Antisemitism: From Its Origins to the Present

Yad Vashem

About this Course

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In this course, 50 leading scholars from all over the world will explore questions and issues relating to antisemitism including: what is antisemitism? How has it changed throughout history? Why can it be found among so many diverse cultures, and even among opposing ideologies? What happened to antisemitism after the Holocaust? How is antisemitism expressed today, and what are the main spheres in which it can be found?

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Beginner Level

Approx. 23 hours to complete

English

Subtitles: French, Portuguese (European), Russian, English, Spanish

What you will learn

To discuss what antisemitism is and what is unique about it

To explain the historical and ideological roots of antisemitism and how it has developed

To discuss the characteristics of antisemitism today

To identify antisemitic language and actions in the past and in the present

Shareable Certificate

Earn a Certificate upon completion

100% online

Start instantly and learn at your own schedule.

Flexible deadlines

Reset deadlines in accordance to your schedule.

Beginner Level

Approx. 23 hours to complete

English

Subtitles: French, Portuguese (European), Russian, English, Spanish

Instructors

Offered by

Yad Vashem

Yad Vashem, the world Holocaust remembrance center, stands resolute in its dedication to Holocaust education, remembrance, documentation and research. Located on the Mount of Remembrance in Jerusalem, Yad Vashem continues to develop advanced educational tools and utilize cutting-edge technology in order to bring its world-class research facilities, flourishing archives, groundbreaking educational initiatives and steadfast commitment to Shoah remembrance to an ever-growing global audience.

Syllabus - What you will learn from this course

Week

Week 1

3 hours to complete

WHAT IS ANTISEMITISM? DEFINITIONS AND ORIGINS

This week we will begin our exploration of the phenomenon of antisemitism. We will discuss the nature of hate, the unique characteristics of antisemitism as well as the etymology of the term. We will then turn to the historical roots and early development of the phenomenon - from the Greco-Roman period up until the Middle Ages.

3 hours to complete

16 videos (Total 85 min), 11 readings

16 videos

COURSE TRAILER2m

WELCOME TO THE COURSE5m

THE NATURE OF HATE3m

THE NATURE OF ANTISEMITISM8m

ETYMOLOGY AND HISTORICAL ROOTS5m

A PROBLEMATIC TERM?6m

WHO ARE THE JEWS?5m

ANTI-JEWISH PERCEPTIONS IN THE GRECO-ROMAN WORLD5m

A UNIQUE FORM OF HATE OR ANOTHER FORM OF XENOPHOBIA?6m

THE EARLY DAYS OF CHRISTIANITY5m

THE CONVERSION OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE3m

THE AUGUSTINIAN PERCEPTION3m

ANTI-JUDAISM5m

THE MIDDLE AGES11m

THE JEWISH "OTHER" IN THE MIDDLE AGES3m

CONCLUSION AND LOOKING AHEAD TO WEEK 22m

11 readings

ABOUT YAD VASHEM5m

METHODOLOGY AND COURSE STRUCTURE5m

DISCUSSION GUIDELINES5m

SCHOLARS PARTICIPATING IN THIS WEEK5m

SUGGESTED READING5m

AN EXAMPLE OF ANTI-JEWISH RESTRICTIONS10m

SUGGESTED READING5m

Week

Week 2

4 hours to complete

THE CHANGING FACE OF ANTISEMITISM

We will move on to the Modern Era, examining how attitudes towards the Jews were affected by the major religious, social, and political movements that were shaping Europe and the world during this time.

