Anzia Yezierska’s Bread Givers

Anzia Yezierska’s Bread Givers attacks several social norms of both her

traditional Polish homeland and the American life her protagonist has come

to know. Clearly autobiographical, Bread Givers boldly questions why certain

social and religious traditions continue throughout the centuries without

the slightest consideration for an individual’s interests or desires. Sara’s

traditional Jewish upbringing exposed her to a life dominated by patriarchal

control; when she arrived in New York to seek out the American Dream, she

found that once again her gender would stand in the way of such desires. In

spite of these cultural barriers, her mother understood Sara’s burning quest

to break free from traditional molds: “…When she begins to want a thing,

there is no rest, no let-up till she gets it” (Yezierska PG).

What is the American Dream, and who are the people most likely to pursue its

often-elusive fulfillment? Indeed, the American Dream has come to represent

the attainment of myriad goals that are specific to each individual; while

one person might consider a purchased home with a white picket fence her

version of the American Dream, another might regard it as the financial

ability to operate his own business. Clearly, there is no cut and dried

definition of the American Dream as long as any two people hold a different

meaning. What it does universally represent, however, is the opportunity for

people like Sara to seek out their individual and collective desires under a

political umbrella of democracy. “More and more I began to think inside

myself, I don’t want to sell [fish] for the rest of my days. I want to learn

something. I want to do something. I want some day to make myself for a

person and come among people” (Yezierska PG).

Driven to the United States by way of their oppressive homeland, Sara’s

family may have believed that this nation’s streets are paved with gold

where opportunities abound for lifelong prosperity, however, none of them

took the initiative to find out for themselves. Rather, they were content to

scrape out a meager living just to have adequate food on the table and a

roof over their heads. Sara would have none of this, realizing early on that

if she wanted to make something of herself she would have to work many times

harder than her male counterpart – a sacrifice s…

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…to comment upon them. The

author’s courageous attempts to conquer the timeworn gender bias within

American society are highly commendable. She dares to dispute the idea of

patriarchy through sincerity and a passion burning from within as a means by

which to help her female counterparts recognize the unbalanced

responsibilities of womanhood. Yezierska’s words speak clearly and with a

boldness that surpasses expression. Her recognition that women possess so

much more within their souls than merely remaining the oppressed female

counterpart of an egotistical male is startling.

Carrying forth the burden that has plagued women for centuries, Yezierska’s

Bread Givers attempts to alter the historical concept of patriarchy within

the boundaries of Western epistemology. In the author’s opinion, the age-old

gender molds are ripe for revamping and bringing into the present frame of

consciousness. No longer are women to be made to suffer through an

oppressive existence simply because it is mandated by religious; rather,

Yezierska paints a new picture of a strong, intelligent woman who will not

be coerced by the irrational expectations of an oppressive, patriarchal

society.