Nov 22, 2008

The Brothers Ashkenazi | The Brothers Ashkenazi

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]

The Brothers Ashkenazi | The Brothers Ashkenazi

At a glance:

Characters Discussed

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