User:ElizBuga/Tevye the Dairyman

Tevye the Dairyman is a collection of eight short stories following the life of the main character, Tevye. Written in Yiddish by Solomon Naumovich Rabinovich (whose pen name is Sholem Aleichem), the collection of stories have now been translated into many languages such as English. Writing the stories went from 1895-1914. The eight stories associated with Tevye are often published in collections including other short stories by Aleichem, such as Tevye the Dairyman and Motl the Cantor's Son. Fiddler on the Roof is adapted from the stories of Tevye.

Tevye The Dairyman* Plot Summaries[edit]
* Spelling varies depending on translation. The following stories are based on Tevye the Dairyman and Motl the Cantor's son, translated by Aliza Shevrin.

The Great Windfall (1895)[edit]
The first story of the eight, "The Great Windfall" begins with Tevye explaining his belief in God. He believes that everything good that happens is because of God's plan, and he must continue believing that. Tevye comes across two women in the woods and reluctantly agrees to bring them to Boiberik. After the long journey, Tevye is expecting money for his troubles and gets spoiled by the family and friends of the two women. They fed his horse (who had been struggling the entire journey), packed food for his family, and paid him 37 rubles, a huge sum for him. A grateful Tevye then went on his way home to share with Golde, his wife, the riches that just fell upon him. Thanks to God, his fortune had changed completely and he became a rich man. Onve home, Tevye and Golde discuss future plans, eventually settling on starting a business selling dairy products door to door to different towns, providing them convenience that they expect and can afford. All is looking good for Tevye and his family.

The Roof Falls In (1899)[edit]
Immediately, Tevye notices a difference in how he is being treated now that he is a rich man. He goes on a rant about how he is deeply unsettled by how many people are now pretending to be his friend. One day, while Tevye is selling dairy in Yehupetz, he runs into Menachem-Mendl, who goes on to explain that he can not obtain legal papers to live in Yehupetz. Tevye invites Menachem-Mendl to his house for the night. Over dinner, they discuss Menachem-Mendl's ability to create more money. If Tevye was to give Menachem-Mendl 100 rubles, he would invest it and create a great return that they would then split 50-50. Golde and Tevye talk and agree to trust Menachem-Mendl with their money. A week from that night, they were planning to reunite and spread riches.

Tevye's doubt grew by the day, fearing that Menachem-Mendl was a liar, but he also began imagining what the great increase in income could be like. A week later, Tevye goes back to Yehupetz, but Menachem-Mendl was nowhere to be found. The townspeople laughed at Tevye and informed him that Menachem-Mendl is a "crook." When they came face to face, Tevye did not yell. He was disappointed and Menachem-Mendl was ashamed. Their conversation was short. Tevye lost all the money that he entrusted Menachem-Mendl with, but he was even more upset because his main dream of becoming rich disappeared in a flash.

Today's Children (1899)[edit]
Tevye's beginning message in "Today's Children" is about the purpose of parent and child in each others lives. In the story, Golde tells Tevye to visit Lazer-Wolf, the butcher in Anatevka, because he had been asking for him. When Tevye arrives, he is immediately shocked by the luxury of Lazer-Wolf's living circumstances, dreaming of that for his kids. Lazer-Wolf asks for Tzeitl's hand in marriage. Tevye ends up agreeing because Lazer-Wolf was rich, could provide for their family, and he also did not ask for a dowry. Golde approved, but once Tzeitl found out she was distraught and burst into tears. She had no desire to marry a disgusting butcher that was much older than her. Seeing his daughter cry, Tevye rejected the proposal immediately.

Motl, the tailor, talked to Tevye and proposed the wedding continue on, this time with him as the groom. He reveals that he has been engaged to Tzeitl for over a year. Tevye convinces Golde by fabricating a dream where his grandma turned into Lazer-Wolf and then tried to kill Tzeitl. This was enough to fool Golde, and they were then all on board with Tzeitl and Motl's marriage. Tzeitl and Motl lived happily together, without luxury.

Hodl (1904)[edit]
A frequent topic of discussion between Golde and Tevye was how they would marry all of their daughters off, specifically Hodl. Tevye runs into Perchik, a poor man taking classes in Yehupetz. He shares his political opinions, including equality for everyone. For the time and location, Perchik's political views could be seen as communist, or a strong liberal. Tevye was still desperate to find a husband for his daughters. One day, Hodl and Perchik, coming out of the woods together, run into Tevye. They could no longer hide their love and instead ask Tevye for a wedding to be completed as soon as possible. Tevye obliges. Soon after, Perchik is escorted to the train station and departs Boiberik.

Weeks go on, until Hodl finally recieves a letter from Perchik. He reveals to her that he is in prison. Instead of answering Tevye's questions, Hodl tells her father that she has to leave him forever to be with her husband. Hodl is clearly in love with Perchik. She was ready to do anything for him, including following him to wherever he was. Tevye lies to the rest of the family about where Hodl is going. The entire family embraced and cried (except for Tevye) that night. As Hodl departs at the train station in Boiberik, Tevye finally bursts into tears as he realizes that his daughter is all grown up and leaving their family into the unknown.

Chava (1906)[edit]
"Chava" begins with back and forth dialogue between Tevye and God. Tevye has many questions that he attempts to answer himself. One night, Tevye walks in on Chvedka, a writer, and Chava, his third eldest daughter together. Chvedka is a gentile, while Tevye and his family are Jewish. Tevye disapproves of Chvedka for that reason, getting into an argument with Chava about why she should not be with him. Tevye visits the priest, who informs him that Chava has left. When Tevye got home, the family was in distress. Chava had indeed left with Chvedka, stunning Tevye.

