Part I: Children of the Ghetto

Preface:

• What do you think may be the background/meaning of the title, "The Children of the Ghetto: A Study of a Peculiar People"? What is meant by "peculiar"? (an Old Testament reference) Why might a Jewish author have spoken thus about his own ethnic group?
• Why does the author call attention to a "people" rather than an individual? Who is the novel's protagonist?
• What was the situation of British Jews, and why had they moved to East London?
• Who seems to be Zangwill's intended audience? How can you tell? Is this audience mixed?
• What is his purpose in writing? (to commemorate a passing culture)
• What are features of the tone of the preface? Did any surprise you? What seems to be the author's attitude towards the life he is describing? (61, blending of realism and romance, features of ethnography mixed with identification, maintains a respectful distance)
• How are the novel's sundry episodes held together? (same characters appear in several contexts, as in Dickens)

Chapter 1: The Bread of Affliction

• In what circumstances is Esther Ansell introduced? What do we learn about her character? What problems does she face at school and at home? Do these remind you of those of other characters in novels you have encountered?
• What is the effect of the chapter’s contrasts between rich and poor?
• What do you make of the description of some of those who frequent the soup kitchen as having "simian" faces)
• What are some consequences of Esther's spilling of the soup? Who blames her and who seeks to help?

Chapter 2: The Sweater

• What attitude towards marriage and ethnic divisions are revealed at the Belcovitch family wedding? (gradations of class and ethnicity; Polish and Dutch are looked down on)
• To what do they attribute the survival of their daughter? (82, superstition that her name cannot be spoken)
• What gentle sarcasms are directed by the narrator against Jewish scholarship (89)
• Why do you think “the sweater” is presented in a family setting?
• What are Bear Belcovitch’s virtues and limitations? (93) Who offers soup to the impoverished Ansells? (Fanny and her betrothed)

Chapter 3: Malka

• What is Malka’s attitude toward her former brother-in-law Moses Ansell? What are her own family relationships? Her views on religion?
• How are neighborhood relationships characterized in this chapter?
• What does Malka disapprove of in Moses’ conduct toward his children?
• What orthodox views of women does Moses proclaim? (106)
• What ironies inhere in the fact that Malka is so impressed with Moses' piety that she provides him with five shillings? (he has used Jewish law to argue that her sister's death was less important than that of a man, degrades both her sister and all women)

Chapter 4: The Redemption of the Son and the Daughter

• To what does the chapter title refer? (Milly's baby is the redeemed son and Hannah or Leah the redeemed daughter)
• What do we learn of Malka’s husband Michael? (108, he is younger than her and more peaceable) What are her attitudes toward childbearing? (109)
• What other characters are introduced in this chapter? (Reb Shemuel’s wife and daughter Hannah, Myriam Hyams and her father) How are Myriam and Hannah contrasted? (113, Myriam wants to marry a wealthy husband; Hannah wants to marry someone she loves. Will they obtain their desires?)
• Why does the narrator suggest a poem to fried fish? (115) Is he sincere?
• What problem does Sam Levine inadvertently cause by not handing his engagement ring immediately to his fianceé? Who decides that he is legally married under Jewish law? (117, Old Mr. Hyams) What solution is proposed?
• What may be some reasons for the author’s creation of this incident? What contrasts in Jewish communities does it reveal?

Chapter 5: The Pauper Alien

• What has been the history of Moses Ansell and his family? What had been the character and temperament of Gittell Ansell? How did her death affect the family? (she had been the more skeptical, 123, had supplemented the family income)
• What problems does Moses’ mother add to his life?
• Of which aspects of conservative orthodox Jewish culture does the narrative voice seem to disapprove? (129)

Chapter 6: “Reb” Shemuel

• What are the rabbi’s good traits? What anxieties preoccupy his wife? How does Levi respond to the discussion of Hannah’s possible marriage? (135) What views does Hannah express of the marriage market? (135) Why doesn’t she wish to marry? (135)
• What prescriptions limit the Jacobs’ life? (136, can't work on Sabbath)

Chapter 7: Neo-Hebrew Poet

• How is the reader expected to respond to Melchisedek Pinchas? How is he satirized? (139, flatters Rabbi Shemuel and eats his food)
• What is the purpose of inserting the exchange of jokes? Of whom do they make fun? (143, Jews who pretend to convert)
• What is the relationship of Hannah and her father? How do they differ in their views of the marriage by proxy? (145) What quarrel is resolved by the Rabbi? (146)

