Jews and the Imperial State: Identification Politics in Tsarist Russia

Avrutin (Jewish studies, University of Illinois) takes advantage of the opening of Romanov era records in Russia to reexamine the regulations concerning Jews, particularly their restriction to the Pale. He finds that the morass of documentation required as Russia tried to categorize its population was certainly oppressive to Jews (along with other ethnic and religious groups) but that the many regulations also provided legal recourse. Avrutin cites many petitions sent by individual Jews and communities asking for justice or exemptions. One interesting passage revolves around the fluidity of Yiddish naming patterns which resulted in dead children being drafted. Despite caricatures, the Russians knew that there was no way to recognize someone as Jewish. Avrutin details methods in which Jews used or subverted the system that tried to keep them in their place. This is both a fascinating glimpse of Imperial Russia and a healthy modification of the image of Jews in the Pale as powerless. Annotation c2010 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)