Modern

Hebrew Literature(With a P re face by the Haham Dr. Caster) .

A PAPER

R ead before th e An nua l.

Con feren ce,

in Lon don , of the In ternationa l Society

o f Philo logy, Science and Fine Arts

IQW A S S I

'

L E V S K Y

J "N E 2 5TH . 1 9 1 5 .

P R IC E FO"R FENC E .

LONDON JEW I SH CHR ON ICLE OFF ICE ,

2, F I N S B"R Y SQ"A R E , E C .

gamm a"“ 01““m ow "

Mo dern

Hebrew Literature(With a P reface by the Haham Dr. Gaster) .

A PAPER

R ead befo re th e An nua l Co n feren ce ,

in Lo ndon, o f th e In tern a t io na l So ciety

o f Philo lo gy, Scien ce and Fin c Arts

1 . W A S S IL E V S K Y

J "N E 2 5 TH . 1 9 1 5 .

P R IC E FO"R FE NC E .

LONDON JEW I SH CHR ON ICL E OFF I C E“2,F I N S B"R Y SQ"A R E ,

E .C .

P R E FA C E .

I will ingly accede to th e p ressing request o f M r . VVass ilevskyto wr i te a b r ief p refac tory note to h i s essay o n Modern Heb rew

L i terature . Truth to tel l there is n o n ecess i ty for such an in t ro

ducto ry n ote . Th e essay i s’

sure to recomm en d i tsel f to thoughtful

readers by i ts own in tr in s i c mer i t .

And yet a few words o n th e subject matter and o n th e manner

in which M r . W ass ilevsky has han dled i t may perhap s n o t be o ut

Of p lace , i f on l y as an ex p ress ion o f my own Op in ion .

'

TO sta r t

wi th th e l ast"I have been g rea tl y im p ressed by th e abil i ty wi th

which M r . W assilevsky h as been able to su rvey so com p l i cated a

movemen t and to com p ress i t with in th e n a r row fram e o f a short

essay . Th e im par tial i ty and soun d j udgm en t d i sp layed in adjudi

cat ing th e m er i ts o f th e n umerous authors , th e acumen with wh ich

h e del in eates th e leading featu res an d th e cha racter i st ic t rai ts

o f these w r i ters mark out th is essay as be in g n o t on l y a sketch but

al so a c r i t ical guide to those who would l ike to g et in to close touch

with these m en and thei r work . On e n eed n o t n ecessa r i l y ag ree

wi th each o f th e con clusion s of M r . W ass ilevsky, an d we seldom

ag ree wi th other m en’

s con clus ion s i f they hap pen to run coun ter

to o ur o wn . But such i s human weakn ess , and cur iousl y en ough i t

i s s trongly di s p layed in th e judgmen t pas sed by o n e Heb rew w r i ter

u pon th e works Of an other , espec ia l l y i f h e ha p pen to be hi s co n

tem po rary . \Ve are always much too c r i t i cal w i th ou r own and

sin gular l y len ien t w i th th e outs ider .

Th e p sychological p roblem s conn ected wi th th i s l i tera ture are

very n um erous . It would be goin g beyon d th e l im i ts of a m ere

in t roduct ion were I to ven tu re even u pon however b r ief an inves

tigatio n . A few words m ust suffice. Fo r th e ca reful reader o f

Mr . W ass ilevsky’

s essay wi l l be able to d iscern at least some of

them . On e i s forc ib l y rem inded o f th e witty say ing o f o ur sages

wh ich ex p la in s th e bless ing o f Noah as m ean ing that th e beauty Of

Japh et should dwel l in th e tents o f Shem"that all that was m ost

206911 1 a

beauti ful in th e sp i ri tual l i fe and in th e arti st i c p roduct ion of th e

ch i ld ren of J aph et should a l so become th e p roperty o f th e ch ildren

o f Shem . This has p ract ical ly been th e p rocess of a long con t inued

assimila t ion and modifica t ion so characteri st ic o f cer tain epochs Of

t ran s iti on . Th e G reek and th e Arabic per iod have left thei r t races

in J ewi sh l iterature . In a s imi lar mann er a modern s p i r i t has

m ade in roads in to th e domain o f th e J ewish l i terature ever s in ce

they came in to close con tact wi th o n e another . Th e model was

set by th e gen t i le . Th e J ew en deavou red to imitate and to

ass imila te and then rose slowly to indepen den t work . This i s

al so,ina way , th e h istory of every modern l i terature . I t star ts in

many cases w ith a tran slatio n o f th e Bible"then fol low tran s

latio n s and adap tat ion s of fore i gn examp les o f class ical w r i tings

un t i l th e w r i ters eman c i pate them selves , an d fol lowin g th e ben t of

thei r o wn gen i us give ex p ress ion to n at ional idea l s and nat ional

hopes . Modern Hebrew l i terature i s tak ing th e same course of

developmen t . I t i s most in terest in g and fasc inat ing to fol low up

th e b reaches , or i g inal ly very small , made in th e wall s Of th e

ghetto , th rough which th e l igh t of th e s p i r i t from without began

to p ou r in , and th e avid i ty with wh ich th e Jews turn ed to

these n ew rays Of l igh t which they bel ieved to be a”

n ew

source o f poet ical in sp i rat ion . On e has on l y to remember

W esseley with hi s im itat ion s o f K lop stock , subst i tut ing Moses for

th e hero of th e latter’s epos , an d then th e var ious beginn ings in

d ram a and in poet ry , n o t to s peak o f Luzzatto’

s Older imitat ion and

adap tat ion of th e P asto F i do un t i l we reach th e more recen t w r i ters

l ike Shulman and Map po down to B ial ik . W e obtain a better

in s ight in to th is per iod of s turm a n d dra ng i f we com pare th e

beginn ings o f th is Hebrew l i teratu re with th e mighty movemen t

of th e sp i r i t wi thout , an d see how th e J ews tr i ed at o n e jum p to

scale th e O lym pus , an d then , by a fu r ther developmen t , attem p ted

thei r eman c i pa t ion and pa rtl y succeeded . But th e J ews had to

overcome n o t on l y di fficul ty of ass imilat ing n ew ideas and o f

adjust ing the i r vis ion to th e wider ho r izon that Opened before them

they had to co p e with th e di fficul ty o f th e language. Hebrew i s

n o t a l iving language in th e sen se in which th e word i s usual l y

un derstood . It i s a l iv ing language inasmuch as i ts use has n o t

ceased . But i t h as to be acqui red f rom th e Book . I t i s n o t a

lan guage Of free parlan ce . It i s n o t th e vernacula r as yet o f any

coun t ry . Th e language represen ts a di ff eren t phase o f sp i r i tual

l i fe, yet i t is malleable, i t i s plast ic. In th e hands o f th e true,

poet i t can be used with great effect . But then that poet

must be th e ex ponen t o f th e J ewish s p i r i t . No t everyth ing

wri tten in th e Heb rew language i s by i tsel f as yet J ewish .

I t m ust be also J ewish in s p i r i t , J ewish in concep t ion ,J ewish

in style as wel l as in syn tax ,in th e symm et ry and poise o f

th e ph rase . H ere al so we can see steady developmen t and

growth . I am n o t here to c r i t i c i se, fo r I may perhap s disagree

with th e l iber t ies wh ich modern wr i ters have taken with th e

Hebrew lan guage—in th e coin in g o f n ew words and in th e syn tac

t ical con struct ion o f th e ph rase . But these, however , are infan t i le

i l lnesses inheren t in every new movemen t which ignores th e past .

Because new i deas are wel l in g u p f rom th e sou rce of n ew in sp i ra

t ion a n ew vocabulary has to be crea ted to g ive outward form to

wha t th e m in d has fash ion ed . In stead of del vin g deep in to th e

min es and treasures o f th e past an d d rawing to th e l i gh t th e o re

foun d therein o ur n ew w r i ters , wh o bel ieved that th e past had n o

further message for th em , turned away from th e on l y sou rce of true

in sp i rat ion and t rue lan guage. It i s l ike un to th e per iod of

fermen tat ion , when new win e i s pou red in to old casks . But th e

t ime i s ap p roach ing when th e lees are settl ing at th e bottom and

th e pure wine o f th e J ewish sp i r i t w il l be decan ted in th e J ewish

banquet ing -hall s , a feas t Of th e s p i r it , a j o y f o r th e hear t and min d

of a rev ived J ewish n at ion . M r . W assilevsky’

s essay wi l l show

th e reade r how th i s movemen t h as p roceeded and h ow from smal l

beginn ings , s tep by step , a n ew l i terature i s being evolved under

o ur very eyes .

M . GASTE R .

On th e Memor ia l Day of Mappo .

iterature .