Golde begs Tevye to go back to the priest, but he initially resists because he does not want to let a woman tell him what to do. The next day however, he goes back to the priest, but to no avail. The household went on like normal. Everyone went back to work, back to their duties. On a delivery trip, Tevye ran into Chava on the path but ignored her plea as he rode past her. He kept the interaction to himself, and continued living the life that he had.

Shprintze (1907)[edit]
This story begins with Tevye describing how people have been rapidly moving into Boiberik, Yehupetz, and surrounding villages. Katerineslav, a widow, and Ahronchik, her son, are one such family. They quickly became one of Tevye's regular dairy customers. On Shavuot, Ahronchik visits Tevye's house. Ahronchik comes back to visit once again, this time asking Tevye if he can marry his daughter, Shprintze. Recognizing that Ahronchik and Shprintze have a mutual love, Tevye agrees to their marriage, thinking that they will both be happy.

Once they hear the news, Ahronchik's extended family arrives. They accuse Tevye of only agreeing to the marriage for the money once they realize that Tevye is not as well off as their family. The wedding is rejected by Ahronchik's family, and everyone is sad again. Tevye is upset that there are bad people in the world, when everyone has the option of being good. As he arrives back home from his deliveries on one particular evening, there is a crowd of people surrounding Tevye's home. Golde runs out yelling her daughters name. Shprintze drowned herself due to her sorrow.

Tevye is Going to Eretz Yisroel (1909)[edit]
Lots of time has passed, and now Tevye is on a train traveling. His wife Golde has passed away. He tells a story of how one day in Yehupetz, he runs into Ephraim the matchmaker. Tevye asks for a husband for his youngest daughter, Beilke, to which Ephraim suggests Podhotsur, an old contractor. Tevye agrees, but Beilke is much more reluctant. Night after night, she sobs into her pillow at the thought of marrying Podhotsur. Ultimately, they end up marrying each other.

One day, they invite Tevye over to visit. The contrast in financial situations is immediately obvious. The spread of food is greater, the house is full of luxurious items, everything that Tevye dreamed of one day being able to provide for his daughter. During the dinner, Podhotsur pulls Tevye aside to discuss Tevye quitting his dairy business. Losing the title "Tevye the Dairyman," followed by moving to a new country, so that Tevye is no longer attached to Beilke, a new member of Podhotsur's family. Beilke feels guilty because Tevye only has to leave to Eretz Yisroel (Israel) because of her. Tevye sold off everything he had built with his business, taking off for Eretz Yisroel, where he is now on the train.

Get Thee Gone (1914)[edit]
In the final story, "Get Thee Gone," even more time has passed in Tevye's life. He never makes it to Eretz Yisroel because right as he was about to cross the line, he receives news that Motl, Tzeitl's husband passes away. He returns to take care of his daughter. Following that, the once rich Podhotsur has lost all of his money, moving to America with Beilke. Tevye is visited by Ivan, the gentile mayor, and a group of people that tell him they are there to beat him up. He is later visited by the Constable, who tells him to sell his house, because he must leave the village.

Historically, this was a time of pogrom, and Tevye's village was no exception. Tevye and other Jewish people in the village, such as Lazer-Wolf, were being forcibly expelled from their homes. Tevye sells his house to Ivan since he has to move quickly, given only three days to move out by the constable. Explaining this to Tzeitl, she bursts into tears. She confesses that Chava, who Tevye had previously cast out from the house was back. Tevye and Chava see each other again for the first time, and eventually Tevye forgives her, as she is his daughter. "Get Thee Gone" concludes with Tevye leaving for his grandchildren.

Themes
Many themes in the stories of Tevye the Dairyman overlap each other. Tevye is the father who grew up in a traditional, Jewish household. However, Tevye is raising his daughters in a time of cultural change, which forces him to confront religion in a different way. The stories mainly explore Judaism, but gentiles also appear in certain stories. Religion is central to Tevye's life. Furthermore, Sholem Aleichem frequently has Tevye quote Jewish sources in Arabic, but with improper timing or incorrect analysis from Tevye. Some critics have interpreted these "misplaced" quotations as simply incorrect, while other critics believe it intentionally adds to the humor of Tevye. Humor also plays an important role as a coping mechanism for the characters to use as they go through hardships.

As the father of the family, Tevye gets to make decisions about marriage for his daughters, which impacts other elements such as the political and physical plots of the stories. Tevye's daughters are all worthy of marriage, and are forced into that role as they are women living in late 19th, early 18th century Eastern Europe. Unfortunately, Tevye lives in his own world, which hurts him and characters around him as he struggles to make decisions that a father at the time would make. Being the man of the household is difficult for Tevye. He balances love and tolerance throughout all the stories, as he struggles to meet expectations and make his family happy.

Themes in Tevye the Dairyman include but are not limited to religion, tradition vs modernity, love, and gender roles.

Characters[edit]
Other characters:


 * Menachem-Mendl - Crook in Yehupetz, lost Tevye 100 rubles.
 * Lazer-Wolf - Butcher in Anatevka, asked for Tzeitl's hand in marriage but was ultimately denied.
 * Katerineslav - Rich widow, moved into Yehupetz.
 * Ahronchik - Son of Katerineslav, loves Shprintze but family prevents him from marrying her.
 * Ephraim - Matchmaker in Yehupetz, frequently provides "matches" to Tevye for his daughters.