Yamulkas in Berlin 2:30

“Every heart sings a song, incomplete, until another heart whispers back. Those who wish to sing always find a song. At the touch of a lover, everyone becomes a poet.”
― Plato

Song of Songs by Shalom Alecheim(1909 - 1911)

The Plain Facts

1. Length:read the excerpt of 13 pages.
2. Genre:Yiddish Old Country Tales
3. Characters:Tevye speaks to Shalom Aleichem.
4. Setting: a little village where Tevye lives, and the woods and nature that surrounds it.

So, what's It About Man?

THis is Sholom Aleichem's meditative story on the book from the Old Testament, The Song of Songs.  

Vegetable Juice

First Words

AND THERE WAS EVENING AND THERE WAS MORNING, - an uncommonly spring morning,the kind that comes during the seven weeks between Passover and Shevuos.

Favorite Quote

Just like the weather on a cloudy summer day.  First hot, then cold.  The sun peeps out from behind the clouds, and everything becomes beautiful.  Along comes another cloud and everything turns dark and gloomy. pg 29

Last Words

And so, let the beginning also be the epilogue to my hapless romance, a true story which I have the liberty to call - The SONG OF SONGS.
 

Literary Review

Sholom Aleichem utilizes the bible in his every day thinking, and is pensive with care.  He, like a good Jewish Son, has memorized the torah and has written its words on his heart.   He also grasps with great care the character of his mother, and of his father. He knows how to tell the truth and still honor the beauty that is at the core of his parents. We, the reader, are given a glimpse into the private life of a Yiddish Family.
There does not seem to be a fourth wall between the readers and the writer, as he talks directly to us: "but the one who is not should read with care, for its essential that he know who Buzie is."

Turnip Tips

• read the Jewish Literary Review
•  

 

Words Defined:

word	definition
Passover	The celebration of the Exodus from Egypt and the covenant given to man by God.
Shevuos	Seven weeks after Passover, a celebration of  when the law was given to Moses. Shevuos marks the day on which the Torah was given to Israel on Mount Sinai, and also the day on which the first fruits of the wheat harvest were offered to God.
Song of Songs	Song of Solomon in the old testament.

Where to Find This Story

One can find the story in Shalom Aleichem Old Country Tales edited and compiled by the Children of Sholom Aleichem, and published in 1966. Although this book is out of print Amazon has a few copies. Also alibris listed that Powells had a hard bound copy for $2.24. The book would be a great addition in any personal library.