Acting politically between tradition and transmission

Abstract

The purpose of this text is to reflect on the meaning of a peculiar aspect of Hannah Arendt’s life and thoughts, that is, her collaboration with the Jewish Cultural Recostruction in the 40s, whose aim was to recover the cultural objects that were stolen from the Jews during Nazism. Thanks to this activity, Arendt discovers a new aspect of a «hidden tradition» that allows the Jewish history and culture to be redeemed in political terms, as they have value for themselves, far from the image usually attached to them of a persecuted and victimized People. Consequently, the transmission of this tradition underlines the importance for the Jews of finding a way to act politically in the world, according to Arendt’s line of thought in the 40s.

Keywords: Hannah Arendt, Jewish history, hidden tradition, transmission, reconstruction.