במסתרי הסאטירה: פרקים בסאטירה העברית החדשה במאה היײט Bemisterei Hassatira [Mysteries of the Satire] (review)

Hebrew Studies 36 (1995) 244 Reviews and A. B. Yehoshua is addressed too, but from a feminist point of view. The second part, "By Women in Literature," is devoted to the voices of three women writers: Chava Rosenfarb, Ruth Almog and Amalia KahanaCarmon . Kahana-Carmon's article "The Song of the Bats in Flight" is most critical of male dominance in Jewish tradition. The high quality of the articles in this volume should be applauded. The dedication of the editors to the issues manifests itself in Anita Norich's fme introductory essay and in the third part of the book, dedicated to select, an:notated bibliographies. This interesting and challenging book opens new vistas into the problem of text and gender. Gila Ramras-Rauch Hebrew College Boston, MA 02146 ~"'n n~:l imiTMn n~ m'~~:l C'pi!) :m'~on 'iMOC:l BEMISTEREI HASSATIRA [MYSTERIES OF THE SATIRE] [Hebrew]. By Yehuda Friedlander. Vol. 3: Hebrew Satire in Europe in the Nineteenth Century. Pp. 234. Ramat-Gan: Bar-Dan University Press, 1994. Cloth. This book is the third volume in a series of studies by Yehuda Friedlander. This series aims to cast a comprehensive and lucid light on the evolution and provide a poetic portrait of the genre of satire in Hebrew Haskalah literature (1780-1870 in Eastern Europe). This volume focuses on two literary works of late Haskalah satire: Kineat Ha'emet (A Zeal for Truth) by Yehuda Leib Mizes and Mishnat Elisha ben-Abouya (The Ideas of Elisha ben-Abouya) by Moshe Leib Lilenbloom. While M. L. Lilenbloom chronologically belongs to the Halechiya (revival) literary period, which preceded the Haskalah, the aesthetic and ideological characteristics of his work undoubtedly connect him with Haskalah literature. While Kineal Ha'emel is a scholastic satire Mishnal Elisha ben-Abouya is a revolutionary satirical parody. Amalgamating these two satirical works under one roof is neither random nor arbitrary. Both of them effectively display the gap between an individualistic perspective of Judaism and the traditional, collective perspective . In each work the leading protagonist is a prominent figure in Hebrew Studies 36 (1995) 245 Reviews ancient Jewish thought, while being presented and portrayed as a desirable model for Haskalah ideas that fervently advocated social liberalism and scholastic openness to progressive secular European ideas. While the celebrated Jewish philosopher Maimonides (Moses ben-Maimon, 1135-1209) is the predominant protagonist in Mizes' Kineat Ha'emet, the well known Mishnaic Talmudic scholar of the first half of the second century C.E., Elisha ben-Abouya, is the leading character in Lilenbloom's Mishnat Elisha ben Abouya. Professor Friedlander discerns a change in European Jewish religiouscultural orientation during the transition from the first to the second half of the nineteenth century. This change materializes in the transition from the aristocratic orientation of Haskala, the one that primarily focuses upon philosophy and scholarship, to the folk, popular, and even socialistic Haskala that stresses the daily needs of the Jewish communities. As the philosopher Maimonides is associated with profound and highly intellectual Jewish philosophy while the Mishnaic-Talmudic scholar Elisha ben-Abouya is associated with deviation from Jewish strict scholarship, amalgamating the two satires under one roof makes more sense as it reflects that transition in Jewish perspectives during the nineteenth century in Europe. The book is divided into two parts: the first concentrates on Mizes' Kineat Ha'emet, the second concentrates on Lilenbloom's Mishnat Elisha ben-Abouya. Only the first satirical work is included in its complete form, while the second part includes a fragment of the comprehensive piece. Each is preceded by a most thorough, and detailed introduction. Each of the introductions simultaneously conducts two parallel tracks of investigation. Accordingly, while the introduction meticulously focuses upon aesthetic characteristics, it also illuminates the ideological and philosophical aspects invested in the satire under consideration. In this respect the book may be considered a highly meticulous and profound commentary on the two satires presented. It appears that the book's author mainly addresses a target audience of scholars. He takes for granted, for instance, that his reader is well acquainted with Maimonides' philosophical and scholastic orientation as well as with Elisha ben Abouya's both scholarly and personal background (which led...