The Sephardic Jews of Bordeaux
- Subtitle: Assimilation and Emancipation in Revolutionary and Napoleonic France
- Author: Frances Malino
- Publisher: The University of Alabama Press, 1978 – 166 pp.
- LOC Permalink: http://lccn.loc.gov/77022659
- Availability: out of print, but used copies are affordable
Review
This short but interesting read is one of the only book-length scholarly treatments of Western Sephardim in France that is available in English. After examining the historical and socioeconomic forces that led these “marchands Portugais” to settle in Bordeaux and its hinterland, its primary thrust addresses contemporary polemics over their place in French society in the context of the Revolution.
The text can only be lauded for the effort that was involved in distilling such a large volume of French primary and secondary sources into an articulate English narrative. Nevertheless, its most venturesome claim – that Bordelais Sephardim were motivated to rejudaize for commercial, rather than religious, motivations – is supported more with reasoned speculation than through direct interpretation of evidence. Malino may be onto something when she posits that that a simplistic explanation cannot be presumed, and she puts her economic framing to insightful use in the rest of the book. However, she does not cite enough evidence to create an authoritative stance, and thus she puts the onus on her colleagues to test its veracity.
The text can only be lauded for the effort that was involved in distilling such a large volume of French primary and secondary sources into an articulate English narrative. Nevertheless, its most venturesome claim – that Bordelais Sephardim were motivated to rejudaize for commercial, rather than religious, motivations – is supported more with reasoned speculation than through direct interpretation of evidence. Malino may be onto something when she posits that that a simplistic explanation cannot be presumed, and she puts her economic framing to insightful use in the rest of the book. However, she does not cite enough evidence to create an authoritative stance, and thus she puts the onus on her colleagues to test its veracity.
Contents
|
The establishment of the Portuguese Nation in southwestern France
The Malesherbes "Commission" and the Portuguese Nation Revolution and emancipation Napoleon and the Assembly of Notables Napoleon and the Sanhedrin Conclusion Glossary Notes Bibliography Index |
1
27 40 65 90 112 114 117 155 164 |