Chapter 8: Esther and her Children

• What do we learn in this chapter about the character of the Ansell children, especially Esther? (199, serious, responsible) What traits are possessed by Solomon?
• What does Esther learn in school? (Anglization, 152)
• How does Moses entertain his children? (reads to them, explains the Law)

Chapter 9: Dutch Debby

• What problems have overcome Dutch Debby? (born an illegitimate child, 160, an isolated needlewoman)
• Why do she and Esther become close? (she is kind to Esther, permits her to read her magazines, 160) What form of reading does she introduce to Esther? (stories in the London Journal)
• Why does Esther feel reluctant to aspire to the life of a teacher? (isn’t wealthy enough, 162)
• What light do her anecdotes shed on the priorities of Myriam Hyams, her teacher?
• How does Zangwill satirize romance literature in this chapter? (163)
• What causes Esther to visit with Debby less often? (Her father disapproves. She has to tend her siblings and doesn’t want to take food.)

Chapter 10: A Silent Family

• How is Sugarman the matchmaker presented? (166, tries to sell lottery tickets) Why does Mrs. Hyams not wear the traditional wig of her background?
• What do we learn of Daniel Hyams? (167) Why can’t he marry Bessie Sugarman, whom he loves? (168) (the fact that he can't work on Saturday limits his income)
• What emotions seethe in the Hyams family? What misunderstandings fail to be clarified? (169, 170) Why can’t the father be employed? (169, to maintain status)
• What are their respective goals? (Mendel, to die in Jerusalem, 170)

Chapter 11: The Purim Ball

• What happens at the Purim Ball? What draws David Brandon and Hannah to each other? To what restlessness does Hannah confess? (constrained, 178, tired of kosher rules) What are David’s views on orthodox Judaism? (179)

Chapter 12: The Sons of the Covenant

• Who are the “sons of the covenant”? (183, 185)
• What points of view are represented in their assemblage?
• Does the narrative make any implied criticism of their behavior toward their preacher? (they underpay him, 188) What is humorous about the Shamnos’ offer? What sad event do we learn of soon afterwards? (he has died, funeral procession followed by a large crowd)
• What value judgments seem placed on the rabbinical scholars in their midst, such as Karlkammer? (he is parodied for his concern with niceties of ritual, such as the pronunciation of a vowel)
• Which generation seems most involved in their plans?

Chapter 13: Sugarman’s Bar-Mitzvah Party

• What type of conversation occurs at the party? (194 gossip, jokes, sly appropriation of extra food)
• What do we learn about the scholars Gabriel Hamburg and Joseph Strelitski?
• Why does the latter not accept the former’s offer of patronage? (pride, 197; sad, ships pass in the night)
• Why did Sugarman tell his wife she should have had a fourth uncle? (199)

Chapter 14: The Hope of the Family

• What changes have occurred in Benjamin Ansell’s values during his absence from home? (ashamed of his family, chiefly concerned about status)
• What has he forgotten? (Yiddish, Hebrew)
• How does his reaction to his family reflect the difficulties of adjustment in a new land? (he’s selfish, ungrateful, 204, ashamed of his parents, 206)
• What fixed idea dominates the grandmother's view of her son? (believes that all women in the vicinity wish to marry him) Why is this ironic? (he's a poor peddler with a large family)
• What form of assimilation does Benjamin object to in Esther? (she speaks Yiddish, reads the New Testament) What seem to be their different forms of rebellion against the old ways?
• What New Testament allusion slips from Esther in speaking of her brother's return, and how is this appropriate? How is it received by other family members?

Chapter 15: The Holy Land League

• Who are some of the founders of London Zionism? What different factions or points of view are represented by their speeches? Who is finally voted president? (Guedalyah the greengrocer)
• How is Pinchas undercut? (wants to reestablish polygamy, 215, desires to be treasurer on the basis of his poetry, 222--the reader knows this would be a horrible idea) Would he be a good husband for Hannah? (vain and egotistical)
• Judging from this book, what do you think may have been Zangwill’s own reaction to Zionism?

