John Hilary
Bildung and Belonging: How German Jews Embraced the Enlightenment

German Jews embraced the Enlightenment through the ideal of Bildung: the formation of their intellectual and cultural sensibilities through lifelong learning. Yet the status they achieved through integration into German society contained the seeds of its own destruction. In this illustrated talk we explore the importance of Bildung for German Jews, not only in Germany itself but also in the other countries where they settled and made new lives.