Banished from their father's table: loss of faith and Hebrew autobiography

Abstract

In this work of literary history and criticism, Alan Mintz details the development of a new mode in Hebrew prose narrative - the autobiography. Against the historical background of the Haskalah (Enlightenment), Mintz explores the work of three key writers including: M. Z. Feierberg, M. Y. Berdichevsky, and Y. H. Brenner. At the turn of the century, these Hebrew writers found in autobiography a way of telling the truth about the realities of the self, its inner life, and its fate in a world void of God. Through careful examination of the Hebrew autobiographical tradition, Mintz provides not only new understanding of a literary genre but also access to a unique perspective on modern Jewish history.