4 hours to complete

18 videos (Total 93 min), 11 readings

18 videos

THE CHANGING FACE OF ANTISEMITISM1m

THE EARLY MODERN PERIOD6m

THE ENLIGHTENMENT6m

BETWEEN WESTERN AND EASTERN EUROPE6m

THE RETURN OF JEWS TO WESTERN EUROPE4m

EMANCIPATION: NEW POSSIBILITIES AND NEW PERILS5m

NATIONALISM: BELONGING AND OTHERNESS4m

THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION AND URBANISM3m

PERCEPTIONS OF JEWISH SUCCESS IN THE URBAN ENVIRONMENT3m

RACISM AND RACIAL ANTISEMITISM8m

GERMANS, JEWS, AND ANTISEMITES7m

THE INTEGRATION OF JEWS INTO FRENCH SOCIETY2m

FROM THE FRENCH REVOLUTION TO THE DREYFUS AFFAIR8m

BETWEEN RESTRICTIONS, REFORMS AND POGROMS6m

ANTISEMITIC EXPRESSIONS IN THE EARLY 20TH CENTURY5m

THE PROTOCOLS OF THE ELDERS OF ZION4m

THE EMERGENCE OF ZIONISM6m

CONCLUSION AND LOOKING AHEAD TO WEEK 31m

11 readings

SCHOLARS PARTICIPATING IN THIS WEEK5m

MARTIN LUTHER'S WRITINGS CONCERNING JEWS10m

SUGGESTED READING5m

CONTEMPORARY VIEWS OF THE JEWS IN GERMANY10m

SUGGESTED READING5m

THE ANTI-JEWISH MAY LAWS OF 188210m

SUGGESTED READING5m

Week

Week 3

4 hours to complete

GENOCIDAL ANTISEMITISM: FROM WORLD WAR I TO THE HOLOCAUST

This week we will delve into the 20th century and see how modern antisemitic notions and perceptions continued to develop and to be expressed, reaching a murderous peak with the catastrophic event of the Holocaust

4 hours to complete

19 videos (Total 110 min), 8 readings

19 videos

FROM WORLD WAR I TO THE HOLOCAUST1m

WORLD WAR I AND ITS IMPACT ON ANTISEMITISM9m

THE IMPACT ON GERMANY4m

THE RUSSIAN REVOLUTION AND THE CIVIL WAR POGROMS5m

THE RUSSIAN REVOLUTION AND THE PERCEPTION OF THE JEWS4m

BETWEEN TWO WORLD WARS2m

ECONOMIC ANTISEMITISM5m

THE MAIN PRINCIPLES OF NAZI IDEOLOGY10m

THE CENTRALITY OF ANTISEMITISM IN NAZI IDEOLOGY5m

THE RISE OF NAZISM TO POWER5m

ANTISEMITISM IN GERMANY IN THE 1930S4m

WORLD WAR II7m

THE HOLOCAUST10m

THE COLLABORATORS6m

INTIMATE MURDER3m

ANTISEMITISM AS A DRIVING FORCE IN THE SECOND WORLD WAR8m

THE AFTERMATH6m

THE PERSISTENCE OF ANTISEMITISM5m

CONCLUSION AND LOOKING AHEAD TO WEEK 41m

8 readings

SCHOLARS PARTICIPATING IN THIS WEEK5m

SUGGESTED READING5m

ANTI-JEWISH MEASURES10m

SUGGESTED READING5m

Week

Week 4

3 hours to complete

CONTEMPORARY ANTISEMITISM

This week we will turn to the contemporary world by first examining how antisemitism is expressed by two of the main realms in which it can be found today - the Far-right and the Far-left

3 hours to complete

20 videos (Total 116 min), 5 readings

20 videos

FAR-RIGHT, FAR-LEFT, HOLOCAUST DENIAL AND ANTI-ZIONISM5m

THE FAR-RIGHT: GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS4m

THE PLACE OF ANTISEMITISM IN THE FAR-RIGHT3m

RIGHT-WING POPULISM AND THE PERCEPTION OF THE JEWS3m

FAR-RIGHT ANTISEMITISM IN EUROPE7m

FAR-RIGHT ANTISEMITISM IN THE UNITED STATES6m

LATEST DEVELOPMENTS IN THE UNITED STATES6m

RIGHT-WING POPULISM AND CONSPIRACY THEORIES IN THE UNITED STATES3m

THE VARYING FORMS OF HOLOCAUST DENIAL7m

IRVING V PENGUIN BOOKS AND LIPSTADT5m

ANTISEMITISM IN THE FAR-LEFT5m

ANTI-ZIONISM4m

THE HISTORICAL ROOTS OF CONTEMPORARY ANTI-ZIONISM8m

ANTI-ZIONISM IN THE 1960S AND 1970S: THE USSR AND THE SOVIET BLOC9m

THE KEYSTONE THEORY3m

BETWEEN LEGITIMATE AND ILLEGITIMATE CRITICISM OF ISRAEL7m

ALLEGATIONS OF ANTISEMITISM IN THE BRITISH LABOUR PARTY10m

ANTI-ZIONISM AND HOLOCAUST DENIAL AND DISTORTION6m

The Place of Antisemitism in the Yellow Vests Movement5m

CONCLUSION AND LOOKING AHEAD TO WEEK 534s

5 readings

SCHOLARS PARTICIPATING IN THIS WEEK5m

SUGGESTED READING5m

Week

Week 5

3 hours to complete

THE ISLAMIC AND ARAB WORLD

This week we will continue with our exploration of antisemitism in the contemporary world, by focusing on the past and present of a realm which has not been discussed in the course so far - the Arab and Islamic world.

