Science, Jews, and Secular Culture

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The essays explore the cultural shifts in mid-twentieth-century American academia, highlighting the struggle against Christian biases that hindered Jewish participation in intellectual life from the 1930s to the 1960s. David Hollinger examines the contributions of various scholars who championed a secular ethos and cosmopolitanism amidst challenges like McCarthyism and anti-Semitic quotas. He argues that while contemporary critics view this cosmopolitanism as insufficiently multicultural, it was a significant response to the era's pervasive ideologies and conflicts, marking a notable transformation in American thought.