Isaac B. Singer
Page 650
Born in Poland
 Jewish (wrote in Yiddish—language of
some Eastern European Jews and their
descendants)
 Short stories, novels, and essays that
capture the lessons of everyday life
 Won the Nobel Prize for Literature in
1978
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The media often show the elderly in
unrealistic or unflattering ways.
List 3 examples of older characters in movies
or on TV shows, or commercials:
What are some positive contributions that the
elderly make to our society?
Gentiles: any persons not Jewish; in
this case, specifically Christians
 groschen: Austrian cent or penny (this
section of Poland ruled by Austria in
the early 1900’s)
 rancor: deep hatred or bitter hate
 obstinacy: stubbornness
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What type of essay is “The Washwoman?”
What is it about the Washwoman that Isaac
Singer admired most?
What does the Washwoman stand for (what
do her hands represent)?
How do we know that Singer and his mother
are concerned about the Washwoman?
What passage conveys Singer’s feeling that
the Washwoman was an extraordinary person
and deserves to be rewarded for all of her
hard work and dedication?
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What type of essay is “The Washwoman?”
◦ narrative essay
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What is it about the Washwoman that Isaac
Singer admired most?
◦ her strength and dedication to her work
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What does the Washwoman stand for (what
do her hands represent)?
◦ Author believes that it is human nature to strive to
overcome obstacles– her hands represent this
“stubbornness” (653)
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How do we know that Singer and his mother are
concerned about the Washwoman?
“We mourned, both for the laundry and for the
old, toil-worn washwoman who had grown close
to us through the years she served us so
faithfully” (654).
What passage conveys Singer’s feeling that the
Washwoman was an extraordinary person and
deserves to be rewarded for all of her hard work
and dedication?
“I cannot imagine paradise without this Gentile
washwoman. I cannot even conceive of a world
where there is no recompense for such effort”
(655).