On Antisemitism: A Word in History, by Mark Mazower

A fair minded look at how notions of anti-semitism have evolved over the last 150 years.  

​The title of this book is perhaps a misnomer. It could more accurately be called a political history of anti-semitism. The expression “anti-semite” came out of Germany in the late 1870s, a term used in academic and journalistic circles. It was invented by German pamphleteer Wilhelm Marr, who formed a League of Antisemites. By 1910 the word had entered the Encyclopedia Britannica and was spread worldwide by Adolf Hitler. 

The irony is that the term anti-semitism came into being in response to growing Jewish emancipation. Old prejudices and legal restrictions were slowly being broken down. The late 19th century was a time of great optimism for the status of Jews, especially those living in Europe. But it was this growing freedom that created a backlash. Jewish people making great contributions to finance, science and the arts would be blamed for all of modernity’s ills. Such prejudice reached its apogee with the publication of The Protocols of the Elders of Zion, essentially a conspiracy theory that Jewish people intended to take over the world. To use today’s vernacular, it went viral and was enormously influential.

The history of the Second World War hardly needs to be gone over, but post war a Jewish homeland became an urgent preoccupation. Israel was established during the 1948 Palestine War. Some 700,000 Palestinians were expelled from their homeland. As Israel grew from a nascent state into a more mature one, ideas of anti-semitism and Jewishness changed, pretty much hand in hand with the country’s political evolution. The idea that Jewish identity was more wound up with Israel than the Jewish diaspora took root. As Jewish identity merged with Israeli statehood, to criticise Israel meant leaving yourself open to charges of anti-semitism. Paradoxes abounded: left wing Jews concerned about the plight of the Palestinians could be called anti-semitic, while far right anti-semitic groups could laud Israel for its brutal occupation. All of this was helped along by the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s 2016 working definition of anti-semitism, which was much vaguer and looser, lacking the precision of earlier, more broadly agreed on definitions.

British historian Mark Mazower has taken on a minefield subject, one that is sure to displease people on various sides of the argument. His book raises many questions and is a call for common sense. He argues that expanding and inappropriate use of the term anti-semitism is not making Jews safer, and may have unintended consequences. 

A carefully examined history of anti-semitism in modern times and how political discourse is corrupted. An eye opener and an education. 

On Antisemitism: A Word in History, by Mark Mazower. Allen Lane. $55

MAR26