The Southern Israelite. (Augusta, Ga.) 1925-1986, March 01, 1929, Image 5

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The Southern Israelite Page 5 THE JEW IN ENGLISH LITERATURE enemies of Christ. In the drama there are frequent references to Jews and a number of Jewish characters intro duced, but none of them had the traic dignity of a Shylock or even of a Barabas. Beaumont and Fletcher, Ben Johnson, and William Henninge are among those having Jewish characters in their works, although none are par ticularly famous as types. The part played by the Jews, them- I selves, in the literary movement of this century was not large. There was neither leisure nor thought for writing in the problem for mere safe I existence. The literary field of the eighteenth century held many famous authors— | among whom were Addison, Steele, Defoe, Pope and Swift. But few of i them paid attention to the Jews, and such as did gave them but passing and not altogether complimentary reference. Neither Pope in his “Es- I say on Man” nor Defoe in his “The t Shortest Way with Dissenters’’ show- I ed tolerance or liberty of conscience for those outside the pale of the I forms of Christian belief. In the drama the Jew received on I the whole in this century somewhat fairer treatment than he did at the hands of political controversialists. But, although the wit of Richard Sheridan enlivened the drama during the latter half of the century, it did not brighten the position or reputa tion of the Jews. In “The School for Scandal” there is a Jewish character, a Mr. Moses, a money-lender. In 1775 Sheridan produced his “Duenna”, a comic opera in prose. In the character of Isaac Mendoza he again portrays the Jew in the usual role of a scheming money-lender. He does not treat him seriously. He holds him up to ridicule, but he makes him a villain also, with out the redeeming feature of deep emotion or strength of character. The play was a tremendous success, and ran through the season with but few intermissions of several days at Christmas and the Friday of each week. It is interesting, and also hu miliating, to know that this weekly Friday intermission was for the rea son that the part of Don Carlos was sung by a Jew, who was Cantor of the Portuguese synagogue and could not act on Friday nights. But the Jews found a champion in Richard Cumberland. He was the first dramatist who dared to oppose popu lar prejudice and produce a drama in which the Jew was not only not a villain, but the leading and heroic character. In 1794, his play, “The Jew,’ appeared. Its principal char acter is Sheva, a philanthropist, of a peculiar kind. He stints himself that he may give to others. It is not alto gether just, for with the exaggera tion characteristic of the drama, Cum berland makes Sheva overgood, as Barabas is overbad. Dickens made the same mistake with Riah in “Our Mu tual Friend”, when he tried to atone for his Fagin of “Oliver Twist.” Yet here, too, is the tragedy for the Jews. Barabas, Shylock and Fagin are wide ly known and taken as types. Sheva and Riah are comparatively unknown, and when known, are not regarded as types, but as exceptions. The entrance of Jews as authors into English literature was not really made until the latter part of the eigh teenth century. It is not that they did not write, but they did not write in English. That their non-participation in the life of the nation was the cause of this evidenced was by the fact that whenever the restrictive pressure was removed, they at once became gener ous and worthy contributors to na tional literature. Shut out from its national culture, the Jew could not give expression to the ideals of the nation. He could, however, appreciate it, and he did so by reproducing many of the literary classics in Hebrew, namely Shakespeare’s plays and Mil ton’s poems. Among the most noted authors of the period were David Levi, Ralph Schomberg and Emanuel Mendez da Costa. From the nineteenth century on, the spirit of tolerance and justice be came more advanced. Sir Walter Scott was the first of the great novel ists to create Jewish characters of widespread interest. In “Ivanhoe” his chief character is Isaac of York. He is made to be the usual timid money lender. Only once does he rise to noble proportions in the plea for his daugh ter, when he sounds the note of af fection that has characterized Jewish family life. In Rebecca, Scott has given a creation of exquisite beauty. She stands forth as by far the most distinguished character in the story. She is an ideal figure of true Jewish womanhood. In many ways she voices the sentiments of her people and gives evidence that Scott had a sym pathetic understanding of the feelings of the Jews. It is more than probable that “Oli ver Twist” intensified the struggle and delayed the victory of Jewish emancipation for at least a decade. The character of Fagin is a masterly presentation of a possible type of the underground criminal world. There is no criticism of the accuracy of the picture, but the great wrong is that the author labels him Jew and pre sents him as a Jewish type. Fagin, like Shylock, has gone abroad as a type, not only among English-speak ing peoples, but throughout the world. The Jews found a worthy exponent in George Eliot. “Daniel Deronda” is an intended protest against the con ventional conception and treatment under which the Jews had suffered. She has a number of Jewish charac ters, and their pictures are drawn without exaggeration. Mordecai is one of the finest characterizations in fic tion; he is an embodiment of the spirit of Israel. The poets of this time sung of Is rael in a noble strain. Wordsworth’s “Song for the Wandering Jew” breaks away from the conventional sectarian legend and sounds a note of universal aspiration. Shelly devotes Canto VII of his “Queen Mab” to an ideal version of the Wandering Jew legend. Byron wrote “Hebrew Melo dies” which were set to music and for a time used in the synogogue service in London. Robert Browning was among the foremost poets of the cen tury who devoted considerable atten tion to matters of Jewish interest. It is significant that in his two poems of Jewish interest he gives his views on two of the most important phases of world-philosophy. In “Rabbi Ben Ezra” and “Jochanan Hakadosh” he expresses his convictions of life as duty and destiny. (Continued on Page 10) GAVE $25,000 TO MT. SINAI HOSPITAL ON DEATH BED The late Eugene Littauer, whose brother Hon. Lucius N. Littauer recently gave $1,000,000 for ‘bette: human understanding.’ MUSSOLINI TAKES EXCEPTION TO TERMINOLOGY USED BY ITALIAN ZIONISTS London (J. T. A.)—An article in the “Popolo di Romo,” which the Lon don Daily Telegraph attributes to Premier Mussolini, discusses the re cent Italian Zionist Congress and takes exception to the terminology employed by Zionists in that country. II Duce is surprised to hear the Italian Zionists speak of the Hebrew race, the Hebrew people and the He brew nation without referring to re ligion. He takes exception to this at titude of Italian Zionists regarding nationality and asks sharply whether they consider themselves a nationality or a religion. The object of this ques tion is not to create anti-Semitism, which does not exist in Italy, the wri ter declares recalling that three Ital ian premiers were Jews, but for the purpose of being informed as to how things stand and for drawing the proper influence. The article does not suggest what inference the writer in tends to draw but, the “Daily Tele graph” thinks the language employed by the Italian Zionists has caused ir ritation to the Fascist dictator. It’s S pring at Davison’s! % HE windows suggest it, the first floor confirms the rumor, and the whole store echoes the good news! New merchandise, displayed in new ways, attracts the eye. Colors have more than the perennial freshness of the spring season . . . they have a sun-touched glow that is entirely new. To mention new fashions is to think of the jacket frock, the hat with the brim that widens at the back of the neck, and such clever accesso ries as the hand bag with the inverted rim and the new Romanart jeyelry! In the home furnishing departments, too, spring is an accomplished fact. Throughout the store—it’s spring at Davison’s! DAVISCN-PAXON CO. affiliated, with. MACY’S.Aeou ATLANTA