Chapter 16: The Courtship of Shosshi Shnendrik

• Why does Shosshi’s courtship of Bessie Belcovitch fail? How does his second courtship with the widow Finklestein succeed?
• What seems the point of including this story? (slapstick, the schemiel unexpectedly succeeds by accident)

Chapter 17: The Hyams’ Honeymoon

• On what grounds does Myriam object to Daniel’s relationship with Bessie Sugarman? (238, the Sugarmans are poorer)
• Why hasn’t Mendel Hyams been able to work as a stone mason in England? (241, can't work on Sabbath)
• What expedient does he frame for helping his children? (242)
• What brings the elderly couple together at last? (they wish not to burden their children, she doesn't want him to leave without her--touching rendering of love between husband and wife)
• What is revealed by the fact that his children can’t read a Hebrew letter? (243) What is revealed of the children’s character in their respective partings? (245, Daniel is sad at their department, Myriam finds it a relief)
• Why is Mendel Hyams dissatisfied with Jerusalem? (246, sees it as an alien and multi-ethnic place) Why does he continue to pray, "Next year in Jerusalem"? (246. Jerusalem is a spiritual not temporal ideal)
• Where do the author’s/text’s sympathies lie in this family saga? (Zangwill's narrator sympathizes with dutiful children, but points out their sacrifices)

Chapter 18: The Hebrew’s Friday Night

• What is Pinchas’ attitude toward his fellow Zionists? (247)
• How do the Rabbi’s family celebrate the Sabbath? (249, feed a poor stranger)
• How do Hannah and her father each respond to Pinchas’ marriage proposal? (253)
• How does her father react to the news of her desire to marry David Brandon? (253)
• How are Hannah’s emotions of love described? (255)
• What seems unusual about the narrator's claim that while the words of other cultures survive only in word and stone, the Hebrew word was alone made flesh? (257, uses New Testament locution to describe Jews)

Chapter 19: With the Strikers

• How does Pinchas react to the rejection of his marriage proposal? (258)
• What are the goals of the strikers, as presented by their leader Simon Wolf? (260, wishes more food tickets for the unemployed)
• What advice does Pinchas give him? (261, he should pretend to appeal to the orthodox) What does this show about his character? (261, hypocrite)
• What are the strikers’ demands? Why has Moses Ansell joined them? (263, unemployed) What events disrupt the meeting, and how are these ironic? (268, Pinchas smokes, offending the orthodox, 267; bursts into invective)

Chapter 20: The Hope Extinct

• Under what circumstances does Benjamin Ansell die?
• What are some notable aspects of Moses Ansell’s preparations for visiting his dying son? (271, prays first)
• What are especially sad features of his death? (father and son cannot understand each other, teacher afraid to translate and thus reveal his knowledge of Yiddish)
• To what emotions and language does Benjamin return before his death? (275, father joins him in final ritual)
• Are there parallels between the fates of Benjamin and Levi/Leonard? What effect does their defection from the practices of their background have upon their respective sisters?

Chapter 21: The Jargon Players

• What are the subjects of Pinchas’ play? (satirizes all his enemies) What is its fate? (281, flops) Might the satire of Pinchas be a parody of some of the writer's own traits? (he too was a satirist and dramatist)

Chapter 22: “For Auld Lang Syne, My Dear”

• What are some customs and practices associated with the East End Passover? (the wealthy visit their former homes)
• What loss perturbs Esther? (theft of money needed for celebration)

Chapter 23: The Dead Monkey

• What is the story of the dead monkey, and how may it relate to the events of the chapter? (Esther receives money despite cattiness of her mother's cousin)
• What characterizes the bartering and bargaining described? (287, comic exaggeration and expression)
• What misfortune happens to Esther? Is it partially retrieved? (288, chides Malka for not visiting when her brother died)
• Who is kind to her in her distress? (David Brandon comforts her and gives her money)

Chapter 24: The Shadow of Religion

• What are some possible meanings of "shadow" in the title of this chapter?
• What characterizes the Rabbi’s welcome of David Brandon into his home?
• What “shadow of religion” breaks everyone’s satisfaction? What protest is made by David? (303) (a Cohen cannot marry a divorced woman)
• What absurdities are inherent in the application of this "law"? (David is not a priest nor Hannah a divorced woman)
• How do David, Hannah, and the Rabbi each respond to the alleged crisis? How does Hannah respond to the moment of choice? (205, tells David she needs time to decide what to do)

