This is a biography of a borderland between Russia and Poland; a region where; in 1925; people identified as Poles; Germans; Jews; Ukrainians; and Russians lived side by side. Over the next three decades; this mosaic of cultures was modernized and homogenized out of existence by the ruling might of the Soviet Union; then Nazi Germany; and finally; Polish and Ukrainian nationalism. By the 1950s; this "no place" emerged as a Ukrainian heartland; and the fertile mix of peoples that defined the region was destroyed. Brown's study is grounded in the life of the village and shtetl; in the personalities and small histories of everyday life in this area. In impressive detail; she documents how these regimes; bureaucratically and then violently; separated; named; and regimented this intricate community into distinct ethnic groups. Drawing on recently opened archives; ethnography; and oral interviews that were unavailable a decade ago; A Biography of No Place reveals Stalinist and Nazi history from the perspective of the remote borderlands; thus bringing the periphery to the center of history. We are given; in short; an intimate portrait of the ethnic purification that has marked all of Europe; as well as a glimpse at the margins of twentieth-century "progress."
#660466 in Books Harvard University Press 2001-09-01 2001-07-23Ingredients: Example IngredientsOriginal language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.25 x .76 x 6.13l; .94 #File Name: 0674007204288 pages
Review
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Economics drove slavery - including family lifeBy Eric HobartIn this intriguing study; Marie Jenkins Schwartz has given us a better understanding of how the economics of slavery drove family life in the Amtebellum South. It comes as no suprise that economics was the key factor in the perpetuation of slavery prior to the American Civil War; but this study gives the reader a new appreciation for how slaveholders viewed slaves; including children; as nothing more than property.Schwartz delves into many facets of slave family life; including pregnancy; birth of a child; education of the child; the horror of sale and separation from family members; and love and marriage in the slave community. Her work is well documented and is a fascinating look at this topic. She explains how the slaveholders attempted to exert paternalistic control over the families for personal economic gain. For example; in the section on love and marriage; the author explains in great detail how slaeholders often made a mockery of the ceremony by forcing the omission of the standard "'till death do us part" or "what God hath brought together let no man put asunder". She explains that these concepts were left out by the slaveholders to ensure no feelings of guilt or remorse when the newly married couple was broken apart by sale of one partner or the other.Her study seems to be largely focused on using the documents from the slave narratives collected during the Great Depression during the WPA; but well supplemented with contemporary accounts; including journals; diaries; and plantation records. When combined with quality secondary sources; the author has painted a nice portrait of slave family life.The area of slave family life is one that has been largely ignored by scholars in the past; and this book is a valuable contribution to the existing scholarly literature on the topic. I would highly recommend anyone interested in family dynamics and relationships between slaveholder and slaves in the Antebellum South read this book.6 of 6 people found the following review helpful. a thought-provoking study of childhood under slaveryBy A CustomerThis absorbing book both confirms established information (e.g.; the prevalence of children among domestic workers) and challenges popular assumptions about slaves' lives (Schwartz suggests that antebellum planter families frequently ignored injunctions against teaching slaves to read and that many; perhaps most; slave children learned the alphabet and basic reading skills; even if few became competent readers). Schwartz draws on WPA narratives of former slaves; as well as the memoirs of former slaves and slaveowners; to construct a surprising vivid picture of young children's lives under slavery. Her writing is smooth and clear; though occasionally repetitive.3 of 7 people found the following review helpful. Slavery was an horrid event...By A CustomerHere's a book that grants the reader a degree of freedom to question where a number of the quotes came from. The voices of the children are still missing. For thirty-five dollars it lacks merit. But for someone with little understanding of slavery its an interesting library read.
