Criss-crossing Boundaries: Ultraorthodox Jewish women go to work

Blumen, Orna

doi:10.1080/09663960220139653

Cited by 36 publications

(32 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…Thus they make decisions in relative isolation from the historical and geographic imperatives described by Duncan. Two other groups of mothers in our sample stood out as particularly closely defined by their specific and long-established cultural and geographic locations. The ultra-Orthodox Jewish women we interviewed in Stoke Newington, for example, were all working parttime (see also Blumen 2002). Part-time work allowed for the moral obligation to prioritise the perceived needs of the children and for maintaining an identity of women as mothers and as at the centre of all family life, managing the household, and present when children return from school: We also interviewed a number of Muslim women from a South Asian background (although mainly born in Britain) who were living within a small, well-defined area in one of our case study localities.…”

Section: Mothering and Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

‘I’m so much more myself now, coming back to work’ – working class mothers, paid work and childcare

Braun

Vincent

Ball

2008

Journal of Education Policy

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This paper explores the ways in which working class mothers negotiate mothering and paid work. Drawing on interviews with 70 families with pre-school children, we examine how caring and working responsibilities are conceptualised and presented in mothers' narratives. Mothers showed a high degree of commitment to paid work and, in contrast to findings from an earlier study with middle class and professional mothers, did not feel that keeping their children at home with them was always the best option for the children. We suggest that working class mothers in the labour market remain at risk of being defined as inadequate mothers because of a middle class emphasis on intense maternal engagement with the child as a key aspect of 'good' mothering.

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Section: Mothering and Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

‘I’m so much more myself now, coming back to work’ – working class mothers, paid work and childcare

Braun

Vincent

Ball

2008

Journal of Education Policy

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“…For men, studying English is considered bitul Torah or 'a waste of the time' that should be allocated to the study of Torah (see also Baumel, 2003). Women are also involved in the work market, and interact with the secular majority (Blumen, 2002;El-Or, 1992Fader, 2001;Heilman, 1992), contributing even further to these differences, especially with regard to Hebrew (see also Tannenbaum et al, 2006).…”

Section: Gender Differencesmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…Women, however, do not play the usual role assigned to them in patriarchal societies Á they support the family so as to release their husbands from any other obligation taking away time from Torah study (Benor, 2004;Blumen, 2002;El-Or, 1992Fader, 2001;Gonen, 2006;Heilman, 1992;Isaacs, 1999a).…”

Section: The Ultra-orthodox Community In Israelmentioning

confidence: 97%

‘Tell Me What You Speak and I'll Tell You …’: Exploring Attitudes to Languages in the Ultra-Orthodox Community in Israel

Tannenbaum

Ofner

2008

Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development

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This article reports on a study focusing on Israel's Haredi (ultra-Orthodox Jews) community, exploring its members' perceptions of Hebrew, Yiddish and English in terms of the language's importance, usage, holiness and related emotions. Questionnaires were distributed to 180 participants from five prominent subgroups within the community. Analysis revealed significant differences in the participants' attitudes towards the three languages, showing preference for Hebrew and Yiddish above English in all dimensions explored. Differences between subgroups correlated with their stance towards the Israeli majority and vis-à-vis one another Á the greater the level of segregation, the more negative their attitudes towards English and the more positive their attitudes towards Yiddish, with Hebrew somewhere in between for most groups. These findings reflect the community's attempts to build symbolic fences to sustain and foster segregation on the one hand, and their bonding with the historical heritage on the other. Gender differences also emerged with women, who function as change agents far more often, showing more favourable attitudes towards Hebrew and English than men. In sum, attitudes towards languages emerged as an interesting lens from which to learn about broader ideological world views, reflecting the tension and conflict between the inner community world view and the surrounding world.Ultra-Orthodox Jews adhere to a way of life characterised by meticulous observance of religious commandments, extending to religious studies, prayer, food laws, family rituals, welfare activities and the like. Community members endorse voluntary segregation from other Orthodox or secular Jews in their residence patterns (separate neighbourhoods, and at times separate settlements; see more in Valins, 2003), their dress code (specific attire and insistence on extreme modesty for women), traditions and education. Haredi communities also tend to develop extensive networks of internal support catering to their members' welfare and educational needs, which facilitate their voluntary segregation.Haredi children are educated in a separate system with a unique curriculum and teachers who are exclusively community members. These

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“…Men are expected to devote their lives to holy studies, whereas women are expected to excel as mothers (educating their children to be pious Jews) and to finance their scholar husbands (and their families), freeing them from anything that may distract them from this crucial obligation. Girls' education is, therefore, more practical and instrumental, and allows for occupational training 2 (Baumel 2003;Ben-Yosef 2011;Blumen 2002;El-Or 1992Fader 2001;Glinert 1999;Heilman 1992;Isaacs 1999;Pace 2007;Shpiegel 2011;Tannenbaum and Abugov 2010;Tannenbaum and Ofner 2008).…”

Section: The Uo Community In Israelmentioning

confidence: 98%

On beauty, usefulness, and holiness: attitudes towards languages in the Habad community

Tannenbaum

Cohen

2016

Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development

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Criss-crossing Boundaries: Ultraorthodox Jewish women go to work

Cited by 36 publications

References 23 publications

‘I’m so much more myself now, coming back to work’ – working class mothers, paid work and childcare

‘I’m so much more myself now, coming back to work’ – working class mothers, paid work and childcare

‘Tell Me What You Speak and I'll Tell You …’: Exploring Attitudes to Languages in the Ultra-Orthodox Community in Israel

On beauty, usefulness, and holiness: attitudes towards languages in the Habad community

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