Stern College for Women - Kochaviah Yearbook (New York, NY)

Page 24 text:

I often think how wonderful it is that man cannot regulate the seasons, for in the city, everything except the vendor ' s cut flowers seems to be built to last forever, and when the nights grow shorter one may realize that forever is merely a man made term to express the will of G-d. Spring bares the city, for it is in spring that her weaknesses are revealed. Her chimneys offer warmth in winter, but in spring she offers what? What is spring in th e city? What happens when the winds start to play a different, lighter, more musical air — when the evenings are beautiful violin concertos, that quick- en the heartbeat and cause the heart to ache with an indefinable longing for an undefined thing. Spring is cotton dresses and the ice cream bell. Spring is the green in the shop windows and the fifty cents cut- flowers. The city puts on a good show to mark spring. Fifth Avenue knows how to act — tweed for fall, wool for winter — cotton for spring. It is indescribably sad in spring. I ache to see a tuft of timothy, growing haphazardly among last year ' s leaves, but if one crumples green crepe paper in a certain way, and spreads it carefully around, it resembles grass — well ordered and according to rule. The city tries so hard to make spring! trial and error ' chaim weizman A BOOK REVIEW BY SYLVIA HOITENBERG Jew or Gentile, Zionist or non-Zionist, any reader conscious of the present cosmic struggle to create a future will find Chaim Weizmann ' s Trial and Error worthwhile reading. This autobiography traces the steps by which an insignificant Russian-Jew became one of the world ' s greatest statesmen. In 1874 the well-to-do Weizmann family, living in a forlorn corner of White Russia, welcomed another child into their family. Chaim Weizmann, a bright and eager student, began his education at the age of four, in a squalid one room school, equipped with a teacher, numerous children, and the family goat. This the author affectionately calls his cheder , and to it attributes his sharp intellectual powers. He left his comfortable family at any early age to further his studies in a school of higher education, and began his extensive work in chemistry. After a brilliant college career, he became a teacher and at that point devoted himself most avidly to Zionism. The great Zionist reveals in his life story how he stepped from the ghetto to enlightening education, then on to be a brilliant chemist and teacher, and finally to be one of our greatest humanitarians as President of the State of Israel. The history of Zionism and the birth of the modern Jewish nation unfold before our eyes in Trial and Error. We read about the trials and tribulations and glories and exultation of the struggling nation, and our hearts yearn for the realization of its dreams. This book is a stirring chapter in the life of a race that passed through more vicissitudes than any other people. We live with Israel from its birth, through its struggle for existence, until its glorious realization and maturity. Without a doubt. Trial dial Error is the complete and excellent history of Zionism. Weizmann leaves nothing out in his account and provides thorough yet concise in- formation. The pages are crammed with the names, dates, and places that played an important part in the birth of the nation. Vivid glimpses of great persons and his- torical data comprise most of the book. In fact, the world ' s political greats such as Herzl, Zangwill and Rothschild take precedence over Weizmann himself, and out author is lost in the background of his autobiography. His modesty is outstanding and, speaking very little about his own great accomplishments, he lets his achievements speak for themselves. Perhaps the book would have been more interesting and pleasurable reading, had the author presented more details of his own illustrious career.

Page 23 text:

I remember the moment distinctly, continued the Monster. I was then swimming off Tasmania, Gibraltar, the south shore of Lake Erie and within sight of bathers on Wakiki Beach. The thought came to me suddenly that I was not obsolete even if I was old. I saw men reviving many customs, practices and beliefs from the past — all the way back from the centuries, from the jungle, from the primeval slime. Here was somebody trying to get back to Robespierre. Here was somebody else trying to get back to the Roman Empire. And on every hand were clubbings and shootings and hangings and decapitations. Children were being taught to laugh at notions like human brotherhood and human freedom, and instead were drilled in gas masks and hand grenades. So I looked around and said to myself, Why, I ' m not out of date, after all. I belong. I fit in With so many monstrous things about, why not a Sea Monster? ' And here I am. How about your plans for the Summer? asked the reporter. Oh, I suppose the usual thing, answered the Monster, turning to depart. Atlantic City, Cape of Good Hope, Copenhagen, Puget Sound, and Valparaiso. You newspapers ought to make the cable companies give you a flat rate on me. signs of spring by DVORA ABRAMSON Even along Fifth Avenue, I try to find the signs of spring. The calendar testifies that it is past the spring equinox, and the nights are shorter than the days, but spring manifests itself in odd ways in the city. The city knows that it is spring and it prepares itself accordingly. Everything is well ordered and according to rule. The department stores display their new stock of cottons and surround their dummies with green paper. The people also know that n is spring, and they dutifully wear cotton and remark, What fine weather we ' re having , or Spring is here at last! , and the last statement has much truth in it, for many days have passed since March 21. Spring lias chased the hot-chestnuts vendor from the corners of Fifth Avenue, and the people celebrate the changing of the seasons with a black raspberry ice cream cone. The ice cream vendor pro- claims spring with bells, and at almost ev iv other corner one may see- ice cream wrappings protruding from the tops ami sides of the trashcans, and the sound of the city is the voice of the ice cream bell. I passed a flower vendor on Fifth Avenue who offered daffodils, a dozen for sixty-five cents and forsythia, a bunch for fifty cents. I thought how beautiful they looked, and how odd it was that here they priced even beauty. This much beauty costs so much, and a different color costs more. But what is beauty? I know that one can find beauty in the arch of a bridge and in the various manifestations of man ' s brain, but oik loses sight of the true value ol things when he stares too long at tempered steel. It is easy to see G-d in daffodils, but only one who knows daffodils tan see G-d in the frame oi .1 skyscraper. I am glad that I know daffodils.

