The Drawing of the Mark of Cain

by Van Arkel, Dik

• ISBN13: 9789089640413
• ISBN10: 908964041X
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-08-02
• Publisher: Amsterdam Univ Pr

Summary

Anti-Semitism is an exceptional historical phenomenon whose history extends at least two millennia into the past, as its discriminatory vitriol affecting many countries and a wide range of societies. Yet despite that history, the conditions of anti-Semitism are not universal. Many countries have no tradition of anti-Semitic thought, and even in those nations where anti-Semitism periodically rears its head, there have been long periods when it was nearly dormant. This definitive study tackles the complex roots and manifestations of anti-Semitism over the centuries, tracing the rise of anti-Jewish stereotypes and the circumstances in which racial prejudice has led to tragic consequences. As the large-scale social changes of the past two millennia have given extra impetus to the reappearance of cultural bias, this is a timely and important contribution to social historical scholarship.

Author Biography

Dik van Arkel is professor emeritus of social history at Leiden University.

Table of Contents

Preface	p. 7
Introduction	p. 11
The Historiographical Background	p. 21
Abortive Anti-Semitism?	p. 89
The Origins	p. 119
Stigmatization, Nascent Hostility, and Social Distance	p. 141
Jewish-Gentile Relations in Eastern Christendom and the Permissiveness-cum-Terrorization Hypothesis	p. 163
A Dead Reckoning: The Growth of an Anti Jewish Stereotype in Western Europe	p. 193
Refutations and Predictions	p. 247
A Prognosis Checked: A Survey of Medieval Jewish-Gentile Relations in England	p. 287
A Survey of Jewish-Gentile Relations in Italy	p. 305
Early Medieval France and Germany up to 1096	p. 343
The Crusades	p. 375
Accusatory Innovation	p. 391
Usury and Labour Ethics	p. 425
The Problem of Popularization	p. 457
A Historiographical Epilogue	p. 483
Notes	p. 497
Index	p. 577
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