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Der Fuchs Im Hühnerstall

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Der Fuchs im Hühnerstall - bk1489; DTV Verlag; Ephraim Kishon; pocket_book; 1974

301 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1969

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About the author

Ephraim Kishon

266 books162 followers
Ephraim Kishon (Hebrew: אפרים קישון‎) was an Israeli writer, satirist, dramatist, screenwriter, and film director.

Born into a middle-class Jewish family in Budapest, Hungary, as Ferenc Hoffmann (Hungarian Hoffmann Ferenc), Kishon studied sculpture and painting, and then began publishing humorous essays and writing for the stage.

During World War II the Nazis imprisoned him in several concentration camps. At one camp his chess talent helped him survive as the camp commandant was looking for an opponent. In another camp the Germans lined up the inmates shooting every tenth person, passing him by. He later wrote in his book The Scapegoat, "They made a mistake—they left one satirist alive." He managed to escape while being transported to the Sobibor death camp in Poland, and hid the remainder of the war disguised as "Stanko Andras", a Slovakian laborer.

After 1945 he changed his surname from Hoffmann to Kishont to disguise his Jewish heritage and returned to Hungary to study art and publish humorous plays. He immigrated to Israel in 1949 to escape the Communist regime, and an immigration officer gave him the name Ephraim Kishon.

His first marriage, in 1946 to Eva (Chawa) Klamer, ended in divorce. In 1959, he married his second wife Sara (née Lipovitz), who died in 2002. In 2003, he married the Austrian writer Lisa Witasek. He had three children: Raphael (b. 1957), Amir (b. 1963), and Renana (b. 1968).

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Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
42 reviews15 followers
August 8, 2017
Satira koja ismeva modernu politiku i društvene odnose kroz lik Amiza Dulnakera, političara pritisnutog teretom svojih godina sa prvim znacima senilnosti. Amiz Dulnaker je ona vrsta političara čuvena po dugačkim govorima kojima se ništa ne kaže. Za vreme jedne od svojih žestokih tirada doživljava srčani udar i primoran od strane lekara odlazi na odmor u jednu udaljenu fiktivnu zabit na samom rubu pustinje. To je malo mirno mesto u kome niko ne zna šta je politika i niko nije čuo za njega - čuvenog Amiza Dulnakera. Međutim, može li stari lisac mirovati u kokošinjcu? Amiz na sebe preuzima zadatak da upozna žitelje sa svim "lepotama" politike i pretvori ovu mirnu zabit u politički pakao.
Profile Image for Maja.
306 reviews35 followers
September 12, 2022
Lisac u kokošinjcu i Kafkin Proces zaslužuju da se nalaze na istoj polici, jedan do drugog—oba naslova prosto uživaju u izrugivanju društvenih institucija na koje se poredak (još uvek) oslanja. Gde se ozbiljniji Kafka se latio pravnog sistema, satirični Kišon je izabrao politiku.
—Ne morate da razumete baš sve, dovoljno je da znate da smo u pravu!

Šta se dešava u knjizi? Gospodinu Dulnikeru je potreban odmor od političke scene. Naime, ovog prekaljenog političara, koji poseduje "taj božanski dar da govori, bez vremenskog ograničenja, svuda i na svakom mestu, tako da svaka rečenica bude rečenica, svaka rač na svom mestu, ali da ne iznosi nikakvu konkretnu ideju, kao beskrajna jegulja koja se uvija i uvija..." na sceni sustiže srčani udar. Kako taj odmor zahteva anonimnost, žreb sudbine pada na jedno zabačeno selo, komplet izuzeto od političkih tokova. Međutim, nakon svega par sati odmora provedenih u toj jednostavnoj, mirnoj i složnoj zajednici, nemiran Dulniker odlučuje da im "pomogne" i uspostavi bogat politički život kao izraz svoje darežljivosti. Kreće da ih huška i iskušava, sve kako bi osigurao da se osnovni (parazitski) politički organi prime u seoskoj zajednici. Međutim, čak ni on sam nije spreman za anarhiju, ludilo i mržnju koje će uskoro progutati te ljude...
Profile Image for Irena Pranjić.
Author 9 books32 followers
November 10, 2025
Znam da je ovo klasik u rangu Životinjske farme i da bih trebala više cijeniti ovo djelo ali ubilo me to što je već nakon 20 stranica bilo jasno rečeno sve što se imalo za reći o odnosu politike i društva i što je nakon tih 20 stranica slijedilo još 240 stranica u kojima se ista misao iznova ponavljala u raznim varijacijama poput vica koji se stalno iznova ponavlja i zbog toga više nije smiješan. Upravo zbog toga bila mi je blesavo što pisac kritizira glavnog junaka zato jer smara ljude pretjeranim brbljanjem dok on istovremeno radi tu istu grešku. Bila bih mu oprostila da se u tim suvišnim stranicama posvetio ljepoti pisanja i računao na čitatelje koji vole čitati lijepo sročen tekst ali u stilu pisanja nisam pronašla tu dimenziju. Moram priznati da je na trenutke pronalazio duhovite detalje kojima se dodatno narugao političarima i svima koji su na egotripu, ali svejedno, smorio me.
Profile Image for Milica Savković.
8 reviews1 follower
Read
February 3, 2023
Šta se dešava kada jedan političar koji obožava da drži neumorljive govore, "pregori" i prosto bude primoran da ode na odmor? I to u zabačeno granično selo na obodu pustinje odsečeno od sveta i totalno neinformisano, gde niko nije ni čuo za njega. Pa... napravi haos tamo, dabome.
Prvi roman koji sam pročitala od Kišona, do sad sam čitala sam zbirke pripovetki. Genijalan kao i uvek u svojoj satiri.
Profile Image for Karen  Kling.
70 reviews3 followers
March 2, 2022
Divertida sátira sobre los comienzos del estado de israel.
Profile Image for HelloB.
350 reviews7 followers
February 26, 2023
Es war eine sher lustige Lektüre aber gegen Ende wurde sie mir zu düster. Schlägereien (auch mit Stöcke und Taschenmesser), Morddrohungen 👀 das war mir alles zu viel.
Profile Image for Howard Tobochnik.
44 reviews17 followers
May 22, 2019
Here are some exact quotes (indicated by “ “) and thoughts/observations (indicated by >) from this book.