Chapter 25: Seder Night

• What Passover celebrations did the Ansells manage?
• When they meet, what do David Brandon and Hannah each suggest as a method of dealing with their situation? (he wants them to be married by another rabbi in England or the United States; she suggests a non-Jewish marriage)
• What do they finally agree on? (311, to elope with him to America) Are there other characters in the novel who leave for the United States?
• What form of religion does she wish for them to practice? (one devoid of daily rules and rituals)
• How does Hannah feel on this Passover night? (Passover allegorizes her own departure, 315)
• Why in the end does she refuse to elope with David Brandon? (318, her father so unhappy at the defection of his son, hates to wound her parents)
• What vision of her future does she foretell? (316, description of her pain)
• How does the first section of the book end? (father's final ritual imprecation upon heathen, 319) What problems have been left for later resolution?
• Might there have been other options for dealing with situation? (could have defied parents but lived near them to provide care or affection)

"Children of the Ghetto," part II

Chapter 1: “The Christmas Dinner”
What is the significance of the title?

• What points are raised in the conversation about “Edward Armitage”'s Mordecai Josephs? (the novel is a roman a clef; it is criticized for using Yiddish and for portraying English Jewish culture as materialistic and uncultured) What might have been Zangwill’s reactions to the criticisms made of him? [325, It has been suggested that the response to Amy Levy’s Reuben Sachs may have inspired these scenes.]
• What is the significance of the contrast made between Mordecai Josephs and Daniel Deronda? What implicit criticism may Zangwill be making of George Eliot’s treatment of the Zionist issue? (334, too idealized)
• How do they respond to the notion of intermarriage? (335) Who propounds a counterargument? (Sidney argues that one may disregard the Law in company with either a Jew or a Christian--he himself is courting a non-Jew)
• What do we learn of the character and occupation of Sidney Graham? (327, an artist) Why has he changed his name? (had originally been Abrahams) Are we expected to agree with his opinions? (his thrusts are generally correct but he lacks conviction) Of what does he accuse Jewish culture in general? (hypocrisy; the forms are observed without inner belief) What qualities confer prestige within Jewish circles in his view? (money, philanthropy)
• What contrasting view is expressed by Raphael? (even if everyone doesn't honor the spirit of Judaism, Jews are a chosen people born to bring light to the world)
• Is it telling that most of those who are criticizing the book have not read it?
• What do you make of the fact that the Jewish people at the party attempt to avoid holidaying near their fellow Jews? (337, contrast East Enders, who remain together)
• Whose  ministrations enable the Goldsmiths to keep a properly Orthodox home? (their Irish maid's--she is stricter than they would like to be) How is Mr. Goldsmith able to obtain milk for his coffee? (pretends he must serve non-observant guests)
• What thoughts come to Esther as she retires to bed? (the sufferings of her people)

Chapter 2: “Raphael Leon”

• What do we learn of Esther’s life since childhood? Did she enjoy her life as a teacher? (344, no) What reasons are given for her changes in outlook? (feels her father's prayers have not mitigated his family's poverty)
• What level of education has she achieved? (obtained a degree from the University of London, Zangwill's own alma mater) Would this have been an unusual achievement for a woman of her time and situation?
• How has she ended up in the West End? (is patronized by Mrs. Harry Goldsmith, a wealthy sponsor) What attitude toward her life does she reveal? (is nonetheless discontented and unhappy)
• How does Raphael respond to her account?
• What is added to the plot by the fact that her father and siblings have been sent to the United States? (345) (relieves her of a burden since they are successful, leaves her alone, provides motive for her later departure for the United States) Who is responsible for their emigration? (Mrs. Harry Goldsmith) What has happened to Solomon and her sisters? (Solomon conducts a store in Detroit; one sister has become a typist; the father is respected for his religious devotions)
• What symbolism is embedded in Raphael Leon’s name? What plans does he make for his new newspaper? (to offer a modern, spiritual, but orthodox voice)
• What plans does Mrs. Goldsmith have for her husband's future? What has he done to prepare for this? (has served on numerous boards and charitable trusts) What will he have to do to win the orthodox vote? (obtain newspaper coverage)

