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30.MaurycyGottlieb:KAhasuerus’,1876,oiloncanvas,NationalMuseuminKraków
therevengerofthewrongsdonetoJewsthroughoutthewholeofmedievalWesternEu-
rope.ItisimpossiblenottoacknowledgethisaspectofShylock.”17InCShylockandJessica)
GottliebjuxtaposestwoopposingattitudestowardsJewishtradition-oneofidentifica-
tion(Shylockrepresentingatypemouldedbythecenturies-olduncertaintyoflifein
thediaspora),andtheotherofassimilation(JessicadepartingintotheChristianworld).
Paintingaself-portraitin1877,Gottliebmadereferencetothedualitywithinthe
archetypeofAhasuerus[ill.30].Aduality,becausereferringtotwodiscreetindividuals,
eachofwhomexpressedadifferentrangeofinterpretations-AhasuerusastheWander-
ingJew,thesymbolofthehomelessnessofanation,andAhasuerustheBiblicalKing
ofPersia,whosemarriagetoEstherensuredfreedomandprivilegesfortheJews.Inthis
self-portraitthisdualityappearsintheformofaseriesofdichotomies-povertyand
wealth,thetragedyoffate,andgoodfortune,andfinallythemiseryofthepresentin
comparisonwithamagnificentpast.Anatmosphereofsorrow,anexpressionofsuffering
onthefaceandtheblacknessofamourningcostume,arejuxtaposedwiththeattrib-
17B.Zawadzki:KWystawasztukpięknychweLwowie’(KTheexhibitionoffineartsinLwów’),Bie-
siadaLiteracka,1877,no.98,p.314.
marekantokolskiandmaurycygottlieb
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