Village stories by MY Berdyczewski: An Eternal Struggle Between Nature and Culture?

The essay discusses five short stories by Micha Yosef Berdyczewski. He had written them over seven years, however, when he was editing his writings, he gathered them together in one section and gave them the title “Village Stories. The essay tackles the stories from three different perspectives: rural Jews and their relations with Gentile peasants; the fate of Jewish women in the traditional Jewish way of life; nature and human fate. It is shown that the natural surroundings have great influence on the people who live in this environment, Jews and Gentiles alike. Emotions like sexual passion, existential confusion, and despair, are much more intense in nature which constantly challenges humankind and its culture.