3 hours to complete

21 videos (Total 91 min), 10 readings

21 videos

THE ARAB AND ISLAMIC WORLD2m

EARLY DYNAMICS IN THE ARABIAN PENINSULA4m

PERCEPTIONS OF JEWS AND JUDAISM IN THE MUSLIM SACRED TEXTS2m

ATTITUDES TOWARD JEWS UNDER MUSLIM RULE5m

JEWS UNDER CHRISTIANITY AND UNDER ISLAM3m

THE EMERGENCE OF ANTISEMITISM6m

THE ARRIVAL OF NATIONALISM4m

THE LOSS OF DOMINANCE1m

THE EMERGENCE OF ZIONISM4m

THE MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD5m

DEFINING ISLAMISM5m

"THE INVENTION OF TRADITION": AN INVENTED INTERPRETATION OF MUSLIM-JEWISH HISTORY5m

FROM THE MUSLIM BROTHERHOOD TO CONTEMPORARY ISLAMISM4m

A DISTORTED INTERPRETATION OF THE PAST1m

CONTEMPORARY ISLAMIST RHETORIC2m

THE PROTOCOLS OF THE ELDERS OF ZION6m

HOLOCAUST DENIAL AND DISTORTION6m

ANTISEMITISM IN THE MEDIA: VARYING TRENDS6m

OTRAS VOCES2m

THE CASE OF IRAN5m

CONCLUSION AND LOOKING AHEAD TO WEEK 62m

10 readings

SCHOLARS PARTICIPATING IN THIS WEEK5m

ATTITUDES TOWARDS JEW IN THE MUSLIM SACRED TEXTS10m

SUGGESTED READING5m

Week

Week 6

5 hours to complete

ADDRESSING ANTISEMITISM

During this last week of the course, we will try to better our understanding of contemporary antisemitism. We will also explore online hate, and examine the ways antisemitism is confronted and dealt with in various arenas today.

5 hours to complete

18 videos (Total 98 min), 7 readings, 1 quiz

18 videos

CONTEMPORARY MANIFESTATIONS, SOCIAL MEDIA, AND PROSPECTS FOR THE FUTURE1m

CASE STUDIES: WHAT IS AND WHAT ISN'T ANTISEMITISM?4m

DIFFERENTIATING BETWEEN LEGITIMATE AND ILLEGITIMATE CRITICISM OF ISRAEL6m

THE BDS MOVEMENT6m

CONSPIRACY THEORIES6m

SOME PERCEPTIONS FROM THE FAR EAST3m

SOCIAL MEDIA6m

VIRALITY AND INFORMATION FLOW6m

CONFRONTING ONLINE HATE4m

RESEARCHING ANTISEMITISM3m

MONITORING ANTISEMITISM – OVERVIEW AND MAIN FINDINGS FOR 20165m

MONITORING ANTISEMITISM – MAIN FINDINGS FOR 2017-201910m

A WORKING DEFINITION OF ANTISEMITISM3m

COMBATING ANTISEMITISM THROUGH LEGISLATION4m

ATTEMPTS TO CONFRONT ANTISEMITISM IN THE EU AND THE UK6m

THE BRITISH ALL-PARTY PARLIAMENTARY GROUP AGAINST ANTISEMITISM5m

MOVING FORWARD11m

CONCLUDING THE COURSE53s

7 readings

SCHOLARS PARTICIPATING IN THIS WEEK5m

SUGGESTED READING5m

INSTITUTES FOR THE RESEARCH AND STUDY OF ANTISEMITISM5m

MONITORING AND RESPONSE AGENCIES AND INSTITUTES5m

SUGGESTED READING5m

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Antisemitism: From Its Origins to the Present