The Brothers Ashkenazi (Cyclopedia of Literary Characters)
At a glance:
- Author: Israel Joshua Singer
- First Published: 1936
- Type of Work: Novel
- Type of Plot: Historical realism
- Time of Work: Late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries
- Setting: Poland
- Genres: Long fiction, Social realism
- Subjects: Family or family life, Brothers, Jews or Jewish life, Faustian bargains, Business or business people, Poland or Polish people, Judaism, Mills or millwork
- Locales: Warsaw, Poland, Lodz, Poland, Petrograd, Russia
Characters Discussed
Simcha Meyer Ashkenazi, the elder of twin brothers. A shrewd schemer, he advances in affluence through successive marriages and unscrupulous dealings. Later, though his fortune is not always spared, he does manage to survive various historical disasters: the trade-union movement, a pogrom against the Jews, World War I, and the Russian revolution.
Jacob Bunim Ashkenazi, his brother, who is popular and extroverted. His rise in the world results from his ebullience and popularity, and parallels Simcha’s. At last, returning to Poland from Russia with...
[The entire page is 673 words long]
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