"Concerning the Jews" is an 1899 short essay by
Mark Twain. Twain had lived in Austria during 1896, and opined that the
Habsburg empire
The Habsburg monarchy (german: Habsburgermonarchie, ), also known as the Danubian monarchy (german: Donaumonarchie, ), or Habsburg Empire (german: Habsburgerreich, ), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities ...
used Jews as
scapegoats to maintain unity in their immensely diverse empire.
Background
In 1898 he published the article "Stirring Times in Austria". Twain's account generated several letters, and one poignant response in particular from an American Jewish lawyer who asked Twain: "Tell me, therefore, from your vantage-point of cold view, what in your mind is the cause. Can American Jews do anything to correct it either in America or abroad? Will it ever come to an end? Will a Jew be permitted to live honestly, decently, and peaceably like the rest of mankind? What has become of the
golden rule?" In response, Twain penned "Concerning the Jews," which ''
Harper's'' also published in 1899.
Contents
The essay included the statement that Jews did not do their part in terms of fighting in America's armed forces: "He is a frequent and faithful and capable officer in the
civil service, but he is charged with an unpatriotic disinclination to stand by the flag as a soldier – like the
Christian Quaker." However, when
War Department War Department may refer to:
* War Department (United Kingdom)
* United States Department of War (1789–1947)
See also
* War Office, a former department of the British Government
* Ministry of defence
* Ministry of War
* Ministry of Defence
* D ...
figures revealed that Jewish Americans were actually represented in the nation's military in a larger percentage than their share of the population, Twain issued a retraction and an apology,
[Tom Tugend]
"Little known museum tells story of Jews in the American military," Jewish Telegraphic Agency (JTA), March 17, 2008.
from Internet Archive
The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...
entitled ''Postscript – The Jew as Soldier''.
The essay also included a positive account of the Jewish people, with regard to their survival:
Reception
Israeli scholar
Bennet Kravitz states that one could just as easily hate Jews for the reasons Twain gives for admiring them. In fact, Twain's essay was cited by Nazi sympathizers in the 1930s. Kravitz concludes, "The flawed logic of 'Concerning the Jews' and all philo-Semitism leads to the anti-Semitic beliefs that the latter seeks to deflate".
See also
*
Philo-Semitism
References
External links
"Concerning the Jews" ''Harper's Magazine'', September 1899, pp. 527–535
acsimile"Concerning the Jews"
{{Authority control
Essays by Mark Twain
1899 essays
Philosemitism
Works originally published in Harper's Magazine
Works about Jews and Judaism