HERE i s n o nat ion whi ch so Often forms th e subject of d i scussion as

th e Jewish n at ion , and there i s bare l y anyone who w i l l hes i tate t o

express an Opin i on , good o r evi l , abou t th e J ew. Pedan t s and learn ed

d ivines deduce the i r con cl us ion s from th e Bible—a book wri t ten

t housands Of years ago—o r from some aphori sms cu l led from th e

Talmud by people who were al ien to th e spi ri t o f that book , wh i le th e average

man forms h i s ideas abou t th e J ew from accepted standard s of h i s en vi ronmen t , or

from h i s o wn commercia l rel at ion s w i th h im . I f th e J ew w i t h whom h e has come

in con tac t happen s to be an h ones t an d s traigh t forward man h e arrives a t th e co n

el u sion that al l Jews are h onest and st raigh t forward"but i f i t h appen s th at h ehas been vic t imi sed or duped by a Jew then al l Jews are pu t down as sw ind lers

and knaves . W e are , therefore , n o t surpri sed to fi nd in th e world ’s l i terature

Jews o f every imag in able type , a Shylock o r Shylock’ s daugh ter , an Old -cl o thes

dealer , a deformed creature , or th e J ew who i s bu t a Jew in n ame"bu t rare l y dowe find th e t rue Jew wi th th e Jewi sh spiri t , or th e Jew as h e i s in al l h i s essen t i al s

and i deal s . Th e Jew of to-day i s n o l onger th e J ew of th e Bible , even as th e

modern En g l i shman i s un l ike th e En g l i shman Of th e Shakespeari an per iod . I t

wou ld be wrong to form an opin ion Of th e Eng l i sh n at ion , or o f any o ther n at ion

from a commerci al s tandpoin t on l y , and i t wou l d be even more un j ust ifiable t o

j udge th e J ew from a commercia l v iew alone . I say advi sed ly “ even more ,

”

wi th regard to th e Jewish n at ion , becau se , wh i le o ther n at ion s can choose th e

courses in to wh ich th e ramificat ion s o f t he i r commerce wi l l ex tend , th e members

of th e Jewish nat ion have no such ch oice . They are compe l led to en ter such

trades as th e l aws an d cu stoms o f th e coun t ries , in wh ich chan ce o r misfor tune

may have placed them , choose t o leave Open t o them . Somet imes , as in Russia

th e J ew en ters a t rade in defiance o f Governmen t l aws , bu t th i s i s on l y because

h e has n o o ther mean s o f earn ing a l i ving . But qu i te apart from these co n

s iderat ion s i t must be Obvious that commerce , whatever its character or d imen

sion s , i s scarcel y a su i table stan dard by wh ich to j udge th e in te l lectual or moral

plane o f a n at ion , s in ce even in i ts h i ghes t deve l opmen t i t does n o t exp ress a

people 's sou l . Th e sou l of a n at ion i s reflected in i ts l i terature , wh ich compre

hen ds th e spiri tual an d materia l e lemen ts -Of i t s l i fe in every age , and which

gathers in th e though ts an d emot ion s produced in th e min d and th e heart of th epeople o f wh ich i t is th e wri t ten expression . Th e sou l of th e Jewish n at ion

in modern t imes can on l y be appreciated by fami l iari ty wi th i ts presen t-dayl i terature wh ich i s , un fortunate l y , for th e most par t a sealed book to th e wholeworld . An d how strange and sad it i s that wh i le man y peop le wi l l u t ter j udg

men t , for th e most par t un favourable , abou t th e J ew,very few in deed wi l l

t rouble t o learn th e Hebrew language so as n o t on l y to understand th e J ew o f

bygone ages , and to d iscover h is'

rela tio n sh ip to th e t heolog y o f th e New Testa

men t bu t al so in such a manner as to read also th e l i terature Of later , tirnes inwh ich i s reflected

7

Th e True S ou l o f th e J ew

who s t i l l l i ves and creates even to -day new though ts and n ew i deals . Thereare those who th in k t hat Hebrew l i terature ends wi th th e Bible or w i th th e

Talmud . Need I say t hat i t i s n o t so " Th e Jewish n at ion has con t in ued i ts

l i terary ac t iv i t y in al l ages and al l lands, even th e l an ds of ex i le . There i s n o

doubt that i t s force of l i fe was weakened and in terrupted durin g th e l on g course

of i ts wan der ings , bu t i t has con t in ual ly expressed i ts personal i ty in man y shapesand forms through th e Hebrew language . Th e Hebrew gen i us has also bu i l t up

i ts l i terature in th e Aramaic,Greek , Arabic , Span i sh ,

I tal ian,Fren ch , German .

Russian , Engl i sh and o ther l an guages , but th e t rue Hebrew sou l h as on l y spokenin i t s o wn l an guage . At n o t ime was there a per iod when th e n at ion d id n o t

express i ts spir i t in some work of l i terary meri t , and th e bes t work s wri t ten by

Jews in o ther l an guages in wh ich th e J ew has d i scovered h i s sp ir i t h ave almost

immed iate l y been t ran s lated in to th e Hebrew language . W e can on l y say thatth e h i story of th e Hebrew n at i on can be foun d in h er l i terature , bu t th i s l i terature

was always , wi th very few except ion s , rel i g ious and myst ical . Th e c ircumstances

of th e J ew s ince h e left h i s coun t ry have n o t al lowed h im to l ive what may be

termed h i s true l i fe . Th e presen t was so terr ible that h e always tried to remove

i ts h orrors by look in g to th e pas t o r th e f u ture for con solat ion . Th e cu l tural

th reads woven from a free , n atural l i fe were al toge ther snapped . In th e Bibleth e Jew foun d h i s n at i ve l and , h i s ideal l i fe , and h i s who le world . Robbed of al learth l y de l i gh t s , th e Jew sough t h i s whole expression in l i terature . Every word ,

every let ter , and even th e poin t s in th e Bible assumed a sacred form in h i s eyes .He seemed to l ive n o l on ger o n th i s world , bu t to h ave reached th e portal s o f

heaven , and be in terpreted al l knowledge , scien t ific , pol i t ical an d social , in term s

of th e Bible , so that Hebrew l i terature became a mere compend ium of com

men taries o n th e Holy Book . To take o ne in stan ce of what I mean "i f in those

t imes an yone des ired to say that even th e every "day tal k o f th e wise was wor th y

o f at ten t ion ,h e wou ld n o t support h i s s tatemen t by any rat ion al argumen t . bu t

pu t t in g th e statemen t in th e form of a questio n wou ld ask ,“How do we k n ow

that th e everyday con versat i on o f a wi se man i s worth y of at ten t ion th e an swer

be ing that i t i s stated in Psalm i verse 3 , th at h e who doth med i t ate day an d

n i gh t in th e law of th e Lord shal l be l ike a tree plan ted by th e r i vers of water ,tha t bringe th for th h i s fru i t in h i s season "h i s leaf al so shal l n o t wi ther , and

whatsoever h e doe th shal l prosper . From th i s we learn that th e merest word ,

even l i ke th e leaf of th i s tree , shal l n ever be los t to th e world . Again , i f a cer tain

myst ic wished t o con vey th e i dea that God can on l y be seen th rough n ature , h e

took Psalm lxxxiv . ,verse 1 2, wh ich states ,

“Th e Lord God i s a sun and a

sh ie ld , and con t in ued “ J us t as o ne cann ot v iew th e sun wi thou t some pro

tectio n ,so o ne cannot see God except th rough E loh im , wh ich , by an

ingen i ous mathemat ical process , i s proved to mean n ature . Obv ious l y a

l i terature produced in such c ircumstan ces w i l l n o t be perfec t an d free from

defec ts . There i s much dross , desp i te th e n umerous lo fty ideals expressedtherein , and despi te much subt le though t there i s a good deal of c loud iness and

Obscuri ty . I t s g reatest defect was that i t en closed i tsel f in a n arrow nat ion al and

re l i g ious frame . Th e extern al cond i t i on s Oppressed and choked h im over much ,so that th e Jew,

Th e o n ly True Ch r is tia n

among th e Chri s t ian n at ion s , pat ien t and forg ivin g to h is worst enemies , cou ld

no t- nevertheless su ppress h i s h uman in st incts , and l ooked upon th e ex ternal i f

8

no t wi th hate ,at least w i th d i sdain and in d i fferen ce . Th e Jew forgo t that in

add i t ion to be in g a J ew h e was al so a man , and th e man in h im was ren dered

subord in ate to th e Jew . Thi s world was ign ored , and in h i s wri t in gs , apar t from

a. few e leg ies an d prayers here and t here , t here i s a lmos t n o men t ion of th e

su fferings h e has undergon e . Th e sou l , whose whole Object was th e study of th e

l aw,became everyth in g , th e body o f n o accoun t "i t was someth in g o f wh ich ,

i f n o t th e death ,at least th e m o rtifica tio n became an importan t prin cip le . W e

do,indeed , hear n o w an d then voi ces , i f fa in t l y , even in t h i s l i terature o n th e

s ide of l i fe an d in opposi t i on to th ose wh o subject th e Jew , o n th e o n e hand ,

to dead let ters and aimless scholas t i ci sm , and o n th e o ther han d , t o doctr ines

clouded wi th mystery and phan tasy . But these protest s , l i ke al l pro tes t s again s t

con st i tu ted au thori t y , were soon suppressed o r i gn ored , and th e Rabbis and

myst ics combin ed ,despi te the i r o wn d i fferen ces , to s ilen ce any voice rai sed

again st the i r defects . But l i fe can n o t be wh ol l y suppressed , and th e seed sown

by th ose who fough t f o r l ibert y o f express ion took root , and from th e e i gh teen th

cen tury , in wh ich Europe assumed a n ew form , Hebrew l i terature also began t o

assume a n ew di rect i on wi th n ew aspi rat i on s . I t se t o ut at fi rs t w i th a s tern

s trugg le again s t th e pet rified l i fe o f th e Hebrew n at i on , again s t accepted v iews

an d though ts wh ich,h ad n o basi s in l i fe . I t at tempted to in tro duce th e s treams

Of a general cu l ture in to th e ten t s o f I srae l and to brin g back th e world in to th e

l i fe o f th e Jew. But al though i t at tacked severe l y th e exaggerated spi ri tual i sm o f

o ur people , i t cou ld n o t f ree i tse l f from i t , even in th e new Human i sm wh ich i t

set in being , and Of wh ich i t was at on ce th e cause an d th e expression .

