ABSTRACT
Adolescence and early adulthood are often referred to as “formative” periods of one’s life, implying that this particular life stage plays a crucial role in the formation of personal identity. Adolescence and early adulthood are also periods when parental influence is frequently eclipsed by the influence of the peer group, and by the friendships and romantic attachments formed with peers. As mentioned earlier in this book, the life course transition into adolescence and early adulthood of the majority of the cohorts among the Czech and Slovak Jews of the postwar generation took place in the 1960s, and as such coincided with the specific historical moment of communist reform. Thus, to the extent that the search for a Jewish identity was their personally driven life choice, it took place in the context of a specific historical process.
