Medicine and the German Jews: A History (review)

Medicine and the German Jews is a work on two levels. On the whole, the book is not for the expert in Jewish history. It may be of interest, however, to those who know little about the history of the Jews in Central and Eastern Europe in the eighteenth, nineteenth, and early twentieth centuries and seek an introductory text. There is fundamental information about the Jews in general, anti-semitism, the Jewish Enlightenment (Haskalah), Zionism, the depiction of Jews as having “female” characteristics, and the professionalization and medicalization of anti-semitism.

Those to whom these basic aspects of Jewish history are already well known, may benefit from an introduction to certain Jewish and Christian or Gentile (Efron uses the words interchangeably) physicians, and a consideration of the relation of Jewish religion to science. This expert audience will also be interested in two well-known episodes in the history of nineteenth and early twentieth century Austrian and German medicine, but nevertheless worth reading again because they are well told. Unfortunately, Efron’s opening chapters on the middle ages and early modern times (though containing less well known information and potentially valuable) are not presented clearly. I read the material more than once, but Efron’s narrative often contains contradictory passages, making it difficult to understand his major points.

Writing, as I am, for two audiences, I believe I can best do justice to Efron’s book by summarizing its contents and then making some concluding remarks.

The modern Jewish doctor first appeared in Germany in the eighteenth century. Infused with the optimism of both the general and Jewish Enlightenment (Haskalah), he believed he could lead fellow Jews to good health. His goal also included the hope that he could aid in the drive for the political emancipation of the Jews. To this end, he encouraged Jewish assimilation, emphasizing particularly a life-style that would make the Jews appear attractive to their Christian neighbors. I would add that we today would look at this activity and see in it the beginnings of modern Jewish self-hatred.

Jewish physicians urged Jews to reduce their preoccupation with business because it resulted in digestive illnesses. The doctors, intent on assimilation, also advised Jews to adopt more refined table manners and not spend so much time in the heder, the Jewish religious school, because it led to weight loss, poor digestion, and unhealthy physical postures. They urged Jewish cooperation with state authorities and to that end became involved with the Scheintod (apparent death) controversy. In so doing, the doctors were also trying to assert their professionalism in place of rabbinical authority. The question at hand was the fear of being buried alive. Since Jews bury their dead within 24 hours, could they be sure their sick were truly dead? The state intervened and set up mortuaries where bodies would be watched. Enlightened Jewish physicians wanted to cooperate with the government and override rabbinic authority but were unable to change this long-standing Jewish custom.

In the nineteenth century, there was great interest in the Jews appearing sickly. The stereotype was used by anti-emancipation Christians, Jewish followers of the Enlightenment (both the Gentile and the Jewish ones), Zionists who wanted “strong” Jews, and assimilationists. Here is the start of racial stereotyping because on examination, Jews were actually healthier than the surrounding population. Anti-semitism was being medicalized. Efron concentrates on four areas of Jewish health in the nineteenth century: why Jews were not alcoholics; why Jews lived longer, enjoyed a lower rate of infant mortality, and suffered fewer deaths per 1,000 people; the lower rates of TB among Jews; and diabetes as a supposed Jewish disease. Here Efron brings in etiologic theories of these conditions by both Jewish and Christian physicians. The conclusion Efron reaches from detailed examination of these four areas is that they served primarily to make Jews appear as the “Other,” always different from the population at large. Moreover, Christian doctors concluded that Jews...