For hundreds of years the Jews of Russia had been isolated and discriminated against but were not very often disturbed. They continued to live the almost medieval life of their Hasidic ancestors. Then, at the end of the nineteenth century, there occurred the profound change which is chronicled in the life of Tevye and his family and friends. They are prototypes for the various types Jews in the Pale as their traditions disintegrated.

Education
Education has always been important to Jewish boys because they had to be able to read the Torah. The only schools open to all young Jews in Russia at the time were the cheders, one room Hebrew Schools. Boys started at age four and stayed until their early teens. There could be twenty to thirty of them in the room, divided into groups by age. Some were learning the alphabet while others were studying for their Bar Mitzvahs and high school entrance exams. All learning was by rote. A Rabbi would read a passage appropriate for a group and its students would repeated it over and over until they learned it. The rabbi would move to another group and repeat the process. Soon all would be reciting their assigned material at once producing an unimaginable cacophony. That any learning could take place was astonishing, but learn they did. Whole passages of the Bible and the Talmud were learned by heart. Thus Tevye was able to quote so much from the "good books" and also why, with the passage of time, he frequently misquoted. The older boys worked hard, spending 10-12 hours a day in this school. They didn't complain because it was all they knew.

Very few could continue school after the cheder. From 1827-1917 Jewish boys, starting at age 12, were required to spend 25 years in army. (There was no such requirement for other Russian boys.) Those who could continued their education did so in the synagogue. Often very poor, some were housed in the synagogue itself and ate with a different family every day of the week. Others were "kept-son-in-laws": a well-to-do Jew would marry his daughter to a poor student and contract to support him for a certain number of years while he studied the sacred books. Jewish boys finished school well versed in the Bible and the Talmud but probably did not study the modern commentaries on them. They certainly had almost no knowledge of science or history other than that of the Jews, and they were exposed to almost nothing of world affairs. Their world was very circumscribed. They knew enough basic Russian to deal with their neighbors but those who were fluent were viewed with suspicion by other Jews. The only music most knew was that of the prayers. A few would be able to continue studies in a yeshiva. Again this concentrated on the Holy Books and prepared students to become rabbis.

Some of these boys began to hunger for what their contemporaries in the Russian schools were learning: history, other languages, even poetry and novels, and life in the wide world beyond the Pale. In the Russian high schools only ten percent of the students could be Jewish, and the entrance exams were stringent. Not only were nine year old Jewish boys required to know as much as thirteen year old Russians, but even if they knew the answers to the questions, they were subject to biased grading, and there was no appeal. As a results, those whose families could afford it, usually had tutors at home to prepare them for the entrance examinations. For those who got in, school was one injustice after another, and the same conditions existed in the universities.

After school, the only "professions" open to an educated Jewish boy were the teaching of younger students, and helping poorly educated men deal with legal forms etc. (Some had secret baptisms so they could have other careers.) Many, like Perchik taught the girls in a family. Since it was widely believed that girls did not need to be able to read, that was the only education for most. There were Russian public schools for girls, but admissions and conditions paralleled those for the boys. It might seem that Jews had little chance of entering the upper class or even the middle class. Yet some did, as shown by those whom Tevye met in Aleichem's stories.

Yet Jews have always had a love a learning and found ways to get an education. In spite of the restrictions, in 1897, among all citizens over ten years old, the literacy rate among Jewish was 67% against 39% for all men who live in Russian and even Jewish women had a literacy rate of 37% compared to 17% for all women.

Daily Life
Almost every moment of the Tevye's life is regulated by religion and tradition. God is everywhere and, as Tevye knows, is always ready to listen. The dairy man, has an intimate relation with Him, using Yiddish, rather than Hebrew to communicate with Him. (Arguing with God is a Jewish tradition going back to the time of Abraham.) There are prayers to be said at set times during the day and some of them take a long time. Cleanliness is very important and ritual washing is required by some groups before the Sabbath or other holidays. On the Sabbath he can not even light a fire. (The lighting of the candles on Friday night is just before the Sabbath begins.) Even if he could have afforded it, Tevye would never eat forbidden meat. He blesses God every time he eats or even drinks water. He does not understand modern Jews who do not obey all the laws.

