Pioneers and Homemakers

Jewish Women in Pre-State Israel

Deborah S Bernstein editor

Format:Paperback

Publisher:State University of New York Press

Published:1st Jul '92

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Pioneers and Homemakers cover

This book deals with the experience and action of Jewish women in the new Jewish settlement in Palestine (the Yishuv) during the period of Zionist immigration to Palestine, from the last two decades of the nineteenth century until 1948. The wide range of topics concern the experience of East European immigrant women as well as that of traditional Yemenite women, the creative and radical action of the socialist pioneers of the labor movement as well as the liberal feminism of the middle-class women. Though based on scholarly research, this book brings forth women's voices through their private and public writing.

"It is a revisionary book which debunks a lot of the myths which have been attached to Zionism, and which graphically demonstrates, as well, the ways the experiences and contributions of women have been sidelined both by the Zionist male leadership and by historians of the movement up to now. The topic is both extremely significant in itself — this is truly a pioneering and important work — and central, as well, to several important fields of study including Women's Studies, Israel Studies, and Jewish Women's History." — Judith R. Baskin, State University of New York at Albany

"I am most impressed with the gap which this book fills in the understanding of modern Jewish history, the development of Israeli society, and the role of women in contemporary life. It brings to light significant events and analyzes the lives of women in a way that offers a new lens on the intersection of Jewish identity, feminism, and modern Zionism." — Hannah Kliger, University of Massachusetts, Amherst

"A forgotten group in an important era are written about virtually for the first time in a way accessible to the American reader. It fills a lacuna in our knowledge and provides English translations of good work hitherto not available to non-Hebrew speakers." — Rela Geffen, Gratz College

ISBN: 9780791409060

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: 463g

324 pages