Language:
Hebrew
Year of publication:
2021
Titel der Quelle:
דרך ספר; שי לזאב גריס
Angaben zur Quelle:
(2021) 425-510
Keywords:
Zweifel, Eliezer,
;
Gematria
;
Censorship History 19th century
;
Haskalah History 19th century
Abstract:
The first volume of the literary anthology Knesset Israel, edited by Shaul Pinhas Rabinowitz (Shefer), was printed in Warsaw in October 1886. Shortly afterwards a second edition appeared, identical to the first, except for the addition of a short article by the venerable scholar Eliezer Zvi Zweifel, "The Nonsense of Numerology," mocking gematriot, which can be used to prove anything. The article was rewritten in a second edition with many changes and appeared under the title "Mountains Hanging from a Thread." Evidently the blatant title and content of the first edition angered conservative readers, who saw in it mockery of something sacred; Rabinowitz was afraid of losing readers and causing harm to the purpose of the collection – propaganda for Hibbat Zion that would attract as wide areadership as possible from the Jewish public to the idea of settling Eretz Israel –and decided to rewrite the article in order to soften its offensive message. The rewriter also took the opportunity to introduce additional changes and to replace the rabbinic language in which Zweifel wrote with biblical equivalents that conformed to the style of maskilim until that time. It is noteworthy that doing so was in direct opposition to the trend of departure from the constraints of biblical language and the transition to a more flexible style, influenced by rabbinic language, that began at the same time and took over the Hebrew language completely, shaping it until today.
Note:
With an English summary.
URL:
אתר את הפרסום בקטלוג המאוחד של ספריות ישראל
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