Grants Awarded for Dissertations on Jewish Studies Topics, 2007-08
Michal Shaul, Bar-Ilan University
Ultra-Orthodox Holocaust Survivors in Israel
 Michal Shaul’s dissertation explores Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) Holocaust survivors in Israel, their place in the formation and rehabilitation of the Haredi community after the Holocaust, and the shaping of this community’s Holocaust memory. The study examines the survivors’ personal and communal experiences, starting from the early years of immigration from Europe after the liberation from the Nazi occupation, up until the late 1960s. The project places special emphasis on the “personal memory” of survivors, as well as on their public roles, exploring how they dealt with the Holocaust memory, issues of personal commemoration, and conflict over questions of identity.
The personal testimonies of Holocaust survivors—recorded in memoirs, on video, and in dozens of interviews conducted by the author—are especially important sources for this project. These sources are supplemented by documents from a variety of archives. Shaul’s research will encompass the range of Haredi social groups, exploring the different worlds of men and women, pioneers and scholars, laborers and intellectuals, and others.
Shaul holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the Hebrew University, Jerusalem, as well as a teaching certificate from Kerem Institute for Jewish Humanistic Teacher Training in Jerusalem. She is currently enrolled as a doctoral student in the Department of Jewish History at Bar-Ilan University. She has forthcoming articles in the journals, Yad Vashem Studies and Dapim: Studies on the Shoah.
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