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"Horizontal Snow" (on reserve in library) 1991; "Gimpel the Fool" (1416 or 1355) 1953; "Angel Levine" (1056 or 910) 1950.
In his journals, the Christian existentialist philosopher Soren Kierkegaard argues that religious belief is based on a "leap" which requires man to go beyond logic. He writes "faith [works] by virtue of the absurd, not by virtue of the human understanding" (116). Kierkegaard's insistence of faith as irrational -- beyond the ken of "human understanding" -- marks an essential dichotomy that has long been a part of the debate between science and religion. Faith insists there are acts and incidents that humans cannot, by their corporeal nature, understand; once you make the "leap of faith," logic and rational thought no longer rule.
This definition of faith is essential in understanding both religious philosophy and the stories in this assignment. The world presented in these stories is not only the natural, physical world: in each of the stories we, along with the characters, are offered glimpses of -- or even contact with -- the world of faith. This other, more spiritual world cannot be explained by rational means: it can only be explained by the supernatural. Thus in these stories we encounter a strange, visionary preacher, a holy fool, and an angel. The corollary to faith is, of course, skepticism, which is also displayed in these stories. It is this struggle between belief and doubt that forms the central conflict in these stories. Isaac Bashevis Singer identifies this conflict as "the essence of religion." He adds that "There is not such a thing as a fatalist religion. Be it Judaism or Christianity or Buddhism, they all teach you that we are always given a choice. Even when it seems to a human being that he has no choice, he still has some choice" (qtd. in Breger and Barnhart 40). This choice, of course, is faith; making a conscious decision to believe in the irrational.
But questions of faith and belief are not confined to spiritual matters. You can have faith in any number of things -- the goodness of man, your companion, your profession -- and this is one of the reasons that religion and its themes/connotations are often used by writers to convey a general, not necessarily spiritual, faith or belief. Because the tropes of religion, including redemption, baptism, resurrection, doubt, temptation, pilgrimage, stoicism, and persecution (to name a few . . . okay, to name several), have become recognizable conventions in most cultures, writers use these as a store of familiar metaphors and symbols that convey an established pattern of meaning. A kind of symbolic shorthand, they allow authors to invest a seemingly innocuous event or character, such as the seemingly aimless journey of a preacher, a gullible yet religious simpleton, and a doubting penitent, with a deeper meaning, beyond the confines and limits of the world of the story -- and even beyond the limits and confines of formal religion.
These more general meanings are often the most intriguing aspects of stories, like these three, which employ religious conventions. Interestingly, while often rooted in a particular religion -- "Gimpel" and "Angel Levine" in Judaism -- the tropes mentioned above manifest themselves in each of the stories in this assignment -- and in other stories we'll be reading this semester. As you read the stories, pay particular attention to these tropes and note the different ways they provide a subtext to the actions occurring in the story.
Biblical note for "The Angel Levine"
The Book of Job, from the Old Testament, relates the story of Job, a man rich in wealth, family and happiness who, through the machinations of God and Satan, is beset by calamity as a test of his faith. He loses his money, his children are killed, and his health declines. Though sorely afflicted (quite literally: his body is encrusted with sores), he resists the temptation to rail at God and remains faithful. Finally, after much pain, suffering, and mental anguish is endured, God acknowledges his faith and relents, bestowing on him twice the riches he had before. Thus was born the saying "She/he has the patience of Job," and that old chestnut, "Good things come to those who wait." (Of course, bad things often come to, but why ruin a good saying?) |
Works Cited
Berger, Marshall and Bob Barnhart. "A Conversation with Isaac Bashevis Singer. Critical View of Isaac
Bashevis Singer. Ed. Irving Malm. New York: NYUP, 1969.27-43. Print.
Kierkegaard, Soren. A Kierkegaard Anthology. Ed. By Robert Bretall. New York: Modern Library,
1946. Print.
"Horizontal Snow"
- Why does DeMarinis make the narrator an aerospace engineer? How does this seem to determine his character? In particular, examine his relationships and beliefs.
- This story, like "A&P" and "The Colonel," employs a first person narrator. What do you make of the tone of the narration? The entire story is told in his voice, what do you make of it? Is his character revealed through his diction and emotion?
- Why is Lot Stoner depicted as a anthropological throwback? Any religious meaning to his and Willie's rootlessness? Is his judgement of the narrator correct? What was the narrator's "dangerous hunger" (399)?
- What are some symbolic meanings to the title? What, metaphorically, can a blizzard suggest?
- What do you make of the last line: DeMarinis sets it apart so it's obvious he wants us to pay attention to it. What words seem to stand out? Why?
"Gimpel the Fool"
- What is this story, through the example of Gimpel, saying about the nature of faith and belief? What is it saying about skepticism?
