Beyond Violence
Jewish Survivors in Poland and Slovakia, 1944–48

A unique perspective that goes beyond violence to compare the daily experiences of Holocaust survivors returning to Poland and Slovakia.

Anna Cichopek-Gajraj (Author)

9781107036666, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 19 June 2014

297 pages
23.4 x 16 x 2 cm, 0.55 kg

'Beyond Violence is carefully researched and well written, while remaining fresh and innovative. It is a very important contribution to the field and is a must-have for scholars, especially due to the revisionist tactics of certain governments. But beyond academia this book is recommended for everybody interested in Jewish and East European history.' Piotr J. Wrobel, Central Europe Journal

This book tells a story of Polish and Slovak Holocaust survivors returning to homes that no longer existed in the aftermath of the Second World War. It focuses on their daily efforts to rebuild their lives in the radically changed political and social landscape of post-war Eastern Europe. Such an analysis shifts the perspective from post-war violence and emigration to post-war reconstruction. Using a comparative approach, Anna Cichopek-Gajraj discusses survivors' journeys home, their struggles to retain citizenship and repossess property, their coping with antisemitism, and their efforts to return to 'normality'. She emphasizes the everyday communal and personal experiences of survivors in the context of their relationships with non-Jews. In essence, by focusing on the daily efforts of Polish and Slovak Jews to rebuild their lives, the author investigates the limits of belonging in Eastern Europe after the Holocaust.

Introduction
1. Return to 'no home'
2. Property: Poland
3. Property: Slovakia
4. Violence
5. Citizenship
6. Return to 'normality': Poland
7. Return to 'normality': Slovakia
Conclusion
Appendices
Bibliography.

Subject Areas: Social & cultural history [HBTB], 20th century history: c 1900 to c 2000 [HBLW], European history [HBJD]