![\"Israelitas](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thebaronhirschcommunity.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/israelitas-no-rio-grande-do-sul.jpg?resize=253%2C361&ssl=1\")
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This post gives a description of the novels and memoirs left to us by early 20th Century Southern Brazilian farmers.\u00a0 They offer fascinating portrayals of Jewish immigrant life. The post includes visuals, links to more information and a list of references. We also\u00a0 include how to find both the original and secondary works \u00a0in libraries worldwide. Beginning in 1904 the Jewish Colonization Association (JCA), originally founded by Baron Hirsch<\/a>, settled thousands of immigrants in farming communities in southern Brazil.\u00a0 These farming communities in the state of Rio Grande do Sul never became successful, but their inhabitants did.<\/p>\n And they wrote memoirs and novels based on their experiences.<\/p>\n WORKS IN ENGLISH<\/strong><\/p>\n It is\u00a0 set among early twentieth-century settlers brought to this almost unknown Jewish farming experiment in an isolated corner of Brazil. Drama, joy, disasters, romance, and humor fill this autobiographical novel.<\/p>\n We watch the young hero travel from farms where the crops won\u2019t grow to towns where this Yiddish-speaking youth falls in love, befriends sons of German immigrants, studies philosophy with the Jesuits, and becomes an important member of Brazil\u2019s literary world.<\/p>\n This first English edition<\/a>\u00a0includes elucidating historical notes on the origin of Jewish farming communities in the U.S., Canada and South America by the translator, Merrie Blocker, a retired U.S. Foreign Service officer.<\/p>\n Check out the preface and first chapter here<\/a>.<\/p>\n The only other of these works available in English is Memories of a Jewish Girlhood in Southern Brazil<\/em><\/strong> by Martha Pargendler Faermann.\u00a0 It was\u00a0 originally published in Portuguese in 1990.\u00a0 Outside of Brazil this English version is only available in a few libraries<\/a>.<\/p>\n WORKS IN PORTUGUESE<\/strong><\/p>\n Filipson is a series of short stories describing life in the JCA\u2019s first colony, Philippson, named for the JCA\u2019s vice-president. Covering the period from 1906-1925, it was written in 1967 in Sao Paulo where the author had lived for many years.<\/p>\n Filipson describes the hardships of life in the colony, the lack of support from the JCA and the special difficulties of being female colonists. Boys could take trips to the cities, but girls needed to be accompanied. The only hope for these girls was to be chosen by a man who would take them to live in a city.<\/p>\n And several of the stories focus on the maintenance of traditional Jewish practices in this isolated area. In fact we learn that Jews in the nearby cities, who lived more assimilated lives, considered the colonies to be where real Judaism still survived.<\/p>\n For more on Frida Alexandr and Filipson read this article by the Coordinator of Portuguese Language Studies at the University of Maryland, Regina Igel and this wikipedia entry\u00a0https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Frida_Alexandr<\/a><\/p>\n And for a more in-depth discussion of Filipson<\/em><\/strong> and O COLONO JUDEU-A\u00c7U,<\/em><\/strong> the next book on our list, check out this dissertation by James Hussar, Chair, Department of Modern Languages and Literatures at California State University at Fullerton, Cycling through the Pampas<\/strong><\/em>. https:\/\/curate.nd.edu\/downloads\/h128nc60586<\/a><\/p>\n Ad\u00e3o Voloch was born in the Filipson colony in 1914. He moved to the Quatro Irm\u00e3os colony when he was ten years old. His father, who emigrated from Bessarabia, was very concerned with socio-economic justice and Ad\u00e3o followed in his footsteps.<\/p>\n Ad\u00e3o was quite a colorful character.1<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n With little formal education, having to leave school to work on the farm, he made his way first to Porto Alegre and then to Campos, a city in the state of Rio de Janeiro. He worked\u00a0 as a carpenter, salesman and handyman. But Communist ideology was his great love, and he became a member of the party.<\/p>\n In the late 1940s Voloch was elected vice-councilman in Rio.