Even th e human i s t ic movemen t floated in th e air—an e thereal daugh ter

o f heaven . With th e adven t o f th e French Revolu t ion and i ts gospe l

of human r igh t s , th e Opposi t ion t o th e J ew was though t to con si stmere l y in an Oppos i t i on to h i s re l ig ion "hen ce rel i g ious reforms were

in st i tu ted throughou t th e Old rel i g ion in spi te of th e good i t con tained to

make way for th e new in sp i te o f th e man y evi l s i t con tain ed , see in g in th is

chan ge a mean s to th e at tainmen t o f c ivi l ri gh ts . Th e majori ty o f th e earl ier

works of th e n ew l i tera ture po ssess some value from th e poin t of v iew of h is tory ,and of th e deve l opmen t o f th e Hebrew language , bu t they have very l i t t le l i terary

mer i t . I t s l yrical poe try i s engaged w i th tr iv ial mat ters"e tern al ques t ion sand ind iv idual problems d o n o t fal l w i th in i t s purv iew . I t i s o ccupied main l y

w i th rat ional i sm wi th a des ire to subdue th e emot ion s by in te l lec t and to spread

en l i gh tenmen t among th e masses . Neverthe less , there are some wri ters , i f on l y

a few , who have lef t beh ind them val uable l i terary produc t ion s , promin en t among

whom are K rochmal , Luzzatto , Mapou an d Gordon . Nachman K ro chmal (bo rnGal ic ia 1 785- 1 8 40) made th e firs t at tempt in h i s book Th e Guide o f th e Perplexed

in Modern Times ,”to brin g J udai sm in to l ine wi th general cu l tu re , j u s t as

Maimon i des at tempted to do in the Spani sh epoch . His theory , in sh ort , i s

that every n at ion prod uces in th e course o f t ime a certain sp ir i tual store wh ich

was cal led th e Spiri t o f the Nat ion ,

” wh ich influen ces al l th e phases of i t s l i fe .

No n at ion i s en t i re l y l os t o r des troyed unl ess th i s spi r i t fai l s i t . Thi s n at ion al

spiri t i s what i s cal led in th e Bible th e God of th e Nat ion ,

”o r in th e Talmud th e

“Guard ian Ange l o f th e Nat ion .

”Th e Bible and Talmud , in o ther words ,

person ified th e nat ion 's spi r i t . Th e phrase“A Na t ion a n d i ts Go d

i s a common Bibl ical expression . Every n at ion h as three stages l ike any an imateobject—orig in , growth , and decay . With our n at ion , to o ,

x th ese th ree stages

l

have , occurred more than on ce . In Baby lon , fo r in stance ,when th e n at ion co m

plained to E zek ie l . Our bones are dry , and our hope i s l os t ,”and asked can

t hese dry bones l i ve th e prophe t an swered “ I shal l p lace my spir i t amon g

you , and ye shal l l i ve , and I shal l pu t you o n your l an d ” "that i s t o say , th e

ex i le o f that t ime had th e sp i ri t ual power t o real i se i t s great w i l l t o be an at ion on ce m o re . To t hose who w ished to ass imi late among th e o ther

n ation s , th e prophe t an swered and said “That wh ich en ters in your m in ds

i t w i l l n o t come to pass that ye say we sh al l be l ike al l th e other n a t ion s .

”

In s’

tead of th e d ivineworsh ip and p o l itical l aw wh ich un i ted th e people when

they dwe l t o n the i r land , t here was created in Baby lon a new and powerfu l

spi r i tual i ty , so th at they gathered toge ther and tran sm i t ted al l that was lef t

over to them of the i r sacred wri t ings, an d spread them amon g the i r peop le .

Th e ret urn to Pales t in e commen ced w i th very smal l beg inn in gs , but in a shor t

t ime t here arose in Jerusalem a n ever- fa i l in g sprin g o f al l that was hol y and

spi r i t ual . That i s what may be termed a con cen t rat ion o f th e sp iri t , th e p re

vai l in g of some sp iri t ual in terest in th e depth s o f a nat ion ’ s sou l over al l i ts'

o th er

in teres ts , un t i l th e n at ion becomes subjected to th i s spir i t ual e lemen t . Al l

th e o t her n at ion s ex is ted by vi r tue o f the i r part icu l ar spi ri t ual powers . One

n at ion took m igh t for i ts God , an other beau ty , and so forth . Now these n at ion s d id

n o t perce ive tha t th e t ru th and exi sten ce o f t he i r spi ri tual e lemen t d id n o t depen d

o n th e quest ion s of t ime and place . From th is poin t Of v iew i t was l iab le to

destruct ion and decay , be in g l im i ted and speci a l t o th e in div idual n at ion .

Therefore , when th e n at ion was des troyed , there was des troyed wi th i t

i t s c ul ture wh ich depen ded en t i re l y o n temporal and spat ial con s idera t ion s .

Not so was th e port io n of Jacob . I srae l’ s sp ir i tual e lemen t o n th e

o ther hand was more un i versal i st ic , embracin g al l sp ir i tual essen ces and

creat ing al l th in gs"therefore i ts exi sten ce does n o t depen d o n t ime an d place .

Th e spi ri tual essen ce wh ich ru les over al l th e n ation s i s i t s God . and t h i s i s th e

essen ce of th e ex isten ce of th e Hebrew n at ion and i ts e ternal funct ion . Samue l

Dav id Luzzatto (I ta ly , 1 8 00 who was a poet and a deep studen t , of

Hebrew grammar and prosody , conce ived J udaism as an emot ion and in t ro

duced re l ig ious roman t ic ism in to our l i terature . He was th e spi ri t ual he ir o f

Jehudah Halevi and part l y a d i scip le of Rousseau . He opposed th e Jewish

scholars who w ished to recon ci le re l ig ion an d scien ce and to exam ine th e fo unda

t i on s of e tern al tru th con tained in th e l aw of Moses . Foreshadowing th e modern

pragmat ic theory , h e he l d that re l ig ion i s to be accepted whether t rue or n o t , pro

v ided tha t i t i s usefu l , an d that i t i s unnecessary that al l th e words of th e Mosaic l aw

shal l be t rue , for the i r purpose i s on l y th e at tainmen t Of good conduct and moral

l i fe . I t may be asked d id n o t th e Greeks al so have a system o f moral i t y"Aris to t le also wrote o n e th ics " What then i s th e di fference between Hebrewand Greek moral i ty"Luzzatto an swers t hat th e teach ing o f Abraham i s n o t th e

golden mean wh ich Ari sto t le taugh t . "Aris tot le ’ s system i s an in te l lec tual an d

log ical method wi th th e object o f improvin g our personal we l fare and obtain in g

recogn i t ion from o ur fel l ow men "Abraham '

s teach in g i s o ne o f love an d mercy ,and i t s object i s th e we l fare o f o thers and recogn i t ion from God . J udaism

and Hel len i sm are n o t merel y two in tel lectual sys tems bu t

Two Grea t Fo rces

operat ing at once in man’

s sou l . Greek cu l tu re which i s ph i losophy , science o

fine arts , and in tel lectual moral i ty , can progress and expand , for we c an make

d iscover ies every day, but J udai sm , wh ich i s th e l ove of th e good and th e uprigh t .

10

stands where i t i s—th e s tud ies ari sing from i t can never al ter . Man’

s heart is

l iable to corrupt ion bu t n o t to improvemen t , for th e n ature o f man i s good ,whereas h e acqu i res evi l in th e con duct O f l i fe . J udai sm can throw o ff man y

con cep ti on s wh ich i t h as rece i ved and re tu rn t o i t s orig inal prin ci ples , but i t

can no t progress in i t s u l t imate essen ce . Human n atu re i s Opposed to th e

domin at ion of th e in te l lec t an d pre fers th e l ove o f th e good and uprigh t , wh ich i s

th e spi ri t o f J udaism . Shou ld , however , Greek scien ce fal l and be conquered

by J udai sm , then al so there wi l l ar ise an in tern al confl i c t in th e sou l of mank in d ,for th e deve l opmen t o f th e in te l lect an d th e l ove o f beau ty are al so par t of

i t s l i fe . C ivi l i sat ion , therefore , n ever progresses bu t on l y ch anges from t ime to

t ime . At t imes th e ten den cy to m o ra l itv’

and fai t h prevai l s , at o thers th e tendency

towards art and beau ty . Luzzatto was n o t an enemy to Greek cu l t ure . He

admi t s i t s v ir tues, and l oved ar t and beau ty an d n atural sc ien ce ,

wh ich are th e

features o f Greek cu l ture , again s t wh ich are t o be foun d amon g Jews a lack o f

order and c lassificat ion and a h abi t t o ascri be al l t h in gs to fi rs t causes . S ti l l , h e

desi res Jewish people t o prefer th e d ivine par t wh ich i s th e spi r i t o f J udaism ,

t o th e human part wh ich has en tered i t from wi thou t . After al l , th e t rue basi s

of moral i ty i s n o t th e i deal o f th e Greek - person al en j oymen t—bu t that o f th eJ ew—th e we l fare o f others . Accord in g to h im , most o f th e princip les propounded

by th e Greek ph i losophers are at bo t tom false o r are usefu l on l y t o ph i losophers ,but n o t t o th e mass o f th e people . an d th at i s wh y th e Chri st ian rel i g i on—th edaugh ter o f th e Jewish re l ig i on—prevai led over Greek ph i l osoph y . These t wo

wri ters , K rochmal and Luzza tto , in fused new l i fe in t o th e art ificial rhetor ical

s ty le t hen in vogue in th e Hebrew l i terature . Importan t wri ters and poe t s as

