Jan Tomasz Gross. Sšsiedzi: historia zagłady żydowskiego miasteczka. Sejny: Pogranicze, 2000. Second edition. 163 pp., cloth.

Jan Gross was bom in 1947 in Warsaw, Poland. He earned his PhD in Sociology at Yale University in 1975, and has taught there, as well as at Emory University and New York University, where he is currently teaching. The book under review is available in English, Neighbors: The Destruction of the Jewish Community in Jedwabne, Poland. Princeton: Prince-ton Univ. Press, 2001. 216 pp. As the title might suggest, this book is a study of Polish-Jewish relations during WWII. It is set in the small town of Jedwabne in northeastern Poland, and concerns the massacre of the local Jewish population by the local Polish residents on July 10, 1941. Its publication in Poland in 2000, and the extracts that appeared in the popular press there, evoked a storm of controversy. The major issue raised here is that in many Polish accounts of the war Poles are portrayed almost exclusively as victims, and blame for the killing of the Jews has been assigned to the Nazis. This pervasive national mythology has been challenged by Gross in this account.

The book begins with some introductory notes by the author concerning his topic and the sources he used, then goes into a systematic overview of the historical background of pre-war Poland, the Soviet occupation of 1939, and the German attack on the Soviet Union in 1941. Throughout this overview Gross is primarily concerned with the nature of Polish-Jewish relations during this period. He analyzes some common Polish assumptions about Jews during this time that served as a partial motive for the killing, trying to see if they had any basis in fact. He then goes on to describe the process by which almost 1,600 Jews were herded into a local barn and burned to death, and tries to determine who was in fact responsible.

Although the work involves a factual account of what happened, its primary concern is to deal with the question of historical memory and collective responsibility. In a chapter entitled "Anachronism" Gross suggests that somehow in Poland this event evokes a sense that it could have come out of the pages of Sienkiewicz's trilogy, that in some way it is a familiar story. From this reflection Gross concludes that in order to understand the "Final Solution," one has to look at it in two ways: as "a system which functioned according to a preconceived plan (albeit one subject to modification)," and that "it was also (or maybe first of all?) a mosaic composed of separate episodes, improvisations by local authorities, as well as spontaneous reflexive actions and behavior on the part of the surrounding population" (91; page numbers from Polish text, trans. by reviewer). In dealing with the issue of collective responsibility Gross begins by stating that, strictly speaking, such a thing does not exist, only individual accountability. He goes on, however, to elaborate on this comment. We are forced, he writes, to reflect on what makes us capable of such actions. "As a community bound together by an authentically shared spiritual bond that gives us the right to experience a commonality of fate (here I have in mind the national pride and feeling of identity rooted in the historical experience of many generations) are we not also responsible for shameful acts committed by our ancestors and fellow countrymen" (97-98)? He then asks whether we can pick and choose what we like from our own history, ignoring whatever does not suit us from the record. The obvious answer is that we cannot, and something like what happened in Jedwabne concerns everyone in Poland. Here he issues an appeal directed concretely to the people of Poland, but by inference to all of us: in creating a self-image, we have to be open to a qualitative analysis if we are to be authentic. We have to be willing to ask how specific events, how a specific epoch should be understood as part of our proposed picture (98).

Perhaps the most important issue raised here is whether it is possible to be both a perpetrator and a victim, "to suffer and to simultaneously cause suffering." This is one of the most difficult issues for any community to deal with in forming its own understanding of itself, and it has been a very painful one for the people of Poland to deal with. In discussing the problem Gross deals not only with examples from the war, but also with the overwhelming public support for the post-war pogroms in Poland.

One of the historical ironies is that the same issue has been raised with regard to Israel. The Jewish theologian. Marc Ellis, poses the question: "Is it possible that the survivors of the barbarism in Europe appear, at least to the Palestinians, as purveyors of barbarism in Palestine?" (in Unholy Alliance: Religion and Atrocity in Our Time [Minneapolis, MN: Fortress Press, 1997], 33). One of the founders of the Israeli peace movement, Uri Avnery, wrote the following:

"When a Palestinian says "Nakba" (disaster), he means the expulsion of more than half the Palestinian people from the territories that became the State of Israel in the course of the 1948 war. Can the present confrontation lead to a similar disaster? On the face of it, it seems impossible. How indeed? Who even thinks about it? Are Ariel Sharon and Shimon Peres capable of it? Definitely not! But this week some disturbing speeches were made in the Knesset. Doubly disturbing, because they were broadcast on television without anyone being shocked or protesting. It was said that if the Palestinians continue with their violent acts, they should not be surprised if a second nakba befalls them" (published on the Gush Shalom website, http://www.gush-shalom.org/, as "Weekly Article of Uri Avnery," 19 May, 2001).

Gross has done a great service in this work. He has opened up discussion not only about the specific massacre at Jedwabne, but also about the larger issues of social responsibility and historiography. I recommend it highly.

James Satterwhite, Bluffton College