Starting in 2004
the Institute for Judaic Studies launched the
"Literary Salon" series. The original
"Literary Salons" were popular cultural and
social gatherings in the age of the
Enlightenment and Romanticism. A small number
of Jewish women ran such salons before the
French Revolution and full emancipation. The
Jewish Museum of Berlin has an interesting
discussion of those salons
HERE.
Prof.
Deborah
Hertz of UC San Diego has written much
on the subject of Berlin's Jewish society in
the 18th and 19th centuries. An article on the
salons by Prof. Hertz is included in the
anthology
Jewish Women in Historical
Perspective, by
Prof.
Judith Baskin, Associate Dean of
Humanities and director of the Harold
Schnitzer Family Program in Judaic Studies at
the University of Oregon. Prof. Baskin was the
scholar-in-residence at the Institute's 2010
Weekend in Quest.
The world today is very different from
18th century Europe yet the concept is still
very attractive: a more intimate setting to
listen to and interact with a local author.
Members of the Board volunteer to open their
homes to a limited number of guests and host a
local poet, writer or artist.
Our most recent salon was hosted by Muriel
Feuer and our guest was Mark Zusman, editor of
Willamette Week.
