Breaking boundaries: unveiling Jewish lesbian narratives from the Pale to the horizons of early twentieth-century America.

Abstract

This article, inspired by Elana Dykewomon's Beyond the Pale, explores the intertwined histories of Jewish lesbian and non-lesbian women from the 1870s to the 1920s, tracing their journeys from the Pale of Settlement to early twentieth-century America. Focusing on themes of identity, resilience, and female friendship, it examines how antisemitic persecution and traditional gender norms shaped Jewish women's lives, both in Eastern Europe and in the immigrant communities of New York City. This article employs a literary-historiographical method, situating Dykewomon's novel within feminist and queer historiography, and treating narrative as a form of historical knowledge. By foregrounding Jewish lesbian immigrants' voices often marginalized in mainstream historiography, this study contributes to a deeper understanding of Jewish women's agency, sexuality, and cultural transformation during a period of profound upheaval.