Bread Givers Themes

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Anzia Yezierska’s autobiographical novel Bread Givers focuses on the life of a Jewish family facing Americanization. Americanization is identifying with American traditions and culture in its place of prior, former customs. Yezierska represents the act of Americanization in her novel by concentrating on the events of the Smolinsky family encounters. Throughout the novel there are themes, which underline the act and process of Americanization. Anzia Yezierska highlights the meaning of Americanization by exhibiting the hunger to dream, the yearning of dependence, a wish to belong and the desire to be loved. The hunger to dream is visible in the novel with the main character Sara’s dream and desire for a better life than the one she has grown …show more content…
The oldest daughter Bessie is overworked and always home cooking and doing chores. Bessie’s mother Shenah, wishes for her to be married but her father Reb, holds onto her as a pay and meal ticket. Bessie, the “burden bearer” yearns for a life of her own but is manipulated by Reb into taking responsibility of her family as her obligation. Once Bessie is free from her current circumstance, she falls into the same life she had. Bessie ends up becoming a wife and a worker, trading “one burden for another with her marriage,” noted by …show more content…
Sara witnesses her sisters dreams vanish once their father steps in and arranges their marriages and long term, their lives. Sara leaves home because she knows if she has any chance at true happiness and fate she needs to be away from her father. Sara leaves home with objectives to find a job, her own place and attend night school. Sara gets a job and is able to pay her rent, her food and tuition. Sara’s longing for dependence becomes her reality and is able to do whatever it is she wants to do. With her father not being in the picture, Sara is not forced into any arranged marriages and is able to accomplish the goals she has set for herself in

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