Rapaport , Erter , Lef ter i s , an d a hos t o f o thers , were in strumen tal in spreadin g

Hebrew l i terature amon g Jews of al l l ands , par t icu lar ly in Russia , th e home o f th e

greater port ion o f th e Jewish n at ion . There Hebrew l i terature foun d more o r less

th e env ironmen t necessary for i t s progress , and there i t foun d th e most advan ced

spir i tual forces wh ich f o r man y generat i on s i t had lacked . Hebrew l i terature

was en riched in th e course o f t ime by man y product ion s , particularly in th e sphere

o f poet ry , creat ion s wh ich , indeed , may fi nd a worth y p lace amon g th e c lass ical

product i on s o f Europe . On e o f th e ear l y founders o f Hebrew l i terature ,in

wh ich th e Jewish n at ion as we l l as th e whole wor ld may take pride , was Abraham

Mapou (Russi a 1 808 th e creator o f th e Hebrew.

n o ve l . With h im com

men ces th e real birth o f th e modern Hebrew l i terature . Before Mapou came

Hebrew l i terature was th e play th ing o f scho lar s and th in kers an d pedan t s , whose

so le aim was rel i g ious ph i losoph is in g and th e recon ci l in g o f sc ien ce and re l i g i on

and poems devoid of though t and imag in at ion . I saac Bar Levin son , Adam

Haco h en Lebh en sen , Mordecai Aaron G in sburg , Calman Shu lman , were n o t

superi or in profund i ty o f though t , desp i te th e great part they p layed in th e

deve lopmen t o f our l i terature , to th e pioneers o f Hebrew l i teratu re in o ther

coun tr ies . Or ig in al i ty was n o t a common characteri st i c of the i r work . They

have bequeathed works bu t n o t c rea t i on s . Michah Joseph Levin son , who

exh ibi ted

Th e P oetic Ta len t

in th e h ighes t degree , un for tun ate l y d ied in earl y you th . Hebrew l i terature

lacked a department o f l i gh t roman t i c read ing "th e n ove l , th e great un i versal

provider wh ich t ran splan t s man in to new worlds an d places in to h im new

t hough t s an d new in spi rat ion s , was unknown . Jewish l i fe was too drab and bleak .

Eugene Sue'

s Mysteries of Pari s ,” t ran s lated by Shulman , th e first novel acces

f l

s ible to th e Hebrew reader , was , in sp i te o f i t s great i nfluen ce , s trange to th e

Hebrew min d . Mapou was n o t on l y th e fi rs t man to supply th is wan t , bu t w i th

h is n ove l ,“Th e Love o f Z ion

,

”h e accompl ished , i f uncon sciousl y , a n ew n at iona l

ach ievemen t . Th is book i s a h i s torical n ovel foun ded o n chapters o f I srae l i t i sh l i fe

in th e t imes o f I saiah . Th e plo t i s modern , co p ied in me thod from Fren ch n ovel s ,wh ich were n o t o f th e bes t i t con tain s n o h igh ideal s n o r spec ia l problems , bu t

i t i s redolen t o f earl y Hebrew l i fe , and i t s very fau l ts and deficiencies from th e

poin t o f tech n ique are in fact i t s qual i t ies . Th e exaggerated psycholog ica l

invest igat ion s in du lged in by modern n ovel i s t s rob the i r creat ion s o f any h i storical

accu racy . Al l Mapou's characters , from th e prin ce to th e beggar-maid , speak th e

l an guage o f the i r s tat ion . Th e love h e portrays i s Israel i t i sh an d heal th y , pure

and hol y , w i th ou t any o f th e coarse sen sual i t y wh ich we fi nd so often in th e

h i s torical n ove l s -o f other l i teratures"Th e descri pt ion of th e capi tal , Jerusalem ,

i s b l urred and weak"after al l , i mag in at ion must h ave a basis f o r i t s creat ion s ,and Mapou lacked such a foun dat ion , f o r h e had n o fi rst-han d kn owledge of c i ty

l i fe . On th e o ther h an d h i s descri pt ion s o f Hebrew rust ic l i fe are real works

of gen i us . Th e n ove l , Th e Gu i l t o f Samaria ,” wh ich i s twice th e s i ze of

Th e Love o f Z ion ,

” i s o f less l i terary value , bu t i t al so con ta in s man y beau t i

fu l and viv id scen es . Mapou ’ s great fau l t i s that th ough h e kn ows th e

depth s o f th e Jews o f th e sou thern k in gdom , h e i s unable , Rabbin ical s tuden t

th at h e was , t o appreciate th e sp i ri t of th e Jews o f th e Northern K in gdom .

Th e Jews o f J udah are th e deposi tory of al l t hat i s good and righ teous , an d

th e Jews of Ephraim al l that i s fal se and v i le . After al l th e fal se prophe t o f

Israe l was n o t always a dece i ver an d en emy to h i s people , bu t Mapou was

unable to appreci ate th e d iv in e wh ich sh ines for th even from sin . and h e cou ld

n o t di scern th e un i t y ex ist in g be tween th e ch i ldren of Ephraim and J udah in the i r

very d i ff erences . Th e resu l t was that h e div ided th e Hebrew n at ion in to two .

In h is th ird book , Th e Hypocri te ,

”a n ove l wri t ten in five parts , h e at tempted

to describe th e l i fe of h i s fe l low Jews in Russia , wi thou t success , for h i s though t s

were more absorbed in th e earl y l i fe of th e Hebrew n at ion th an that o f h i s

o wn t ime . I t may be said tha t though h e was n o t th e prophet of h is t imes , h ewas , n ever the less , th e greatest poe t an d s inger o f th e Hebrew lan guage an d th e

Jewish l and . Be fore Mapou wrote “Th e Love o f Z ion ”

and“Th e Gu i l t o f

Samaria ,

” Palest ine , in th e min d of th e Jewish people , was n o t a spo t o n th e

earth bu t a place in heaven , and n o t on l y i ts prophe t s bu t even i t s k in gs and

warriors seemed to be e thereal be ings whose so le objec t was to en j oy th e g lory

of God . Th e very batt les o f Jewish h i story were , in the i r th ough ts , fough t by

angel s . He was th e fi rs t to pu t an en d to th i s

Mys tic Il lus ion

and gave them back th e l an d in a con crete form . He descr ibed for them i ts

in habi tan t s in th e form of l i v in g m en , made up o f sou l s an d bod ies . His works

aroused a feel ing of beau ty in th e Jew and awakened in h im a taste for Hebrew

poet ry and a des ire for a n atural an d heal th y Hebrew l i fe . His he roes were

popular charac ters amon g th e Jews , an ach ievemen t wh ich greater wri ters than h e

were unable to accompl ish . Th e Love o f Z ion ,

”an aston i sh in g vi si on cal l ing

forth o ur admirat ion at i ts pic tures and prophe t ic sty le ,i s j ust l y accoun ted to -day

as th e firs t c lassic n ove l wh ich th e Jewish n at ion created in th e Diaspora . Amon g

th e prose wri ters who appeared after h im ,Smolen sky (Russia 1 8 42- 1 8 85) i s co n

s idered th e best . He was a modern wri ter . and in spi te of sporad ic t races o f a

fine roman t ici sm , i s a real i s t absorbed in th e needs of h i s t ime in descr ibing every

phase of Jewish l i fe in Russi a and in ne i ghbourin g coun tr ies . In h i s work en t i t ledTh e Wanderer Astray o n th e Path o f Li fe ,

”th e hero of wh ich—Joseph—i s a

sor t o f David Copperfie l d , h e passes before u s a pan orama o f i so l ated ,real is t i c

pic tures . A h igh l y coloured gal lery o f scen es from Ghe t to l i fe , a fai th fu l p o r

tra iture of everyday in ciden t s are foun d therein . In th e same way is ac tual l i fe

depicted in th e res t o f h i s lon ger and shorter s tories . Never the less , h e i s more

a n i deal i s t ic wri ter , walk in g ahead o f h i s gen erat ion , see in g what i s in th e d is tan ce ,

rather than what i s n ear h im . Hi s power of p reach in g i s greater th an th at of

descr ipt ion . His heroes con t in ual l y batt le for causes sacred to h im rather th an

f o r causes sacred to them , bu t h i s stories possess th is super i ori ty over those o f

