Wielkie nadzieje i wielkie rozczarowania. Ameryka Szaloma Asza

Abstract

The subject of the main description in the article is a small novel by Szalom Ash, America, published in Yiddish in 1911 and translated into Polish in 1926. Apart from it, other works by Ash with an American theme appearing in them are also important, such as the novel Uncle Moses (1918) and East River (1946), in which the writer emphasized the described reality differently and more pessimistically and outlined the prospects for the presence of Jewish culture in the USA. In all literary approaches, Asz relied on his own experiences and thoughts, which gives his writing an autobiographical mark. On the other hand, he was a careful and critical observer of Jewish life in America, which means that his literary works can be perceived as a manifestation of social or even religious views. Additionally, it should be noted that Ash’s works with American themes contain elements of the artistic techniques of naturalism, realism and symbolism, which is visible in the creations of figures of a Jewish child, a traditional family and the emigration experience.