Fighter, Worker, and Family Man

Fighter, Worker, and Family Man explores how German-Jewish men tried to maintain their understandings of masculinity under Nazi rule.

Sebastian Huebel is a faculty member in the Department of History at the University of the Fraser Valley and head of the Department of Humanities at Alexander College in Vancouver.

Javier Samper Vendrell, University of Pennsylvania:

"Huebel’s book invites us to further investigate the history of masculinities in the Third Reich. It will not only enrich historiographical debates about this period, but also enliven discussion in the classroom."

M. A. Mengerink, Lamar University:

"This is a story of the gradual adaptations German Jewish men and their families made in the face of increasing legal restrictions, defamation, and violence. Huebel tells it very well. This is crucial reading."

Graham Forst:

"Huebel shares the hope that a study of the erosion of Jewish male masculinity under Nazism can ‘sharpen our understanding of contemporary issues related to gender.’"

Björn Krondorfer, Regents’ Professor and Director of the Martin-Springer Institute, Northern Arizona University:

"Full-length studies that focus on the experiences of Jewish men as ‘men’ during the Nazi regime and the Holocaust can still be counted on one hand. Huebel’s critical and detailed investigation of Jewish-German masculinity in Nazi Germany is a welcome and needed addition. It is a must-read for anyone interested in the intersection of gender and the Holocaust."

Karen Hagemann, James G. Kenan Distinguished Professor of History, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill :

"Sebastian Huebel’s important and innovative book explores the lived experiences of German-Jewish men in Nazi Germany, a subject neglected by historical research far too long. The book focuses on the gendered everyday challenges, victimizations, reactions, and negotiations of these men, whose masculinity was increasingly stifled and repressed by the Nazis in public discourse, by laws, and in practice since 1933. Anybody interested in German-Jewish history should read this book."

Paul Lerner, Professor, Department of History and Director, Max Kade Institute for Austrian-German-Swiss Studies, University of Southern California:

"At last, a book that foregrounds the masculinity of German-Jewish men in the Nazi dictatorship. Sebastian Huebel’s most welcome study brings extraordinary nuance and sensitivity to capturing the subjective experiences of German-Jewish men – fathers, husbands, veterans, and workers – as they struggled to survive and retain their dignity in the face of persecution, defamation, and deportation."