Naomi Schuster
The Masa to Poland and Kibbutz Narratives of Holocaust Memory: A Case Study of Kibbutz Yagur
2016 | Full access
This thesis presents a unique case study of students from Kibbutz Yagur who have participated in the masaot to Poland in recent years. This study examines national Holocaust commemorative narratives and practices, with particular attention to their transmission to and interpretation by the present generation of kibbutz youth. The study begins with a brief outline of the history of the masa to Poland from the Carmel Zvulun Regional High School located on Kibbutz Yagur. It then continues to explore the possible ways in which kibbutz ideological principles and Zionist values have been transmitted to the current generation of kibbutznikim who choose to participate in the journey. The study shifts to an examination of materials and methods used to facilitate pre-trip learning and discussion. The goal of this section is to discover if any underlying connections can be drawn between those materials and methods to the kibbutz ideology at large. The next section of the thesis focuses on understanding the impact the masa has on the kibbutz students’ sense of identity as individuals, but also as students born and raised on the kibbutz as compared to non-kibbutz participants from the regional high school. The objective is to understand to what extent in-group “gibush” (bonding) that may or may not already be present amongst kibbutz participants who were born and raised in an insulated environment, has impacted their unique experience as “kibbutznikim” on the trip itself. The concluding chapter examines the patterns of Holocaust commemoration throughout Israel’s history and presents potential causes of friction within the discourse of Shoah memory narratives. It further seeks to understand if and how kibbutz specific interpretations of the Shoah narrative are affecting the current generation of kibbutz youth.
Supervisor:
Prof. Carol Kidron