Chapter 3: “The Flag of Judah”

• Who is funding the new orthodox paper? (Cooperative Kosher Society)
• Under what circumstances is Raphael made editor? What are some comic features of the selection process? (he is offered no salary)
• What are some suggestions offered him for filling up the newspaper? (advertisements, obituaries, sermons sent from the provinces, foreign news from other Jewish papers, reports of local talks) Are his future employers concerned about truth? (willing to fabricate; pluck obituaries at random)
• What makes it so difficult to prepare the first issue? (printer has no machinery or compositors, contributors unable to write English)

Chapter 4: “The Troubles of the Editor”

• What troubles are referred to in the title? (everything in the paper is criticized; others have added material borrowed in error, e. g., praise for a renegade Jew) What are some humorous aspects of the portrayal of Pinchas? (wants to satirize all who have rebuffed him, including Mr. Goldsmith)
• Why do you think Raphael includes his poem? (he believes Pinchas's poetry to be good, sponsors his travel)
• What views do the sponsors of the paper hold regarding Reform Jews, and how are their criticisms undercut? (they have never attended a Reform service) What do they object to in the "reformers"? (use an organ at their services; claim (falsely, according to Raphael, that men and women are permitted to sit in the same section)
• On what grounds do they object to Raphael's inclusion of a Jewish folk tale? (they assume it's true and should be labeled and presented as such)
• Who enters to offer to fund the newspaper, and what conditions does he set? (Mr. Henry Goldsmith; cannot be known that he is the proprietor) What do we know to be his motive? (wants the newspaper to commend him and support his parliamentary ambitions)
• What compromise is finally reached? (Raphael will buy the rights to the newspaper out of his 5000 pound inheritance from his aunt, and the Kosher Society will retain the rights for it to be run as their newspaper for the next six months) Does this seem fair?
• Does it seem in character that Raphael should engage in deceit?
• May there be autobiographical features in the portrayal of Raphael? (Zangwill had edited the Jewish Standard--cmp. The Flag of Judah)

Chapter 5: “A Woman’s Growth”

• About what subjects do Esther and Raphael debate? What type of material will she write for his newspaper? (reviews of art and music) What does he suggest that she might write, and why is this painful to her? (he suggests that she might have talent in writing stories, but she knows that her efforts in this direction have been ill received; also he suggests that she might write an antidote to Mordecai Josephs; she asserts that no antidote is needed)
• On what basis does he criticize “Edward Armitage”? (although his novel has a "crude power," it is too hostile in its portrayal of Jews)
• Will it be important that he brings an invitation from his sister to call on her? (the two women become fast friends)
• What old childhood acquaintance comes for dinner? Why does Esther dislike Joseph Strelitski? (fiercely orthodox; he had once worked as a humble laborer, and she feels he's now a hypocrite)
• To whom had Esther once been attracted, and why? (Sidney was the first man of brilliance she had ever met) Had he responded? (hadn't noticed her)

Chapter 6: “Comedy or Tragedy”

• To what does the title of the chapter refer? What does Esther learn about Leonard (Levi) James when she meets him again? How has he behaved toward his family? (has absorbed all the two thousand pounds of his father's sudden inheritance, on the grounds that sons must have precedence over daughters, leaving Hannah with no dowry)
• What account does he give of his sister's life? (seems discontented)
• What has been the outcome of his legal apprenticeship? (396, has failed to pass exams) How have his actions affected his sister?
• Under what conditions do we learn of Sidney’s engagement, and to whom is he engaged? (the daughter of a Methodist minister) Why has he tried to hide his engagement? (claims he doesn't want criticism, but also possibly doesn't wish to eliminate other possibilities) Of what does Esther remind him? (should not have concealed it from his cousin Addie, who is attached to him) What does he ask of Esther? (not to tell anyone for a while)
• Why does Raphael not join his friends at the theater? What new information about him increases Esther's sympathy? (he tutors those who need it gratis, works very long hours) What effect does Raphael’s presence seem to have on his friends? (they look up to him)

Chapter 7: “What the Years Brought”