Page 25 text:

The highlights of his own personal life are omitted and the book seems to lack a dimension of depth. We become thoroughly acquainted with the life of the Jewish nation, but remain somewhat ignorant of the personal life of the author. We realize that this was a man of warmth, perception, and sympathy, as well as tenacity and a for- midable controversialist, but throughout the book we feel a lack of personal warmth and experience. Weizmann began the book with wonderful wit in describing his boyhood and family, but lost the touch amidst his own enchantment by the story of Zionism. Trial and Error is dry, detailed, and heavy reading, but it is excellent research material, and should be recommended highly for college and public libraries. It is not the type of book for popular consumption unless interest in the material can outweigh the heavy reading. In comparison with other biographies the book can be criticized severely for its lack of that vital personal touch. Meyer W. Weisgal, author of Chaim Weizmann. wrote a biography that in my estimation outshines Weizmann ' s own life story. The book shines with vitality, intimacy, and an inner illumination. The author presents Chaim Weizmann in all of his glorious aspects, statesman, scientist, and builder of the Jewish Commonwealth. Weisgal com- bines a number of essays on Weizmann by various writers that fuse into a biographical portrait of immense distinction and fascination. Rarely does a collection of this nature achieve so high a level of content and expression. Here we see Weizmann more clearly as a personality, while in Trial and Error we gain more knowledge of the personality of the Jewish nation. Chaim Weizmann is light yet educational reading. Trial and Error is deep and factual. The two books are both profitable reading each in its own way. Who is better equipped to tell the story of Zionism than Israel ' s first president? Who can give us a fuller account of Israel than the man who devoted himself wholly to its realization.- 1 7 rial and Error may not be appreciated by all. M any may find its pages too detailed for enjoyable reading. But it will nevertheless remain an outstanding book, written by an unforgettable man. Saadia Gaon ' s Opposition To Karaism By JUDITH OCHS A TERM PAPER About the middle of the eighth cen- tury C. E , there arose a schismatic group in Judaism — the Karaites — which was opposed by contemporary Jewish leaders. The most prominent among these leaders was Saadia ben Joseph (892?-942), Gaon of Sura, and vigorous champion of the Rabbanite cause. Besides his writ- ings on Jewish philosophy and law, Saadia wrote several anti-Karaite I re.i tises which did much to stem the tide of Karaism 1 Karaism based itself solely on the lit- eral interpretation of Scripture; it re- jected the oral tradition and the ralmudi- cal interpretation embodying it. 2 Aside from this rejection of the au- thority of the Talmud, there is no essen- tial difference between Rabbanite and K.ir.mitc theology. 3 However this variant belief led to radical differences in religi- 0US practice. ' For example. Karaites and Kahbanites celebrated the Holy Days On different dates. 3 It is therefore essential to bear in mind that it was always the differences in practice, not in dogma, that sustained divisions in Israel. Hence, the presence among Jews of a group with revolutionary religious prac- tices could in. i long remain unchallenged. In the very beginning, the Rabbis had been inclined to ignore the Karaites, and like the ostrich, they put their heads into the ground in the vain hope that the attacker would disappear, Their attitude was that there had been many such here- tic groups among the Jews in the past which had disappeared. Surely the same fate lay in store tor Karaism. But their early hopes were noi realized The Karaite movement gained momen- tum. Soon the rapid spread of Karaism made some action by the Rabbis man-