Mapou,in th e fac t that th e l at ter un ders tood th e essen t ial n ature of th e Jewish

n at ion in th e abso l ute un i t y of th e n at ion , th e lan guage , and th e l and , on l y as a

poet , whereas Smolen sky grasped i t by h is person al n at ion al con sciousn ess . I t

was th is n at i on al con sci ousness wh ich to l d h im th at th e Jews were n o t a re l i g ious

brotherhood , bu t a n at ion , an d that th e decl ine o f th e n ati on was n o t th e fau l t of

th e rel i g ion , bu t th e fau l t o f th e Go lus . He hel d that th e dus t and th e dross

wh ich c l ung to th e rel ig ion were n o t th e fau l t of th e n at ion ,bu t th e resu l t of th e

C o in s , and that th e redemption of them both coul d n o t ari se by any so -cal led

eman cipat i on or re l i g ious reform s , bu t by th e reform of Jewish l i fe i tsel f , wh ich

wou ld n ecess i tate a re turn to th e l an d of our Fathers . He i s , perhaps , th e on l y

wri ter who knew how to harmon i se in h i s tales th e m an and th e J ew , wh i le o ther

wri ters , in c l ud in g even th ose of o ur o wn t ime , l imi t t hemse l ves for th e most part ,e i ther t o th e Jew or to th e man , o r deal wi th th e con fl ic t s between t hem wi thou t

th e power to ach ieve a recon ci l i at ion . His j ourn a l “Th e Dawn ,

”in wh ich h e

sank al l h is earn in gs from o ther act i vi t ies and wh ich brough t o n h is death at th e

earl y age o f 43 , was in strumen ta l in creat in g a whole generat ion o f impor tan t

wri ters , such as J udah Le ib Lev ine , who ,

combined J udaism wi th Social i sm , and

Do l itzky, th e poe t o f n at ion a l Roman t ic i sm . Hi s in fluen ce o n Hebrew l i terature

i s fel t even to -day , and wi th h im Hebrew l i terature , from being th e represen tat i ve

of th e few, became represen tat ive of th e whole Jewish n ati on . Gordon (Russi a.

1 8 32 th e greatest poet of h i s ag e , was a regu lar con t r ibu tor to Sm o len sky’

s

paper , Th e Dawn ,

” th ough h e was a represen tat ive of th e old schoo l of h uman

i sm . He wrote a few poems such as David and Michae l ,” O sua , daugh ter o f

P o tip h arao h ,

"Between th e Jaws o f th e Lion ,

”and

“In th e Depth s of th e Sea ,

”

in wh ich h e at tain ed t rue poe t i c he igh t . His s ty le i s always rich , bu t h i s se t t in g

i s gen eral l y n arrow . Educated for th e most part in Rabbin i c l i terature , o f wh ich

in tel lect i s

Th e Do m i n a tin g In fluen ce,

h e was total l y stran ge t o th e myst ic l i terature . From European l i terature h e

gained h i s general cu l ture an d h is powers o f anal ys i s , bu t h e cou ld n o t appreciate

th e beau t ies of n ature and th e depth s o f man ’ s emot ion s . He was occupied most l y

in finding fau l t w i th Rabbin i c l i terature , wh ich h e bel ieved to have been l argel y

respon sible f o r th e down fa l l of th e Jewish n at ion . He cou ld n o t real i se th e

beau ty wh ich lay in th e in ner depth s o f Rabbin i c l i terature and th e doctrin es

o f l i fe con tained in th e theme of death . In h i s poe t ry we fee l th e beau ty of th e

Hebrew language , bu t n o t th e greatness an d he i gh t of Hebrew th ough t . A

won derfu l book , in sty le and con ten t , eman at ing from that per iod i s th e book

cal led “Th e S in s of Youth ,

" wh ich describes th e l i fe Of th e au thor , Moses

Le ib Lil l ienb lo om (Russia a mi xture of Rousseau and Vol taire . Th is

work i s a book of con fess ion s paral lel in Hebrew l i terat ure wi th th e co n

fession s o f Rousseau in Fren ch l i terature . In i t we hear th e myst ic weeping s

of th e re l ig ious sou l—a sou l yearn in g for God , and despi te th e scep t ic i sm i t

con tain s we find there in wandering and ques t ion in g fai th . In i t we fi nd describedth e stren uous con fl ic t bet ween th e m an and th e Jew, wh ich th e au thor i s un able

to recon ci le . Th e secon d par t appeared after th e l apse o f a few years. As a

resu l t o f th e pogroms wh ich befe l l o ur peop le in Russia , th e n at ion al i dea l

prevai led over th e general h uman i tar i an i deal . Now th e patri o t prevai led overth e au thor wh o regards l i terature on l y as a han dmaiden to l i fe , an d th rough th i sh is l i terary talen t was weakened . L il l ienb l o o m was in h i s o wn person th e hero

of th e Ghet to drama . I t i s a thousan d pi t ies that n o wri ter o f gen i u s has arisen

to make use o f h i s wonderfu l personal i ty as th e hero of a l i terary creat ion . One

wri ter , in deed , Asher Reuben Braudes made L ill ienb lo o m th e cen t ral figure o f

h i s n ovel ,“ Re l i g ion and Life ,

”but L il l ien blo o m

’

s person al i ty was to o great

and e l usi ve f o r th e in ferior talen t s of th i s au thor . I f Mapou was th e Hebrew

prophe t , Smolen sky , th e polemical au thor , and L il l ienb lo o m , th e l i terary

ag i tator , Salom Jacob Abrah am o v itch , be t ter known an Mendele M o ch er Seph o rim ,

a man of e igh ty who i s s t i l l w i th u s , i s th e l i terary art i s t o f t h is period . He

por trays th e l i gh t that i s t o be found in darkness , th e pure in th e sord id , th e sun

in th e c loud , th e beau t i fu l in th e ug l y , wi th an art i s t ic power n o t easi l y equal led .

He s t i l l i s w i th us , a man o f un ceas in g ac t ivi ty . His firs t real i s t ic story cal led

Fathers an d Ch i ldren ,

” wri tten under th e influen ce of Turgen ief , appeared hal f

a cen tu ry ago , and , as i t n ame sign ifies , i t describes th e confl ic t between th e

be l ieving fathers and th e ch i ld ren who have lef t th e path . I t s l i terary val ue was

in fin i tesimal , bu t in th e course o f t ime h e has en riched Hebrew l i terature wi th

wonderfu l c lassi c product ion s wh ich cou ld adorn th e r iches t l i terature in th e

world . He i s n o im i tator , but i s ori g in al from beg in n in g to end—bo th in s ty leand in h i s ar t o f s tory-te l l ing . Th e mere s tory i s n o t th e ch ief poin t w i th h im ,

bu t th e descrip t ion of th e types h e created wh ich reflec t th e general character of

th e n at ion . He has wri t ten man y books , and every book i s a ver i table prose

p oem . He has n o con cern wi th ideal s o r causes , and n o cen tral ideal i s revealed

in h i s s tor ies , bu t h e passes before us

Th e wh o le l if e of th e Go lus

o f th e preced i ng generat ion in al l i t s depth of sorrow and j oy . In o ne o f h i s ta le s

th e Hebrew n at ion i s portrayed under th e form of an i l l - treated n ag , demand in g a

righ t to l i ve equal l y w i th o ther an imal s . Th i s tale i s th e bi t teres t cry of agon y

heard sin ce th e wri t in g o f Lamen tat ion s . His work Ben j amin th e Third ,

” des

cribin g th e Hebrew Do n Qu i xote , i s on l y an i m i tat io n in i t s outer dress"in i t sinner spi ri t there i s n o t a vest ige O f im i tat ion . I t i s orig inal in i t s speech an d in

i ts talk , in i t s dreams and aspirat ion s , in i t s works and i ts deeds . Such i s Sandol,

h i s Sanch Opan za , and such i s th e Prin cess n o t an ord in ary maiden but symbol i c

of th e Jewish n at ion . Men de le Mocher S ep h o rim i s kn own in o ur l iterature under

th e n ame o f th e Gran d father . Than k God th e Grandfather need fee l n o shamefor h i s grandch i ld ren . Amon g them are wri ters who surpass the i r grandfather ,i f n o t in the i r art i s t ic ta len t s , at least in the i r creat ive powers . Bu t before speak

ing abou t these grandch i ldren th rough whom Hebrew l i terature has become Euro

pean in th e fu l l sen se o f th e word , I mus t men t i on t wo modern wri ters , who

though thei r act iv i t ies ex tend in to our o wn t imes , real ly bel ong to th e precedin g .

generat ion . They are David Fr ischman and Jehudah Lei b Perez , th rough whose

work our l i terature has become what i t i s . David Frischman i s th e creator ofth e Hebrew Feui l leton . He al so ho lds a place in our l i terature as a poet , prose

_ 14

wri ter , cri t ic and t ran slator . Amon g h i s n umerous t ran s lat ion s are Byron 's

Cain , George E l io t ’ s “Dan ie l Deron da ,”

and Niet zsche ’ s “Thus Spake Zara

th us tra .