• On what grounds has Esther’s book been hostilely reviewed by a prestigious periodical? (its name suggests The Athenaeum)
• What is the nature of Leonard James’ courtship of Esther? What are his prospects? (has no employment, has failed the bar exam, hopes to be an actor, feels he needs an engagement to motivate him to work)
• What does he reveal about his attitude toward his father? (hopes to take further money from him)
• Does she consider him a likely prospect for a husband?
• How does he respond to her rejection? (flies into a rage and insults her as the daughter of a beggar/peddlar)
• To what does the title of the chapter refer? (Esther had wondered what the years would bring, feels they have brought her isolation and failure)

Chapter 8: “The End of a Generation”

• What important ritual does Leonard forget? (passover seder dinner) Under what circumstances does his father encounter him, and how does Leonard react? (he has been dining with an actress, jumps into a hansom and shakes him off)
• What do you make of Leonard’s explanation to his companion, and her response? (describes father as an old Jew who supplies him with cash, 411)
• What does this incident show about Leonard’s sense of priorities? (feels gulf between them inevitable, incident has removed his chance of extracting further money)

Chapter 9: “The ‘Flag’ Flutters”

• How successful is the newspaper, and on what grounds? (412) What does his first sub-editor Sampson suggest to fill space? (wants to invent births and deaths)
• What kinds of positions are taken by its editorial voice and throughout? (Rafael as editor advocates a unitive movement, as Zangwill himself had done, 415-16; still, elsewhere in paper articles evade, advocate hypocritical positions, 414)
• Why may Zangwill include the incident about the failure of the project of expatriating Jews to rural communities due to the Jewish rule that land must lie fallow every seven years? In hindsight, might this not have been such an arbitrary decree?
• What points may Zangwill be making about the difficulties of editing a good yet partisan newspaper?
• What roles do his subeditor and Pinchas play in Raphael's woes? (subeditor writes a satire which is ill-received; Pinchas wants all his angry writings published)
• What prompts Esther to visit the newspaper office? (wishes to contribute copy)

Chapter 10: “Esther Defies the Universe”

• What radical step has Esther determined to take, and why? Why has she become disillusioned with her life at the Goldsmiths?
• What is Rafael's response to her visit? (is pleased to see her) How does she respond to his editorial office? (it's untidy)
• On what grounds does Raphael describe himself as a socialist? (favors land nationalization, 124)
• What information does she give Raphael as she bids him farewell? (is leaving the Goldsmiths, is the author of Mordecai Josephs) How does he respond and why? (is distressed at her departure)
• How does he respond to the news of her authorship? (reads her book and is impressed by its resemblance to her own traits and views)

Chapter 11: “Going Home”

• What is in the letter Esther leaves for Mrs. Goldsmith? (thanks her but cannot be dependent)
• What startling act does she commit? (burns her verse and musical compositions)
• What is the significance of her decision to revisit the ghetto in which she was raised? (desires to revisit her childhood home, goes to old garret--embraces Dutch Debby)

Chapter 12: “A Sheaf of Sequels”

• Whom does she meet in the ghetto? Which persons are genuinely glad to see her? (Debby is still lonely; Hannah remains an orthodox Jew devoted to charity, uncertain whether she can "believe in her life," seems sad)
• What has happened to Dutch Debby and Hannah? How have her relationships been altered by the intervening years?

Chapter 13: “The Dead Monkey Again”

• To what does the title refer? What gain has Esther achieved, and at what cost? (her book has sold well and the publisher is willing to issue a second book)
• Where does Esther move? (she comes to live with the Jacobs) Does this seem surprising? What future intention does she announce? (will travel to the US)
• What do we learn from the description of the charities in which Hannah and Esther engage? (Hannah neither narrow or judgmental in dealing with poorer Jews)
• What does Esther do for recreation? (plays piano) What changes does she note in the Flag of Judah? (its editor espouses broader views, seems to be speaking to her)

Chapter 14: “Sidney Settles Down”

• Why couldn’t Sidney marry his Methodist betrothed? (her father is offended when he learns that Sidney is Jewish) What are the ideological implications of his change of heart?
• Is his new marriage likely to be a congenial one? (marries happily within his community, Addie is attached to him)
• For what is he grateful to Esther? (she has indicated to him Addie's affection for him)
• What account has Mrs. Goldsmith given of Esther's departure? (she had forced her to leave) Might there have been other ways she could have handled the situation? (could have just said that Esther needed a period with her original friends and associates)

