these aspects
o Jews are outspoken in surveys on these issues
o Non-orthodox more likely to have engaged in sexual activities
▪ But data base is thin
• Why these liberal attitudes found in Jews relative to other groups?
o 1. There is a classic Judaic attitude towards sex – thought to be more accepting,
ex. tradition in traditional Judaism that men and women should have sex on
Friday night, i.e. on the Sabbath
▪ sex is NOT sinful
▪ contrast with some Christian denominations
• within marriage!!!
• Stereotypes usually depart from current evidence
Male Stereotypes
• Negative male image – in part due to drop in male status after immigration
o In old country male status is via learning Inn Yieshiva and piety
o But in new world – drop in status for the same kinds of activities
• There have been Freudian explanations for the Jewish mother-son attachment and
them trying to re-capture the lost status of their husbands by the success of their son
o Could go on to be doctors and lawyers, etc.
• Negative literary portrayals of Jewish men
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find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Family life, social relations, and intermarriage feb 26th. Readings: weinfeld chapter 5, fishman, saxe et al. Sociology of marriage and the family including sexuality. Je(cid:449)ish fa(cid:373)ilies ha(cid:448)e less of this a(cid:374)d (cid:374)o(cid:449) there(cid:859)s (cid:373)ore of a de(cid:271)ate o(cid:374) it: lgbtq. In the us, well known jewish woman who was a creative artist, writer, gertrude berg. Involved in a radio play and tv show that became very famous in the us the. Jap stereotype: materialism, over-protecting, common among the nouveau niche. Other cultures: chinese american mothers, very controlling, bugging children to achieve things, very demanding, not simply just jewish mothers wrestling with this stereotype. Sexuality: by every measure, american jews are highly liberal on average on most kinds of measures i. e. sexual activity, attitude, view, etc. There is a classic judaic attitude towards sex thought to be more accepting, ex. tradition in traditional judaism that men and women should have sex on.
