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| Plot Summary of Bread Givers |
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"At the start of this novel, Sara Smolinsky is an immigrant child growing up on New York's lower east side with her parents and 3 sisters. Nicknamed “Blut und Isen” (Blood and Iron) by her father, she is strong-willed and determined to help ease the family's poverty stricken status. She collects coal ashes for heat and sells mackerel for 2 cents each. She longs for a better life, one where money and hunger is not the main issue of her life.
As she grows up, Sara watches her religious father who follows the ways of the old-country as he marries off each of her sisters to men with money (or the appearance of money) in order to insure a large dowry. She feels for her sisters as they push aside their hopes for a marriage of love and follow their father's will dutifully, yet spitefully. The determined Sara chooses a different path. She enrolls in the local night school and begins studying to become a schoolteacher. She leaves her parents and attends college where she earns a degree in education and obtains a job teaching in a New York elementary school. Sara succeeds in her quest for the American Dream and eventually learns to deal with her father and wins his support.
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Samantha S., Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of Bread Givers |
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Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about books by breaking them down into many different literary elements, all of which are searchable (click here).
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Tone of book?
- thoughtful
Time/era of story
- 1900-1920's
Inside culture (main char)
- Jew
Other aspects:
- immigrant story
Poverty, surviving
Yes
Kind of living:
- general poverty story
Internal struggle/realization?
Yes
Struggle over
- religious issues
Culture clash?
- family young v. old guard
Is this an adult or child's book?
- Adult or Young Adult Book
Outside culture (society)
- American Northeast
If story of urban/rural...
- Big city life
Ethnic/regional/gender life
Yes
Main Character
Gender
- Female
Profession/status:
- teacher
Age:
- 20's-30's
Is this an ordinary person caught up in events?
Yes
Ethnicity/Nationality
- Jewish
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Main Adversary
Identity:
- Male
Age:
- 60's-90's
Profession/status:
- scholar
How much of work is main antagonist actually present in:
- an above average amount
How sensitive is this character?
- hard edged
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Setting
United States
Yes
The US:
- Northeast
City?
Yes
City:
- New York
Misc setting
- moving train
Style
Person
- mostly 1st
Amount of dialog
- significantly more descript than dialog
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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