The Slave | Literary Precedents
An important literary antecedent is the Bible. Jacob's decision to steal clandestinely his own child may symbolize Jacob's theft of the birthright from Esau. Like the biblical Jacob, Singer's Jacob is perceived (by the Messianists) as a patriarch. Jacob's toil on the land for several years before he marries Wanda/Sarah resembles the biblical Jacob's toil for seven years in order to marry Rachel. Jacob's story is like the story of Joseph, who was separated forcibly from his family only to be returned. When Jacob is ransomed by the Jews of Josefov and reunited with his sister Miriam, after...
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