” Th i s wri ter en tered th e fie l d o f Hebrew l i terature amid st th e flare of

t rumpe ts in a successfu l en deavour to destroy th e empty bombast , th e poe t i c

i nu t i l i t y , th e art ificial pathos wh ich then re i gned supreme . Before th e adven t of

Fri schman , Hebrew wri ters dressed the i r words in flowery rhe tor ical garb,mak in g

use o f bibl ical remin i scen ces and spo i l in g the i r th ough ts by th e artificia l ity o f

thei r language . He was th e firs t wri ter to demon s trate th at i t was possible t o

express , al so in Hebrew , any though t or idea pi t h i l y , and con cise l y , and that

l i terature i s a sp iri tual p ossession , un i versal or n ati onal , o f an in divi d ual i s t i c

importance"that i t was n o t a mere veh icle Of l i fe ,bu t l i fe i tse l f . His feu i l leton

i s an art i st ic creat ion , c lever talk.con tain in g rai l lery , sarcasti c qu ips and rebukes

in combinat ion , j udg in g al l th e facts o f l i fe wi th sou l and emot ion . In h i s poe t ry

and short s tories we fi nd portrayed th e poe t ry o f h uman l i fe and th e character of

th e fee l ing sou l , th e sun of sprin g , th e majes t y of n ature , th e g lory of l i fe and th e

t urbu lence o f th e sou l . He al so wro te man y legen dary tales wh ich are in them

se l ves a world o f poe try . He has a path al l to h imse l f . In o ne o f h i s poems h e

says ,“My path i s n arrow, though far- reach ing , and alone I t raverse i t . Alone

am I accompan ied by God , th e God who burn s in my hear t . Th i s i s , indeed , a

fai th fu l descript ion of Fri schman,for h e walk s so l i tary and alone o n h i s l i terary

path s . Izaac Le i b Perez (Russ ia , 1 851 who died on l y a few mon th s ago ,began h is act iv i t ies a few years before Frischman . He began as a real i s t and

ended up a symbol i st . H is s tories are very short , bu t they are n umerous and do

n o t serve any o n e purpose or any o ne i deal . What strikes h im for th e momen t

i s described and port rayed . With h im , as w i th Men dele , th e in d ividual i s th e

l im i t o f h is t reatmen t , th e n at ion.

i s reflected in th e ch arac ter of th e in div idual

bu t whereas Mende le deal s main l y w i th

Th e Ma ter ia l L i fe,

and touches th e l i fe of th e sp iri t on l y by th e way , Perez deal s prin ci pal l y w i th

th e spi ri tual and abstract l i fe of h i s heroes . Every t ype h e creates bears th e

s tamp o f’

Hebrew cu l ture . Wi th h i s deep percept ion h e en ters in to th e depth s of

th e h uman heart and finds a hear t and sou l even in th e outcasts and pariah s o f

h uman society . He i s par t icu l arl y great when h e t ran scends th e l im i ted l i fe of

ord inary exper ience . In h i s tales of Chassid ic l i fe h e sounds th e poet ic depth s

of J udai sm and rises there in t o th e he i gh t of a t rue poe t of gen i u s . He s ings of

love and l i fe , o f nature and beau ty , and in al l that lef t h i s pen there i s d i st in c t i ve

Hebrew orig in al i ty . Th e d ifference between Frischman and Perez i s great , despi te

t he i r l yr ical afiin ities . The i r common feature i s t hat t hey con s idered J udaism to

be an abstrac t idea , and in stead o f con templat in g th e Hebrew n at ion as se t t led in

th e l and o f i ts fathers , t hey w ished al l n at ion s t o l ive by vi rtue o f t hei r spi ri t

desirin g to reproduce th e world over , th e phenomenon o f th e Jewish n at ion ,

wh ich possesses i t s l and on l y in an idea . Never theless , the i r work was val uable ,

i f uncon sc iousl y , f o r a n at ional revival since they in t roduced the i r readers in to

th e s tores o f t rad i t ion , fai th , and fo l k l ore ,wh ich made a n appeal by the i r

g lamour and beau ty . Toge ther w i th Bra in in , th e great b iographer , Sokolow , th e

j ournal i st , poet a nd essayi s t , Dr . Beren feld , th e h is tori an and ph i losopher , and a

hos t o f o thers . t hey brough t ou t o ur l i terature from i ts n arrow and l imi ted sphere

and made i t comprehen s ive of al l th e phenomena o f l i fe , and th e departmen t s of

sc ience , an ach ievemen t wh ich we must acc laim to be wonderfu l and g loriou s .

Tod ay we possess novel i st s , au thors , cri t ics , journal i s ts , h i s tor ian s , and transla

https://www.forgottenbooks.com/join

- 1 6

o ur deeds , aspirat i ons , and movemen t s , so th e general wi l l i s that wh ich con st i tu tes

and perpet uates th e commun i t y . Th e wi l l o f th e ind iv idual i s th e ind ividual'

s

God, and th e wi l l Of th e n at ion i s th e n at ion al Go d . Th e in d iv id ual man i s

uncon sciousl y th e u l t imate goal an d end o f th e un iverse , and th e general w i l l to exis t

as a n ation i s th e mean s by wh ich th i s end i s real ised . Th e wi l l of the ind iv idual ,

th e wi l l of th e n at ion , and the wil l o f th e un i verse con st i t u te th e chain Of th e

evol u t ion o f h uman i t y , and to emphas ise any special l in k o f th i s chain , as Achad

Ha’

am des ires i s to weaken th e effec t o f wi l l in general . Fo r after al l th e ind iv idual

i s th e u l t imate un i t o f al l deve l opmen t,con tain in g in h imse l f bo th th e wi l l o f th e

un i verse and of th e n ation . Fo r“Achad Ha ’am th e posi t i ve comes firs t and th e

negat i ve comes as a con sequen ce ,for Berd itch evsky th e n egat ive precedes , and th e

posi t i ve ari ses when th e old has been foun d impract icable . Negation i s a great

princip le in l i fe , n o t so much n egation as doubt . Enqu iry i s th e orig in of creat ion ,

whereas certain t y i s a sign of fin al i ty o f though t . Achad Ha'

a"

m”wan t s J udaism

fi rst, an d asserts that th e Jews w i l l fo l l ow ,whereas t o Berd itch evsky th e Jews as

d i st inc t from opposed to J udaism are of th e firs t concern . He does n o t bel ieve in

an abstrac t J udaism wh ich orders i t s members to act and fee l in a prescribed

manner,bu t be l ieves in Jews mou ld ing thei r J udai sm at w i l l , for a t bot tom h e

does n o t be l ieve in J udai sm and n o n -J udaism , in un i versal i sm and part icu lar i sm ,

bu t in men and Jews who are men and Hebrews , a t th e same t ime l i v ing l i ves

o f beau ty , puri ty and ho l iness. In'

p h IIOSOp h y an d poet ry there i s n o creat ion ou t"

of n oth in g,t here is

'

o n ly t hat wh ich we see an d fee l t o be al ive and working , an d

since th e Hebrew gen i us i s ban i shed in ex i le we are l ack in g th i s necessary pract ical

e lemen t . W e l ack

A Lo ca l fo r o u r So ul ,

we lack th e fee l in g o f c l ose prox imi t y to th e earth . Israe l's redempt ion wi l l ,

h owever , n o t come th rough prophet s or d i plomat i sts , but th rough l i vin g act ive

men, work ing fo r themsel ves . W e must br in g th e ind ividual in to th e compass of

th e commun i t y , so that al l th e ind ividual does fo r h imse l f and for h i s household

shal l in ciden tal l y accrue for th e benefi t o f th e commun i t y . With reference to

re l ig ion h e exposes man y o f i t s sores and i l l s , but h e i s n o t opposed to re l i g i on

i t sel f . For h im n o t j ust ice bu t ho l iness i s th e aim Ye sh al l be holy , for I am

holy . Th i s i s h i s concept i on of comple te cu l tu re . Hol iness , wh ich h e i s carefu l

t o di st ingu i sh from ascet ici sm ,i s the o n l y complete cu l ture ,

because i t complete l y

t ran sforms th e whole Of man . Th e path leadin g to th i s goal i s th e way o f l i fe ,

fo r where there i s n o l i fe th e sou l h as n o rel at ion to any th in g at al l . Again h e

recogn i ses th e importan ce o f th e past , but desires that we sh ou ld n o t be s laves Of

th e past . Sin ce as l iv in g organ i sms there are aroused in us new wan t s , and we

seek new values . Th ese are some of th e v iews wh ich Dr . Berd itch evsky holds .

In h is o ther works con tain in g legen d and n ove l , we fi nd a mu l t i tude of great

though ts . Ori g in al beau ty an d hol iness eman ate from these . Heart and sou l

t h robs in every word h e wri tes . His creat i on s possess an e tern al l i terary value in

sp i te of the fact t hat h e stands o n th e h ighway wander ing and seek ing h is path .

