Assimilation of Jews in the Interwar Period

During the interwar period of the twentieth century, Jewish immigrants and American born Jews faced increasing ant-Semitism and discrimination. The external pressure of anti-Semitism and discrimination led to many Jews facing internal anxieties and conflicts about being Jewish and fitting into American society. Assimilation during this period meant fitting into the white gentile majority’s standard of appearance, mannerisms, and middle class ideals. Common stereotypical images from the time depict Jews with large noses and curly hair, women were often portrayed as dominant over their Jewish husbands, and Jews were often seen as manipulative, controlling, and money grubbing. Jews’ limited social acceptance came on by completely abandoning their Jewish identity and avoiding falling into stereotypical images, which was often impossible. These external pressures and internal anxieties did not make assimilation difficult, they made it impossible. Therefore, assimilation only existed as a term and not as an achievable reality. Although many Jews tried to assimilate during the interwar period, they could not because assimilation was only an illusion, a fallacy that no Jew could achieve.

In the face of increasing anti-Semitism during the interwar periods Jewish identity often came into conflict with societal pressures to assimilate. Irving Howe’s, A Memoir of the Thirties, written in 1961, depicts his experiences as a Jew in New York City. In his memoir Howe describes the living and social conditions during this decade that pushed many New York Jews to become involved in some type of socialist movement. Although the memoir is primarily about political activities, his description of the social conditions and the Jewish community provides ...

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During the interwar period Jews faced many hurdles that prevented them from assimilating into the American culture. Lewisohn and Howe both demonstrate how external pressures of anti-Semitism and discrimination, and internal anxieties and struggles created immovable barriers to assimilation. The Jazz Singer also, to some extent, depicts the internal conflicts that arise because Jewishness cannot coexist alongside American ideals. It is only through total abandonment and the creation of an alternate persona through black face that one can attempt to reconcile these conflicting identities. Since these barriers were impossible to overcome, and by design meant to keep minorities out of the American. Assimilation was something Jews and other minorities aspired to achieve, but regardless of aspiration could not because it did not actually exist.