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The Jews Killed Moses: Sigmund Freud and the Jewish Question.
- Source :
-
Theory, Culture & Society . May2024, Vol. 41 Issue 3, p89-104. 16p. - Publication Year :
- 2024
-
Abstract
- Freud completed his last book, on Moses and Monotheism, in 1939, while in his London exile. Its publication was deemed untimely, as its two main theses could be construed as a form of Jewish self-hatred. The first claim questions Moses' Jewish origins and contends that the founder of the Jews was in fact an Egyptian; the second suggests that the Jews killed Moses and then created his myth as a coping mechanism for concealing their terrible deed. In this article, I contend that Moses and Monotheism can be read as Freud's intervention in debates on the 'Jewish Question'. After revisiting Freud's original argument (I), I assess its reception among leading Jewish intellectuals of the 20th century (II). I then use Freud's arguments to look at the two key themes of the Jewish Question: understanding the defining features of Jewish identity (III) and the pervasiveness of antisemitism in Western culture (IV). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Subjects :
- *SOCIOLOGY
*SOCIAL sciences
*HUMAN behavior
*SOCIAL theory
*CULTURE
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 02632764
- Volume :
- 41
- Issue :
- 3
- Database :
- Academic Search Index
- Journal :
- Theory, Culture & Society
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 177035891
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1177/02632764231201333