I regre t that l ack o f t ime forbids me to refer to a n umber o f wri ters , bu t I must

men t ion , i f on l y by n ame , Dr . K lausner , a d i sci ple of Achad Ha'am ,

” who has

en riched our l i terature wi th man y art icles and books , amon g wh ich are Judaism

and Human i t y ,”and Jesus ,

”in wh ich h e explain s Chri st 's at t i t ude to J udai sm ,

and t ha t of th e Jews to h im"al so H i lel Ze i t l in , in some measure a d i sci ple o f

Berd itch evsky, in whom Jewish mys t ic i sm and Jewish ideal i sm , and th e Jewish

sou l yearn ing for God , find thei r greatest poet . I t w i l l be nowmy task to say a,

—1 7

few words o n neo -Hebrew poetry in which Hebrew l i terature has reached an

aston i sh ing and admirab le he igh t . Th e greatest of modern poet s from th e n at ional

po in t of v iew i s Bya l ik . Every l ine and every word throb wi th th e l i fe and sou l

o f th e Jewish n ation . How true an d how sou l - s ti rring are these few verses in

which h e describes th e n at ion al l i fe . In th e womb Go d hath made me wretched

and abject . He gave me a sta ff and t ol d me to go . G o search f o r th e righ ts

den ied thee in l i fe"buy air to breathe , steal l igh t to see . From door to door ,wi th wal le t in th y han d ,

go beg th y bread . An d I am long weary wi th strugg le

and wanderin g . O my Go d , wi l l there be an en d" I do n o t l ive n o r do I d ie .

”

Beau t i fu l an d superb i s th e poem , On th e th resh o ld o f th e House o f Learn ing,

to wh ich h e return s when h i s splen d id dreams Of th e ou tside world have been

shat tered and des troyed . Shal l I lamen t th e desolat ion in thee , o r that in me

or shal l I lamen t them both . I d id n o t gather h oney in my backsl id in gs , and th e

ev i l spiri t t urned me from thee . I have l ost al l fa ith'

in th e Lord , an d my world

i s sh at tered . Th e waters h ave reached to my sou l bu t i t has escaped drown in g .

Thou d idst n o t sen d me away empty handed from Thy peacefu l shades . Thy

ben ign an gel s accompan ied me o n my way . Alas , th e enemy has conquered an d

despoi led me . Bu t I rescued my God an d my God rescued me .

” His poem ,

Th e Talmud ical S tuden t ,” t ran sl ated by Miss Helena Fran k in t o Eng l i sh ,

describes th e type o f Rabbin ical s tuden t f o r whom th e s tudy o f th e Law i s th e

goal o f l i fe . Th e poem , Th e Scrol l o f Fire ,

”embracin g th e n ational and

Lo ng Drawn Ou t Tragedy

since th e destruct ion o f Jerusalem i s a poet ic v i sion o f wonderfu l in ten s i t y . His

poem , Songs o f Fury ,” wh ich h e wro te after th e massacre o f K ish ine ff

,i s a

ver i table jewe l o f Hebrew poetry . Do we n o t seem to hear an echo o f th e great

Hebrew prophet s in th e l ines , Fo r th e Lord cal led o ut Summer and Slaugh ter

t oge ther . Th e sun shone "n ature bloomed"th e murderer k i l led .

”In th i s poem

h e cal l s heaven to accoun t . In i t i s heard n o t merel y n otes o f lamen tat i on'

bu t th e cry of protes t o f a gaspin g n ati on again s t i t sel f and again st th e world .

Al though Byal ik i s prin cipal ly a n at ion al poe t whose poems are fu l l Of n ation al

and rel ig i ous roman t i ci sm , st i l l t hey are composed in a un i versal garb . He has

wri t ten a few poems o n n ature , bu t these few meri t a place in th e l i terature of th e

world , and are paral le led on l y in th e Scrip tures . He has wri tten a n umber Of fo lk

son g s wh ich are gems in form and con struct ion . Sau l Tch ern ech o wsky ,a poet

of l ove and nature , o f migh t and s tren gth , be lon gs to th e sch oo l of Berd i t ,ch evsky. He i s th e creator o f a n ew Hebrew poet ry , and wh i le Byal ik sin gs

of th e Hebrew past an d bewai l s th e wre tched presen t , Tch ernech o wsky s in gs

of th e n ew fu ture . He i s Hebrew an d Greek toge ther . His poem ,

“Towards

Apol lo ,” shows th e Greek spir i t w i th in h im .

“ I come to Thee , l on g-forgo t ten

God . God of th e past and by gon e ages . I come t o Thee , dost kn ow me , I am th e

J ew,Th ine ancien t Opponen t . Th e fai th o f my fathers from that of Th y votaries

was removed as heaven from earth . My n at ion aged and its God wi th i t . Th e

mut i lated emot ion s of th e prison -boun d in firm have r i sen t o l i fe . God 's l igh t

g ive me"g ive me God ’ s l igh t"l i fe , o h l i fe , every sin ew cal l s and I came to

Thee .

”Yes , th e struggle in h im between th e Greek and th e Jew i s great "and

bi t ter are h i s complain ts again st th e teachers who boun d th e hands and fee t

of th e n at ion . I t i s on l y th e Go lus , however , an d th e sord id in J udai sm"th ath e hates , wh i le h e l oves th e e tern al th at i s in i t . He be l ieves in th e f u ture o f

h i s n at ion ,which h e prophesies wi l l be bri l l i an t and g lorious . When ,

” as

h e says ,“Nat ion wi l l bless n at ion , my people wi l l again bloom forth and in

th e world there wi l l be l iberty"i t s pri son chain s wi l l be removed and face to facewi l l i t behold l igh t . I t w i l l l i ve and l ove , do and dare , l i ve o n i t s o wn l and ,

in t h i s world , n o t in th e fu ture or in heaven i t h as had too much o f th e l i fe of th e

spi ri t .”Tch ern ech o wsky hears th e vo ice o f God in th e wh ispering o f th e grass

an d th e twi t ter ing of th e bi rd s , in th e th undering o f th e heaven s an d th e

bi l l ows o f th e ocean , in th e storms o f Tamon and in th e pu l sin g o f th e blood .

A beau t i fu l tree , a beaut i fu l fie l d , in then"I behold God's form . On every h igh

moun tain He basks in l ove . Where t here i s fee l in g o f l i fe , where there i s flesh

and blood, in plan t and in stone i s He person ified . Al l th in gs are His k indred ,

h ind , t oad ,t ree

,an d even l igh tn in g an d th un der . He i s n o t th e G o d Of th e

spi ri t bu t th e Go d of th e heart , th i s i s H i s n ame an d th i s i s H i s memorial for

ever . Tch ernech o wsky'

s l ove poems are fu l l o f th e s treng th and joy of l i fe . He

describes nature wi th al l th e weal th Of co lour and h ue , f o r h e l i ves in th e

whole Of creat ion . In h i s h i storical poem ,

“Benedic t of Mayen ce ,

”in

wh ich h e describes a Jewish massacre o f th e Midd le Ages , are t o

be foun d pen -pictures , perh aps unparal leled in th e world 's l i teratu re . Th e

i dy l l s in wh ich h e pain t s th e ord inary l i fe of th e Jew con st i t u te a wonderfu l

Hebrew epic . He has al so tran sl ated th e poem “Hiawath a .

”Th is n at ional

poem , in wh ich Longfe l low reviews th e l i ves o f men and n at i on s, and in

wh ich th e sorrows of h uman i t y and i t s su ffer ing fi nd an an swerin g echo,l oses

n oth in g in h i s exce l len t t ran s lati on , wh ich in man y p laces i s superior to i t s tran s

lat ion in th e Russian l an guage . Th e bibl ical s ty le wh ich h e employs and n ew

term inology wh ich h e creates so become th e subjec t mat ter that we forget we

are read ing a mere t ran s lat ion . Jacob Cohen i s a poet who l i ves w i th n ature and

in i t h i s n at ional poems are few, and wh i le Tch ernech o wsky s ings of th e s trongand migh ty , Cohen s ings of

Th e Fra i l a n d E lega n t .

I part ic i pate in al l life abou t me , and al l creat ion l i ves and blooms in me .

Gen t l y do my emot ion s flow ,an d al l th e scenes of l i fe round abou t me ,

t hen do I

fee l a great l iv in g in t imacy o f sou l . I embrace exi sten ce in al l th e abundan ce o f

i t s m igh t .” Thi s i s th e cen t ral th ough t o f al l h i s poems . He d isclaims al l

th e hypocri sy o f human i t y , th e d i stress and a ffl i ct ion o f h i s people , an d h e fl ies

t o n ature . There h e walk s w i th th e s tars and th e flowers . He speaks to them

an d they an swer h im an d rece i ve h im glad l y . When I g o o ut to th e forest o rgo o ut t o th e

.

val ley ,h o w j oyous i s a l l an d yearn s f o r me . Trees an d leaves tel l

me the i r secret s and an ech o an swers from th e h idden g lades .

” There h e mee t s

e tern i t y and t owards i t h e pours o ut h i s sou l . I sin g of l i fe and I sing my son g

at n igh t . Whi le men l ie asleep an d hear n o t my song . . But th e stars hear andt hey understan d and so doth e tern i t y .

