Theses and Dissertations - Department of Interdisciplinary Studies

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Browsing Theses and Dissertations - Department of Interdisciplinary Studies by Author "Adams, Natalie G."

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    The Jewish lived experience in Cuba
    (University of Alabama Libraries, 2016) Franklin, Dorothy Duggar; Adams, Natalie G.; McKnight, Utz Lars; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
    This research utilized an interdisciplinary qualitative approach to inquiry that requires border-crossing as its methodology for discovery in order to fully understand the lived experience of the Jews of Cuba. The study included a deep read of the Jewish Diaspora with a starting point being 597 BCE, then followed thousands of years of waves and world-wide movements, eventually leading to those Jews who settled in Cuba. For access into the lives of the present-day Jews, interviews with four participants who represented a cross-section of the Cuban Hebrew community were conducted; visits to the synagogues and to the kosher butcher shop were made; and many trips to the Ashkenazi and the Sephardic cemeteries in Guanabacoa, Cuba, were also made in order to take photographs and personally visit the sites. The four respondents interviewed were English speakers, were over 20-years old, and were citizens of Cuba. They were asked identical questions via e-mail with follow-up correspondence. For other narrative resources, 19 unpublished recorded stories were transcribed and included in the study to gain further access into the lives of Cuba’s Jewish population. To complete the inquiry, one published narrative was used to show parallels between those who were interviewed, as well as to show the similarities to those voices from the unpublished group. The end research result finds that today’s Cuban Jews, whose rich historical past on the island began as early as 1492, have survived despite all odds, and thrive with their traditions and laws intact. This research covered a period of 4 years—and four separate trips to Cuba.
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    The journey of antisemitism: how hate is translated to perpetrator behavior
    (University of Alabama Libraries, 2017) Colburn, Kimberly; Jacobs, Steven L.; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
    This research takes on the imposing task of discovering the roots of perpetrator violence against the Jewish people within the context of the Holocaust that took place during World War II. By taking an interdisciplinary approach to the consideration of, among other things, the role of Christianity in the persecution of Jews, this research aims to pull together the work of multiple experts in the fields of psychology, sociology, theology, and history in order to garner a fuller understanding of how ordinary people might commit atrocities. While authorities on multiple subjects are considered, this is also a work of original research aimed at finding the commonalities and thematic strains that might exist among those who were, in fact, perpetrators of violence. This research examines the ways in which hate is translated to perpetrator behavior. It analyzes religion, ideology, and nationalism as forms of indoctrination of antisemitic violence in the ordinary person turned concentration camp guard. It follows the stories of 100 men and women who enacted violence against Jews during the years of 1938-1945.