- Is Gimpel a fool? Why or why not?
- Why does Gimpel look forward to death? Is it merely an escape from persecution?
- Does Elka's infidelities serve a larger purpose? What do you make of her change? Is it in any way related to Gimpel's goodness?
- What is the significance of the dream visions? Any religious connotations?
"Angel Levine"
- What comparisons are there to the story in the Book of Job (see below)? How does it contrast?
- According to the story, what is the basis of faith? What finally changes Manischevitz's mind about Levine?
- Taken realistically, this story stretches the limits of credulity; but it seems more of a parable than a naturalistic story. What elements reinforce the parable-like qualities of the story?
- What elements of gentle humor are there in the story? Why?
- Is Alexander really an angel? How does Malamud keep it ambiguous? Just as importantly, why?
"Horizontal Snow"
- What does the story gain by being set in the north? From DeMarinis's descriptions, what are the dominant features of the landscape? What quality of the north is he using? And why does the narrator end up back there?
- This story ("Horizontal Snow"), like "A&P" and "Gimpel," employs a first person narrator. What do you make of the tone of the narration? The entire story is told in his voice, what do you make of it? Is his character revealed through his diction and emotion?
- How does Eisenhower's warning about the military-industrial complex" shed historical/cultural light on our interpretation of this story?
From Eisenhower's farewell speech -- "military-industrial complex" 1961
Until the latest of our world conflicts, the United States had no armaments industry. American makers of plowshares could, with time and as required, make swords as well. But now we can no longer risk emergency improvisation of national defense; we have been compelled to create a permanent armaments industry of vast proportions. Added to this, three and a half million men and women are directly engaged in the defense establishment. We annually spend on military security more than the net income of all United States corporations.
This conjunction of an immense military establishment and a large arms industry is new in the American experience. The total influence -- economic, political, even spiritual -- is felt in every city, every State house, every office of the Federal government. We recognize the imperative need for this development. Yet we must not fail to comprehend its grave implications. Our toil, resources and livelihood are all involved; so is the very structure of our society.
In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the militaryindustrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist.
We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. We should take nothing for granted. Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals, so that security and liberty may prosper together. |
"Gimpel the Fool"
- Is Gimpel a fool? Why or why not? (Be sure to use quotes to support your answer)
- How do the comments by Singer explain Gimpel's actions, and how do they move the story beyond the spiritual?
From your collection Spinoza of Market Street , I get the impression that there are two broad philosophical areas into which the stories can be divided. . . . I got the feeling that either supernatural forces such as imps or devils are enticing man into wrong doing and then he is punished, or he stoically accepts the natural order, suffers, and does nothing to improve his condition. In either case, it seems that your characters are not so much conscious agents as expressions. They seem to become somewhat static.
No, it is not completely so, because I believe, at least consciously, in free will. Everyone of us has free will. The only thing is that free will is a rare gift and we get very little of it. In the stories where I describe human misery, I describe cases where a man did not make use of his free will and because of this you have a feeling that the imp and satan and the devil are victorious. I always believe that there is no power which can curb a man from using this rare gift if he really wants to. Even though you will see in my works many stories where I make man seem like a victim of other powers, I don't believe in that.
Your characters have the will to repulse the forces if they make that choice?
Yes. They have the will and in some of my stories you will see that they actually do so. This war between God and Satan means actually the war between free will and compulsion. From the moment man is born, he is compelled, yet at the same time he is given the free will to fight compulsion.
Berger, Marshall and Bob Barnhart. "A Conversation with Isaac Bashevis Singer." Critical View of Isaac Bashevis Singer, edited by Irving Malm, New York University Press, 1969, pp. 27-43.
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- Do Elka's infidelities serve a larger purpose? What do you make of her change by the end of the story into an image of purity? Is it in any way related to Gimpel's goodness?
"Angel Levine"
- Why do Levine and Manischevitz seem almost like conjoined twins, subject to the same fate?
- Consider the following from a scholarly article:
For Malamud the supernatural provides a way of extending the imaginative possibilities of fiction and of depicting a central concern, that of the development of selflessness and morality. He is less concerned with a traditional view of the role played by God in the miraculous than he is with using a character to force the protagonist to confront deep-seated values, fears, and prejudices. He then endeavours to "allegorize the inside, pitting the central character symbolically against himself" (Benson, 22), a process that has resulted from the need to confront the challenging character (Abramson)
Is this true in the story? Does the supernatural "extend[...]" the story? Does the supernatual pit the protagonist against himself? How so?
- Is Alexander really an angel? How does Malamud keep it ambiguous? Just as important, why?
- Is there humor in these last three stories ? Why?
- How does the theme of "A Leap of Faith" run through all of these stories? Is faith only religious?
Interviewers: Now what about this folk element in your work? What use do you feel you are making of it, and how do you regard the so-called demonic trait?
