Abstract
In the Company of Gentiles: Exploring the History of Integrated Jews in British Columbia, 1858-1971 Lillooet Nordlinger McDonnell Professor Pierre Anctil 2011 From 1858 until 1971 society in British Columbia (BC) offered Jews a context of coexistence, characterized by periods of harmony and contention. By way of five microhistories focusing on the lives of Cecelia Davies Sylvester, Hannah Director, Leon Koerner, Harry Adaskin, and Nathan Nemetz, this study examines various modes of integration for Jews within particular periods of BC history. Each microhistory explores the boundaries that were crossed and fostered by Jews whose careers and social contributions led them outside the confines of the established Jewish community. These Jews represent the vanguard of Jewish integration for each era to which they contributed. Due to the fact that British Columbia‘s Jewish population has historically been relatively small, the experience of integration, as expressed by individual British Columbian Jews, is significant. This study assumes that individuals are expressions of society; that social shifts are reflected in and affected by individual action; and that, in history, there exists a dialectical relationship between society and individuals. The theoretical framework of this thesis comprises approaches adapted from social history and sociology. This study asks: What allowed for Jewish integration to take place in British Columbian society? What was it about the Jewishness of each individual that allowed for his or her integration? And finally, what can be stated about the overall nature of Jewish integration in British Columbia during this 113 year period?
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