Chapter 15:  “From Soul to Soul”

• For whom is Stelitski concerned on the occasion of his visit to Raphael? (Esther)
• Why does Strelitski decide to resign his job as a minister? (no longer believes in original orthodoxy, sees ritual as of the ancient world, instead wishes to act for his beliefs) What are his new ambitions? (wishes to emigrate and found a new religion of peace)
• Is it significant that he mentions the Ethical Culture movement? (compare Felix Adler, its American proponent) What form of allegiance does he believe must be superceded? (the national ideal)
• What is unusual about these new goals? To what extent do you think they may have resembled Zangwill’s own?
• What is Srelitski’s view of Zionism? (475-77, rejects Zionism in favor of an inner vision of international brotherhood)
• What event changes Raphael’s plans? On what pretext is he fired, and by whom? (Harry Goldsmith)

Chapter 16: “Love’s Temptation”

• Why in this instance is love seen as a temptation? (Esther feels she is doomed to rejection and sorrow)
• Who indicates to Raphael where he may find Esther? (Pinchas)
• Where does Raphael encounter Esther, and what ideals for Judaism does he express to her? (487, British Library; Judaism represents justice and love, believes her ideals are those of a Jewess) Of what plans does she inform him? (leaving for US)
• Who else will be leaving, and with what purpose? (Strelitski is emigrating to preach a universal Judaism, 489)
• How does Esther respond to Raphael’s romantic overtures and his proposal? (490-91) What emotions may lie behind her reluctance? (feels she is too much a product of the Ghetto, this must separate him from her)

Chapter 17:  “The Prodigal Son”

• What important emotional truth does Hannah tell her father, and under what circumstances? (news comes that Levi may be dying, she pleads that his ways are too rigid for the  next generation)
• How does the father respond to his wife's desire to go to her son? (will not forgive, states that his son deserves death; forbids women to accompany him)
• What persuades Reb Shemuel to permit Hannah to accompany him on his journey? What does she ask of her father, and on what basis? (that he forgive Levi in compensate for his denial of her marriage on legalistic grounds)
• What is the significance of the final reconciliation between Levi and his father? What is Hannah's response to this scene? (feels some relief that her loss has in her view helped her brother--of course even had she left he might have found a way to reconcile with his son) What contradictions have been exemplified in Levi’s life and death?
• What parallels and contrasts do you find between this scene and other deathbed reconciliations in the book? (Benjamin and Moses) In the roles performed by sons and daughters?
• To what does the chapter title refer? (New Testament parable)

Chapter 18: “Hopes and Dreams”

• What symbolism is associated with Esther’s attendance of Yom Kippur?
• Do you augur anything from the fact that Strelitski catches her when she faints as she leaves the Ghetto synagogue, and that he will leave for America on the same ship on which she departs?
• What seems to be the tone and meaning of the ending? What is added by the fact that Raphael and Esther have pledged their love? Does it seem likely that they will be reunited?
• Within the context of the novel, what seems the significance of the fact that Esther leaves for Chicago?
• Does the book end on a note of hope? Is it appropriate that the ending be open-ended? Will all three share in creating the new world of Judaism?

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• What is the effect of the extensive use of details of Jewish ceremonies and ritual throughout? (creates a binding effect)
• What seems the author's/narrator's view of the people he describes?
• What view does the author give of courtship and marriage? What do we learn about the characters of those who marry?
• How would you characterize Zangwill's style? What forms of allusions appear frequently in the text? (to Talmudic and Eastern European lore, to Christian sayings and English literature)
• How do his style and themes resemble/differ from those of Victorian authors such as Gaskell, Eliot or Hardy? What values seem embodied in the authorial voice?
• What purpose is served by the embedded jokes throughout? What are some typical instances of ethnic humor?
• What are some parallels between the themes of this novel and others you have read? What are some of its distinctive traits?
• How does this novel seem to reflect values of the fin de siecle or of early modernism? How can you tell it was written after the mid-Victorian period?
• How does Zangwill’s treatment of religion in this novel compare with that of other major Victorian novelists? If there are major differences, how do you account for them?
• Are there issues raised by the novel which are still relevant in contemporary society? e. g. law vs. spirit/ assimilation vs. ethnicity generational differences under stress