But let me come back to the literary reason for my use of the demonic and supernatural. First, it helps me to express myself. For example, by using Satan or a demon as a symbol, one can compress a great many things. It's a kind of spiritual stenography. It gives me more freedom. For another thing, the demons and Satan represent to me, in a sense, the ways of the world. Instead of saying this is the way things happen, I will say, this is the way demons behave. Demons symbolize the world for me, and by that I mean human beings and human behavior; and since I really believe in their existence -- that is, not only symbolically bus substantively -- it is easy to see how this kind of literary style was born. (qtd. in Blocker and Elman 23)
Blocker, Joel and Richard Elman. "An Interview with Isaac Bashevis Singer." Critical View of Isaac
Bashevis Singer. Ed. Irving Malm. New York: NYUP, 1969. 3-26. Print.
"the world [Singer] recoils from is the world of the market place, of human passions, of vain ambitions, of misguided aspirations, and of all the human relationships which result from them. This is the world of Gimpel the Fool, where the simple and the sensitive are gulled, deprived, humiliated, and despised. It is the world in which the poverty of Frampol distorts the perspective of its people."
Eisenberg. J. A. "Isaac Bashevis Singer: Passionate Primitive or Pious Puritan?" Critical Views of Isaac
Bashevis Singer. Ed. Irving Malin. New York: NYUP, 1969. 48-67. Print.
From your collection Spinoza of Market Street , I get the impression that there are two broad philosophical areas into which the stories can be divided. . . . I got the feeling that either supernatural forces such as imps or devils are enticing man into wrong doing and then he is punished, or he stoically accepts the natural order, suffers, and does nothing to improve his condition. In either case, it seems that your characters are not so much conscious agents as expressions. They seem to become somewhat static.
No, it is not completely so, because I believe, at least consciously, in free will. Everyone of us has free will. The only thing is that free will is a rare gift and we get very little of it. In the stories where I describe human misery, I describe cases where a man did not make use of his free will and because of this you have a feeling that the imp and satan and the devil are victorious. I always believe that there is no power which can curb a man from using this rare gift if he really wants to. Even though you will see in my works many stories where I make man seem like a victim of other powers, I don't believe in that.
Your characters have the will to repulse the forces if they make that choice?
Yes. They have the will and in some of my stories you will see that they actually do so. This war between God and Satan means actually the war between free will and compulsion. From the moment man is born, he is compelled, yet at the same time he is given the free will to fight compulsion.
You would say that when a man uses free will, he will use it to rise above into the ethical, that his compulsion may be toward evil but he uses his will to fight evil?
Yes, to my mind this is actually the essence of religion. There is not such a thing as a fatalist religion. Be it Judaism or Christianity or Buddhism, they all teach you that we are always given a choice. Even when it seems to a human being that he has no choice, he still has some choice. When a man is in prison, naturally he has no choice - he cannot leave the prison. He cannot break the walls, but he can always be at one wall or another wall - he can be quiet or he can be hysterical. He can be a good prisoner or a bad prisoner.
He can reconcile himself to his position?
Yes. It is very interesting that in Europe there does not exist the fact that one gets time off for good behavior, which means that those who made the laws in this country knew that even a man in prison can behave well or badly, and he is rewarded and punished accordingly. This is a very good idea because it means that man has not lost his will completely even though he is in prison. (qtd. in Marshall Breger and Bob Barnhart 39-41)
Berger, Marshall and Bob Barnhart. "A Conversation with Isaac Bashevis Singer." Critical View of
Isaac Bashevis Singer, edited by Irving Malm, New York University Press, 1969, pp. 27-43.
Norman Podhoretz on Malamud's characters, 'The Jew is humanity seen under the twin aspects of suffering and moral aspiration. Therefore any man who suffers greatly and who longs to be better than he is can be called a Jew" (Richman 78).
Richman, Sidney. "The Stories." Bernard Malamud. Modern Critical Editions. Ed. Harold Bloom.
New York: Chelsea House, 1986. 71-100.
From a 1966 interview:
"My work, all of it, is an idea of dedication to the human. That's basic to every book. If you don't respect man, you cannot respect my work. I'm in defense of the human" (qtd. in Solotaroff 146).
In what way does Manischevitz evince this "defense of the human"?
Interviewer: Do you see an inner cohesiveness, a miniature world, in your works?
Malamud: "I like to be told that I've created a world" (qtd. in Solotaroff 151).
Malamud: "Narrative tries to find the way from one condition into another more blessed" (qtd. in Solotaroff 156).
Malamud on literature: "It elevates, enriches, changes and, in some cases, reveals the meaning of life. In some cases, it makes you want to change your life" (qtd. in Solotaroff 156). © 2008 David Bordelon
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