The Jewbird
...d to mean “massive acts of violence, either spontaneous or premeditated, against Jews and other ethnic minorities living in Europe.” (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pogrom) In Malamud’s short story, the bird Schwartz represents these immigrants: weary, bedraggled and looking for refuge. He is grateful to find an open door and flies into the house. Not unlike the Eastern Europe Jewish immigrants who were grateful for the open door at America’s Ellis Island, he is shocked to find he is not really welcome. Even those from his own culture resent his existence. The pathetic Schwartz does as much as he can to gain favor in the household, hoping for charity and a chance to thrive. He tries to stay out of the way, helps the family and ignores insults, all the while fearing for his life. No matter what he does, the father, Cohen, will not accept him and ultimately plans his demise. The existence of Schwartz is a stark reminder of the past. His presence brings the horror of an unpleasant time back to life, and thus is not welcome. As reported in the New York Hebrew Standard, “The thoroughly acclimated American Jew stands apart from the seething mass of Jewish immigrants and looks upon them as in a stage of development pitifully low. He has no religious, social or intellectual sympathies with them. He is closer to the Christian sentiment around him than to the Judaism of these miserable darkened Hebrews.” (New York Hebrew Standard (15th June, 1894) One might ask why American immigrants so readily sought to shed their previous cultures to wholeheartedly adopt Americanism. One observer, Doug Alder wrote, “America separated herself from Britain through an act of violence and set out to erase that continental heritage… you immigrate to America and you leave your past behind…” (http://www.thealders.net/blogs/2004/05/05/an-interesting-observation/) With this mindset, newcomers were instead feared for their potential of inciting old hatreds in a new land, taking away hard-earned community respect and tolerance, and casting more doubt against the established Jewish population. As the new immigrants perhaps did, Schwartz appeared to be conciliatory, but still demanded special treatment. His requests for special treatment (expensive herring and bread) annoyed Cohen who staunchly reminded him he could not stay. (Worlds of Fiction, p. 512) The bird commits other disgraceful acts, including insulting the intelligence of the child Maurie and speaking as though he were somehow superior. Perhaps this is Malamud’s commentary on the new immigrant, full of self-righteousness and tunnel vision. Perhaps it is only a reminder that in this new place, among different people, one cannot fully aspire to greatness without great effort. (p. 512) In the conflict between Cohen and Schwartz, one sees hypocrisy at its worst. American Jews seemed to find acceptance by compromising their culture, language and background. Seeing newcomer Jews as living symbols of what they have ejected, they treat them as outsiders. In so doing, they underscore their own choices to ignore the heritage of their parents or grandparents in order to forge a new life; they not only close their eyes to the suffering of others, but often times cause it. On the other h...