”Jacob Cohen has a fi ne ear and a

musical sen se . Th e musical i ty of h i s words de l igh t s both th e sou l and th e

heart . Th e youn g poet S h n a ier , Bya l ik cal l s th e Samson o f Hebrew poetry,

whose seven l ock s grew wi th in a n igh t and wh o may also be compared t o a torch

o f cedar wood burn ing wi th th e fi re o f creat iveness . For h im , as f o r Ber

d itch evsky,J udai sm is n o t d ist inc t from un i versal i sm . J udaism i s a form o f

h uman i ty and h uman i ty i s a certain port ion of J udai sm . He i s th e poe t of th esubl ime ,

of th e start l in g and in vigorat in g . A European an d a so n o f As ia , a

descendan t o f warri or and prophet , h i s s ty le i s l i ke th e fl in ty rock . Therei s too much coarseness and sen sual i ty in h im , and in man y of h i s

poems h e i s s imi lar to Charles Baude l ai re in Fren ch poe try . But h e expresses

th e coarses t passion s in such a beau t i fu l way that we forge th e vu lgari t y . He

con ver t s th e base to th e n oble . There i s n o o ther poe t who en ters so deepl y

i n to th e heart o f a th ing and who reveal s th e can t , fal se moral i ty and co n

ven tio n a l puri ty wh ich un der l ie th e pol ished veneer o f ci vi l i sat i on . He has g iven

us man y poems , but h e i s a l yric rather than an epic wri ter . Every o ne o f

h i s poems , such as In th e Hi l l s ,” “

An d there wi l l be in Later Days ,” “A

V i s ion o f Desolat ion , an d o thers , con tain a worl d o f though t . As for fl igh t s

o f imag inat i on , h e surpasses Tch ern ech o wsky or Byal ik . In o ne port ion o f h i s

p oem ,

“In th e H i l l s ,

” wh ich h e cal l s Melody , general h uman problems are

t ouched upon , in wh ich by h i s poe t ical and ph i losoph ic fl igh t s h e ri ses to a

greater leve l th an th at at tained by th e au thor o f Faust . He wrote i t

when h e was twen ty -fi ve . Even n o w h e i s n o t much above t h ir ty . His grea t

son gs ,“Th e Melod ies o f Israe l ,

”Th e Midd le Ages are Comin g ,

”September ,

”

a re fu l l o f beau ty an d poet i c h e igh t , and there i s n o doubt that in h im Hebrew

poe t ry , un less some mischance occurs , wi l l g ive to th e world th e poe t o f th e

t wen t iet h cen tury . When h e was ei gh teen years o f age h e wrote a poem in wh ich

these verses are found My daugh ter , th ou dost ask

Th e Sec ret o f Dea th .

\Vere i t n o t bet ter to ask th e secre t of l i fe"Thou lookest w i th awe upon th e

d ead , and I upon those who are born t o l i ve . Bo t h l i fe an d death are evi l spr i tes"both have agreed to play w i th u s dwarfs . I wi l l create an d thou shal t cu t o ff ,a nd there wi l l be a sport o f l i v in g and dead . A fi ne sport indeed when we

pigm ies dance th e dan ce o f terror . To l ive i s bad and bi t ter , bu t we do n o t

wish to d ie . \Ve kn ow n o t wh ich i s be t ter , and what th e use of e i ther . He ,

l i ke Tch ernech o wsky ,s tood u p again s t ru les an d l aws , again s t th e exaggerated

s pir i tual i ty Of th e Ghe t to . In h i s son g , Myse l f alone , we see h o w h e wen t o ut

in t o th e worl d to demand paymen t f o r th e ch i ldh ood o f wh ich h e h ad been

d epri ved . As a ch i ld of th e East whose ancestors h ave g iven to th e world gods ,saviours

, and prophet s even to th e savages , an d wh ich has scat tered i ts weal th

a nd l i fe ,leaving t o i t s ch i ld ren on l y ,

parchmen t and t at tered remnan t s o f i t s

tabe rnacle and i t s flag, h e st ood u p to take vengeance and to en j oy world l y

l i fe to a great degree . A t fi rs t b l in ded by th e world'

s bri l l i an t flash be co n

s idered h imse l f a free man and so h e cries , Ari se , bless th y lo t oh man wh o

hath n o l an d , o r aim , o r race . Who wi l l be s o free as th ou i f thou bu t

renounce th e burden o f mysteri ou s parchmen t .”See in g , however , that th e

beast in m an s t i l l dominates as h i thert o under th e mask o f hypocri sy , h e foun d

h imse l f al one,and th e J ew in h im began t o prevai l . In Me lod ies where in h e

pours o ut h i s hear t to an I tal ian organ -grinder , a daugh ter o f R ome , th e ci t y

wh ich destroyed h i s o wn coun t ry , h e te l l s h er o f th e vic tory h i s God has wo n "t hat there i s n o t a holy book where in i s n o t heard"th e ri pple of th e J ordan ,

.

th e rust le Of th e t rees of Leban on . There i s n oth ing in th e world where in there

i s n o t th e th robbin g o f th e prophe t s and the i r d reams o f l igh t"of th e

beau t i fu l harves t an d grief o f Ecclesiastes and th e chan t an d fragrance

o f th e Son g o f Song s . Bu t th e curse wh ich th e i dol s h ave u t tered

a gain s t J udai sm thei r destroyer , has poisoned th e hol y fee l in g and

brough t th e e terna l h ate again s t th e vic toriou s J ew . He demands h i s righ ts

f rom th e false n obi l i ty wh o h ave stolen h i s creden t ial s , and h e expresses th e wi l l

o f th e n ati on that ,“in th e moun tain s o f Besam im in J udah th e foun tain s o f l i fe ,

frozen by th e harsh col d o f th e North , wi l l become on ce more th e flowin g foun

t ain s of Sprin g , and that th e dream Of a n ew Messiah , blurred h i therto by th e

m i st s,wi l l become as clear as th e sk y and sin k in to th e heart o f th e n at ion .

”I

_ 20 _

con c l ude my lecture wi th Sch n a ier ,who commenced as th e Hebrew Charle s

Baude l ai re, th e decaden t poe t , an d wh o , l i ke th e J ew t hat h e i s

,r i ses from th e

base to th e n oble,from th e l owes t depth to th e greates t he i gh t , and d reams o f a

n ew Messiah , though in deed there are a n umber o f youn ger poe ts who can n o t

be t reated here , al th ough they show great power . I have n o t emph asised an ycen tral ch ord in my lecture , so th at yo u can j udge o f Modern Hebrew Li te rature

,

as a whole , from your Own in d iv idual s tan dpoin t . I th in k that what I have

said con tain s th e essen ce of th e l i terature o f th e e tern al Jew, o f tha t wan derin g

spectre ply in g h i s j ourn ey by day and n i gh t , an d you wi l l be able to see th at th i s

spect re i s n o t so terrible as h e i s pain ted , an d th at h e wan t s n e i ther blood n o r

mon ey as th e modern mobs imagin e , n o r even death , as th e au thors o f th e leg end ,

abou t th e wan derin g Jew fan cied . He wan t s on l y l i fe , life Of j us t ice an d a l i fe o f

t hat h o l iness wh ich ari ses from r e l at ion wi th l i fe even th e t heme o f death,so

prevalen t in th e l i terature o f th e ex i le ,con tain s w i th in i t se l f , i f examined ,

Deeper Fa i th i n L if e

an d a des ire for i t . Th e spect re n e i ther k i l led any gods , n o r even men , as

She l ley though t , for al l th e gods o f th e world are h i s . He k i l led , h e s lew

on l y i do ls , and aga in s t Pagan i sm whose whole objec t i s murder an d v io lence h e

wi l l s tr i ve , whatever th e con sequen ce ,so l on g as h i s sou l l i ves w i th in h im

,

Mae ter l in ck , in h i s book ,

“Th e Treasure of th e Humble ,

”

says “Whole genera t

t i on s pass by in wh ich in te l lec t and beau ty domin ate th e whole world when th e

sou l i t sel f i s n o t perce i ved . SO was i t in th e age o f th e Greek , so was i t in th e

t ime of th e Roman s th e sou l escaped them"so was i t in France in th e seven teen than d e igh teen th cen tur ies . They l acked th e i n n er l igh t wh ich afford s th e l i fe o f

e tern i ty in pl ace o f th e l i fe o f th e momen t . ” I am afraid that at th i s very momen

Europe , too , has los t h er sou l . Yo u Observe t hat Hebrew l i terature wh ich began

wi th th e Opposi t ion be tween th e in te l lect an d th e emot ion , be tween beau ty an d

goodn ess , i s a t presen t engaged in t he i r recon ci l i at ion an d th e e tern al J ew cal l s

to you , an d th rough yo u t o th e whole world , i f in t r u th al l th e i deal s wh ich have

been created , an d al l th e fi ne phrases wh ich have been u t tered o n th e subject o f

human i ty , are n o t empty express ion s o f n o substan ce . See to i t tha t when th e th ick

c louds whi ch n o w cover th e hori zon sh al l be d i spersed , and when th e l i gh t wh ich

brin gs l i fe to al l w i l l again sh in e forth, see to i t th at th is l ig h t be n o t made crimson

wi th th e blood of th e Jew ,as i t has been h i therto . Th e wanderin g Jew does n o t

wan t th e bread o f ch arity ,n o r th e crumbs o f benevolence . He i s n o t con ten t wi th

mere equal i t y of righ ts , bu t h e wan t s h i s lan d where h e an d yo u combined wi l l

be able t o res tore t o Europe that h i gh an d n oble sou l wh ich i t h as los t , th at sou l

in wh ich Heaven and Earth are both reflected .

AS5 DO NOT REMOVE

THlS BOOK

versity Research Library