tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3458341.post1600453637150639868..comments2024-01-06T10:36:04.084-05:00Comments on A Commonplace Blog: SingermannD. G. Myershttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10659136455045567825noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3458341.post-78242270647988970332010-07-05T13:46:57.289-04:002010-07-05T13:46:57.289-04:00What you say about stores is true even of the part...What you say about stores is true even of the part of West Texas that I write about. And I might add that there is a little-noticed and respected Jewish shopkeeper in To Kill A Mockingbird.Shelleyhttp://dustbowlpoetry.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3458341.post-16209087194851438552010-07-02T14:38:16.019-04:002010-07-02T14:38:16.019-04:00About twelve or thirteen years ago, Rabbi David Os...About twelve or thirteen years ago, Rabbi David Ostrich, formerly of Pensacola and now in Pennsylvania, talked with me (during a classroom discussion) about the dilemma faced by Jewish merchants in American history. Faced with the responsibility of providing for themselves and their families, Jewish merchants who owned and operated businesses in American towns and cities had to open their stories on Friday evenings and Saturdays because the overwhelmingly Christian population used those times for their weekly shopping trips; however, the Jewish merchants also had to contend with seemingly inflexible imperatives from the Torah to keep the Sabbath holy. As Rabbi Ostrich noted, this was not an easily resolved problem, even though it had been an issue for centuries (in the U.S., Europe, and elsewhere). Obviously, how the merchants resolved that dilemma (one that continues today) is fertile territory for fictional representation. Does the author you talk about deal with that topic? Do other authors?R/Thttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07791522136032565027noreply@blogger.com