\u00a0 But, during Brazil\u2019s military dictatorship (1964-1985) he was imprisoned several times. Then his fortunes improved. At the end of his life (he died in 1991), \u00a0\u201cHe owned, along with his second wife, a medium-sized store that carried items for tourists, especially precious stones, located in the back of the Copacabana Palace\u00a0 \u00a0Hotel in Rio de Janeiro.\u201d\u00a02<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n O colono judeu-a\u00e7u \u2013 Romance da Col\u00f4nia Quatro Irm\u00e3os<\/em> <\/strong>(The Great Jewish Colonist , A\u00e7u means great in the native Tupi language \u2013 a Romance of the Quatro Irm\u00e3os Colony) \u00a0is the first in a trilogy by Voloch based on his own, as well as his father\u2019s, life. This first volume covers the years 1925-31.<\/p>\n Though based on the lives of real people, O colono judeu-a\u00e7u <\/em><\/strong>is a fictionalized cycle of tales\u00a0 depicitng\u00a0 life in the second Jewish Colonization Association (JCA) colony in Brazil, Quatro Irm\u00e3os. It is modeled on the life of Voloch’s father, Nathan. Voloch\u2019s protagonist, Nat\u00e1lio, who is in search of a \u201cway of life consistent with his Communist principles\u2026”\u00a0 wanders from [the JCA\u2019s] Argentine Basalvilbaso colony to Filipson and, finally, Quatro Irm\u00e3os. “The cycle’s eighteen stories document not only Nat\u00e1lio’s failure as a farmer, but also the struggle of Jewish immigrants who attempt to negotiate religious, ethnic, and national identity.\u201d3<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n The second in the series is Um Gaucho a Pe<\/em><\/strong> (A Gaucho on Foot) covering the years 1931-1947. It is centered on Arturo ( based on Ad\u00e3o Voloch himself) from the time he left Quatro Irm\u00e3os at age 17 until he dies as a political prisoner.<\/p>\n The third, Os Horizontes do Sol<\/em><\/strong> ( The Horizons of the Sun) begins in the late 19th Century and ends in the 1950s. Based on Voloch\u2019s own family\u2019s travels, it traces a Jewish family as it emigrates to London, then Argentina, then Santiago de Chile and finally southern Brazil. The book focuses a great deal on the effects of the diaspora on Jewish life and the experiences of assimilation in new lands.<\/p>\n Also in 1985, another former Filipson colonist published his memoirs \u2013 Jacques Schweidson who was actually the brother of Frida Alexandr, author of the\u00a0memoir Filipson<\/em><\/strong>. Schweidson wrote his memoir\u00a0Judeus de Bombachas e Chimarr\u00e3o<\/em><\/strong> to satisfy the curiosity of his granddaughter.<\/p>\n Schweidson\u2019s book describes the extreme hardships of the colonists who found living conditions much worse than the ones they had left behind in Eastern Europe. The author also criticizes the policies of the Jewish Colonization Association, which weren\u2019t quite helpful.<\/p>\n Schweidson spent most of his adult life in Florianopolis, a city in the state of Santa Catarina , about 375 miles northeast of Filipson. Florianopolis is the gateway to some of Brazil\u2019s loveliest beaches and here Schweidson opened a chain of dry good stores. Then, in the 1950s he developed one of the city\u2019s most important neighborhoods, Jardim Atlantico.<\/p>\n Schweidson was a well-known and admired citizen.<\/p>\n Three times a week, his stores, A Modelar ( To Model) sponsored a very popular radio program Sequencias A Modelar<\/em> ( The A Modelar<\/em> Combination). It was broadcast from an auditorium full of housewives, retired people and students with comic skits, music and other types of entertainment. Schweidson wrote many of the commercials himself. A Plaza in Florianopolis’\u00a0 center is named for him.4<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n ADDITIONAL WORKS BY IMMIGRANTS<\/strong>:<\/p>\n Other literary works describing the JCA colonies include<\/p>\n Israelitas no Rio Grande do Sul<\/em><\/strong> ( Israelites in Rio Grande do Sul) by Eva Nicolaiewsky, (Porto Alegre: Editora Garaliya) 1975.<\/p>\n Memorias de Phillipson <\/em><\/strong>by Guilherme Soibelman (S\u00e3o Paulo: Canopus) 1984.<\/p>\n Resgatando a memoria da primeira immigrac\u00e3o judaica para o Brasil, Colonia\u00a0<\/em>Phillipson, 1904\u00a0<\/i>\u00a0<\/strong>(Rescuing the memory of the first Jewish immigration to Brazil, the Phillipson Colony, 1904), by Ar\u00e3o Verba. (Brazil: Editora Evangraf) 1997.