In Class 8, guest lecturer Glenn Dynner, Professor of Judaic Studies and Director of the Bennett Center at Fairfield University, explores the early Jews of modern Ukraine. Timothy Snyder is the Richard C. Levin Professor of History at Yale University and a permanent fellow at the Institute for Human Sciences in Vienna. He speaks five and reads ten European languages. Ukraine must have existed as a society and polity on 23 February 2022, else Ukrainians would not have collectively resisted Russian invasion the next day. What does it mean for a nation to exist? Is this a matter of structures, actions, or both? Why has the existence of Ukraine occasioned such controversy? In what ways are Polish, Russian, and Jewish self-understanding dependent upon experiences in Ukraine? Just how and when did a modern Ukrainian nation emerge? For that matter, how does any modern nation emerge? Why some and not others? Can nations be chosen, and can choices be decisive? If so, whose, and how? Ukraine was the country most touched by Soviet and Nazi terror: what can we learn about those systems, then, from Ukraine? Is the post-colonial, multilingual Ukrainian nation a holdover from the past, or does it hold some promise for the future? Course reading list Video version of this course available on YouTube.

In this enlightening discussion, historian Glenn Dynner, author of The Light of Learning, explores the poignant kvitlekh—19th-century petitions to Rabbi Elijah Guttmacher. He reveals the rich tapestry of Jewish life in Eastern Europe, uncovering themes of financial hardship, illness, and social changes. Dynner also discusses the resilience of Jewish communities, the role of tavern keeping, and the intimate challenges faced by individuals like Sora Batfega. The kvitlekh serve as compelling snapshots of a bygone era, blending history with personal stories.