The Slave Sparknotes

In Isaac Bashevis Singer’s The Slave, Jacob engages in a forbidden relationship with Wanda. Throughout their story, they face many challenges because Jacob is a devout Jew, and Wanda is Catholic. Their love makes them stick together, even when the world seems against them. Marc Chagall's paintings represent this unique story in a series of paintings illuminating the struggles of Jacob and Wanda’s forbidden relationship.

Marc Chagall’s painting, Bride and Groom, represents the hopes and dreams of Jacob and Wanda. Jacob wants to marry Wanda and live their lives, but there are obstacles. At the bottom of the canvas, the painting shows a town. The town signifies a new life for Jacob and Wanda, and the dreams of their lives together. They would

This is how Jacob and Wanda want to end up. The cloud hints at the idea of heaven. Jacob is not sure Wanda will go to heaven with him as she is a gentile. Their lives together are complicated, but they are optimistic and hope their relationship will succeed. Jacob makes a move to start their lives together, telling Wanda, “We must leave” our hometown (139). They were desperate to escape their old lives where they couldn’t be seen together. They want to build their own lives together, to take the risk, and end up happy in a little town with new lives. A Jew and a gentile could not be together; it was forbidden in their society. Jacob has always made peace with nature. In the painting, we can see what appears to be a cow in the sky. While Jacob is enslaved, he milks cows for his work. He is passionate about his work, and as a result, the quality of his work is impressive. He is essential enough to the Catholic society that he could live as a sole Jew among Christians. In the painting

This painting shows a tablet of commandments that say the word “No” in Hebrew ten times. This represents what Jacob could not do. According to Jewish law, Jacob is not permitted to have a relationship or marry someone who is not Jewish. Nevertheless, he fell in love with a gentile. He knew this relationship was a sin, and he kept trying to break free from it, but he just couldn't. All of his life, Jacob worshiped the laws of Judaism, but “he even found it difficult to stay away from [Wanda] on those days when the Mosaic law declared her unclean” (86). Wanda is seen as unclean, like a piece of unkosher meat. Jacob always tries to keep kosher even at his most challenging times, but Wanda is so tempting that he breaks the rules. The dam splits once he breaks the ultimate taboo and sleeps with her. After that, they continue their relationship even though it is forbidden from Jacob's point of view, Wanda and her family’s, and the community’s. They ignore the rules even though it seems they aren't destined to succeed. Even though the commandments state only what is forbidden, Jacob still loves God and Judaism throughout The Slave, even with his moments of doubt and