<\/p>\n FINDING THESE BOOKS<\/strong><\/p>\n Most of the books by immigrants \u00a0can be purchased online inexpensively by Brazilian\u00a0residents via \u00a0estantevirtual<\/a> o mercardolivre<\/a>. \u00a0 Sometimes used copies appear for sale on amazon.com<\/a> but they are usually expensive. The original books, and the secondary sources cited below, can also be found in libraries throughout the United States and other countries. To find a library for a particular book go to \u00a0 worldcat.org<\/a><\/p>\n This post gives a description of the novels and memoirs left to us by Brazilian Jewish Colonization Association colonists. They offer fascinating portrayals of Jewish immigrant life. The post includes visuals, links to more information and a list of references, including how to find both the original and secondary works in libraries worldwide.<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":274,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","_crdt_document":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[4390],"tags":[573886114,573886124,137323871,8353161,573886154,573886118,200560683,573886131,573886120,573886173,573886182,573886136,569446215,44231693,2407578,4132537,77642532,573886170,573886138,573886167,573886177,573886163,573886145,80641487,9912938,6221700,214430988,573886179],"class_list":["post-205","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-brazil","tag-adao-voloch","tag-arao-verba","tag-baron-hirsch","tag-copacabana-palace-hotel","tag-cycling-through-the-pampas","tag-eva-nicolaiewsky","tag-filipson","tag-frida-alexandr","tag-guilherme-soibelman","tag-israelitas-no-rio-grande-do-sul","tag-jacques-schweidson","tag-james-hussar","tag-jewish-colonization-agency","tag-jewish-farmers","tag-jewish-heritage","tag-jewish-immigrants","tag-jews-in-brazil","tag-judeus-de-bombachas-e-chimarrao","tag-marcos-iolovitch","tag-martha-pargendler-faermann","tag-memorias-de-phillipson","tag-memories-of-a-jewish-girlhood-in-southern-brazil","tag-o-colono-judeu-acu","tag-philippson","tag-phillipson","tag-quatro-irmaos","tag-regina-igel","tag-resgatando-a-memoria-da-primeira-imigracao-judaica-para-o-brasil"],"yoast_head":"\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thebaronhirschcommunity.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/Follow-button.png?resize=83%2C33&ssl=1\")
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\n<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thebaronhirschcommunity.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/9781644692981.jpg?resize=200%2C300&ssl=1\")
<\/em>The earliest of these works, On a Clear April Morning <\/strong><\/em>by Marcos Iolovitch, is now finally\u00a0 available<\/a> in English. On a Clear April Morning<\/strong><\/em>,<\/strong> originally published in Portuguese in 1940,\u00a0 is a lyrical and riveting coming of age story.<\/p>\n![\"Memoirs](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thebaronhirschcommunity.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/memoirs-of-a-jewish-girlhood-in-southern-brazil.jpg?resize=126%2C180&ssl=1\")
<\/p>\n![\"Filipson](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thebaronhirschcommunity.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/filipson-book.jpg?resize=140%2C208&ssl=1\")
Filipson<\/em><\/strong>, by Frida Alexandr., (Sao Paulo: Fulgor) 1967, 237 pp.<\/p>\n
\nhttps:\/\/jwa.org\/encyclopedia\/article\/alexandr-frida<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Smaller](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thebaronhirschcommunity.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/smaller-o-colono-book.jpg?resize=196%2C291&ssl=1\")
O colono judeu-a\u00e7u \u2013 Romance da Col\u00f4nia Quatro Irm\u00e3os,\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>by Ad\u00e3o Voloch<\/p>\n![\"Hotel_Copacabana_palace\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thebaronhirschcommunity.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/hotel_copacabana_palace-e1493140290173.jpg?resize=268%2C273&ssl=1\")
<\/p>\n![\"Um](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thebaronhirschcommunity.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/um-gaucho-a-pe.jpg?resize=204%2C296&ssl=1\")
<\/em><\/p>\n![\"Judeus](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/thebaronhirschcommunity.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/04\/judeus-de-bombachas-e-chimarrao-book.jpg?resize=261%2C402&ssl=1\")
Judeus de Bombachas e Chimarr\u00e3o<\/strong> <\/em>( Jews of the Gaucho Pants and Mate Tea) by Jacques Schweidson<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/a><\/p>\n