Men usually wear dark jackets and trousers especially on Holy Days and they always wear hats. One signature feature of dress is the tzitzit or fringe as prescribed in the Bible (Numbers 15:38) "speak to the children of Israel and tell them that they make them fringes on the borders of their garments throughout their generations. " (See the picture on the home page.) In it Tevye is wearing a tallit katan, a type of poncho with a hole for the head. Such a garment is often worn under the shirt with only the long string or tzitzit showing. Men often wear prayer shawls, especially at the Sabbath meal and in the synagogue. Shaving is forbidden so all men have beards and some have earlocks, often hidden. Women wear long skirts and sleeves past the elbow and married women cover their heads with a wig or a scarf.

Jewish children do not play. By age six they know life is serious. They did not have time to explore nature or "hang out"with friends.

Most Eastern European Jews lived in small cities or shtetls where life remained medieval until the twentieth century. There were many fines for Jews that did not apply to Gentiles who lived there. Since their religion was so important, the synagogue was the center of Jewish life. Those who lived in larger cities, like Perchik in Kiev, had a broader view and began to lose their Jewish traditions and adapt new ways as did those who joined the army.

An important tradition was Shidduch or Matchmaking. Although thought of today as a woman, such as Yente in Fiddler, the matchmaker (shadcham) in Aleichem's stories is a man. The tradition goes back to the Biblical Abraham who used a matchmaker to arrange a marriage for his son Isaac (Genesis 24). It was always the father who made the match; the mother usually had not part in it. It was very important that everyone marry and marry within the faith. A woman whose to marry a non-Jew was considered dead to the entire community. Thus, the matchmaker, who had more contacts within the community than any familly did, was very important.

Garrulousness was the greatest strength of Eastern European Jews. It was one of their few weapons against their adversaries and Tevye is certainly garrulous as he tells his stories to Sholem Aleichem.

In spite of their problems the Jews of the Pale loved life as illustrated by the song L'Chaim - To Life in Fiddler.

Hasidic: The "Good Jews" referred to by Tevye were the traditional orthodox Hasidic Jews of Eastern Europe. (When the early Jews migrated from Palestine, they took two routes. One group went west along the Mediterranean, many ending in Spain. These came to be known as Sephardic Jews. The other group went north and west through was is now Eastern Europe and Germany. These were the Ashkenazi and many of those who settled in Eastern Europe became Hasidic.) The term appliedr most Jews of the shtetl, but times were changing, especially in the large cities such a Kiev, and many Jews were giving up the old traditions and religious observances. As a result, there was a great debate in Russia under communism about how to classify Jews. Were they a nation or an ethnic group. (These were treated differently at the time.) Although they are minority among Jews today, there are still communities of Hasidic Jews in the United States, mostly descended from those to emigrated at the turn of the century. They are concentrated in New York and Los Angeles, and there are many in Israel.

Torah: The Torah consists of the Five Books of Moses (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy), the first five books of the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament in Christian Bibles). They tell the early history and laws of the Jews. The laws especially were very important.

Talmud: Since the history and laws are so important, they have long been the subject of study and discussions among learned Jews. Originally these discussions were transmitted orally but after the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem in 70 CE, it was necessary to find a better way to transmit and disperse them, and they were collected in written form in what is call the Talmud. In Tevye's time all Jewish boys were expected to be able to read the Torah, but the Talmud was for those in high school and college or preparing to be a rabbi. Its study is still very important for Orthodox Jews.

Shtetl: The Yiddish form of the German Städtl or "little city". Most Jews living in the Pale were not allowed to live in either small villages or large cities. Instead, in the early nineteenth century, they were forced to move to small cities of which there were about 2,000 in the region. For a good description of life in a shtetl with pictures, go to
http://www.templesanjose.org/JudaismInfo/history/shtetl.htm

Jerusalem, Diaspora and Zionism: There is a plethora of material on the internet on these subjects so all that will be given at this link is a short outline with ideas for further searches.

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Revised February 2011
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