Summary Of Bread Givers By Anzia Yezierska

Bread Givers, written by Anzia Yezierska, is a story that took place on the Lower East Side of New York City during the 1920s. The story describes the struggles Sara Smolinsky, a Jewish immigrant, faces through out her life such as poverty, discrimination, oppressing patriarchal values, finding her identity while still being unaccepted by her father.
Sara Smolinsky was a young Jewish girl who came to America from a small Polish town before she was ten years old. Sara was the youngest of 4 daughters and her father, Reb Smolinsky, was an orthodox rabbi. Having no sons, Reb was very harsh and demeaning to his daughters. He blamed his wife, Shenah, for bearing him no son to honor his days and say prayers after he died. In Jewish tradition, women were seen as significantly less than equal to men. Yezierska stated in her book, “the prayers of his daughters did not count because God did not listen to women. Women could only get into heaven because they were the wives and daughters of men”, which indicated the superiority of men in society, following the theme of
The father engaged in conflict with all of his daughters, especially Sara. Sara’s eldest sister Bessie was over 25 years old and was still unmarried. She met a man one day named Berel Bernstein and was immediately determined to win him over. Bessie convinced Mashah to help her clean and beautify the house to impress Berel by fixing the chandelier with gold paper, tacking lace curtain around the sink, and adding a white oilcloth on the table. When Reb met Berel, he interviewed him with questions based on Berel’s income and faith. After arguing and fighting, Reb finally disapproved of Bessie continuing to see Berel. The next night, Berel asked Bessie to come with him despite her father’s discontent. Bessie remained loyal to her father and watched the man she loved walk away, leaving her lonely and