“The tale of the slaughterer who wasn’t allowed to blow the shofar on Rosh Hashanah. The poor fellow went to the Rebbe and wept. ‘Rebbe, Rebbe, why won’t they let me blow on Rosh Hashanah?’ The Rebbe said, ‘I heard that you didn’t immerse yourself in the purifying waters of the mikveh.’ So the slaughterer began to apologize, ‘Rebbe, the water was cold, oy was it cold, Rebbe!’ And the Rebbe retorted, ‘Oyf kalts blutz men nisht! If it’s cold you don’t blow!’”

“The statesman used to lecture before such insignificant branches to show that he was not above addressing meagre audiences.” (47)

> The villagers don’t have leaders or committees or politics. Each just does his job. Extra “power” is seen as more work/responsibility. For example, the barber who is tasked with making up the list of items needed each month. He does so because everyone comes to him to be shaved, and he himself doesn’t ever have to wait in line to be shaved, so it makes sense. No one is more important, and things they don’t need they don’t have.

“The cobbler is promising the village a well if he’s appointed mayer.”
“But there isn’t a drop of water under the ground in these mountains.”
“He’s not promising water, gentlemen, he’s promising a well.” (67)

> The committee decides to build a mayor’s office even though there is no need for a mayor. To do this, they create a tax. How should they tax the people? They try to think of something that none of them (those on the committee) have, and decide to impose a tax on 3-door wardrobes. They then discover that no one has a 3-door wardrobe! So they alter the tax to be for those who are deemed able to afford one, but since everyone is pretty much equal, this is decided by lottery.

> Dulnikker creates a feud/disagreement/problem where none had been before, then pats himself on the back for helping to find a solution (which then in turn leads to new issues).

> Dulnikker “trains” a police chief (for which there is no need currently) and tells him one piece of important advice: “One witness by himself is not a witness.” Later this police chief beats someone up and must open an investigation on himself. As he is the only witness, he is forced to drop the case.

“...held shamefully dusty prayerbooks.” (145)

“Do you fools think the Master of the Universe needs your prayers? No, my friends! … He will ask whom did you vote for in the municipal elections.” (146)
> Use of religion/fear for political gain.

> First, the village folk don’t need (or even understand) Dulnikker. Then he convinces them that they need/want stuff, which leads to problems, and they need his help to fix/progress. Finally, they decide they don’t need/want his help, as they have learned enough to go at it on their own, and they kick him out.

> Betrayal: Not hatred, heaven forbid. Rather he sought to consolidate commercial ties by means of the courteous gesture (i.e. stabbing one person in the back to become closer to his enemy). (176)

“The counsellors were also sensitive to the criticism, but that would not have worried them a jot if it were not for the approaching elections.” (177)

“If they didn’t have to pay the veterinarian (doctor) they’d all be sick.” (178)

Educational Reform: The parents became angry that the school teacher had an opinion on who would win the election and told the students. So they decided to split up the classes based on which “party” the parents agreed with. They said this would lessen the disputes, but actually lead to more intense rivalry. (185)

“So long as I am your mayor you’ll honour me, otherwise I’ll have my police force throw you out of here.” (190)

> Dulnikker retells history differently each time. For example, his secretary plotted to kidnap him and get him out of the town, but this plot failed. Dulnikker wanted to stay and insisted. Later, when Dulnikker is trying to get out, he blames the secretary for failing at the plot. And by the end he’s saying that the secretary had tried to prevent him from leaving. (201)

“Having comprised his farewell letter in a publishable style…” (203)
> everything is politics; deception, propaganda, fake.

“This was the great art he wished to learn from the great speaker: The divine power to speak, unlimited by time and space, each sentence a sentence, every word in its place, yet without expressing a single substantial concept.” (225)

>Loyalty to a completely arbitrary and meaningless party/ideology/slogan. Feuds and hatred formed, even though no one knew what they’re fighting for.
Profile Image for Kasc.
292 reviews
April 26, 2022
The Fox in the Chicken Coop is one of the few novel-length works by Ephraim Kishon. It is a great satire that is filled with absurdity from cover to cover and I enjoyed it more than I expected beforehand.

The Fox in the Chicken Coop tells the story of a renowned Israeli politician, Amitz Dulnikker, who travels to a small, remote village in order to find some peace and quiet. There, he discovers a complete lack of political organization as he knows it and thus feels it is his obligation to civilize the villagers. Dulnikker’s intervention sets into motion events that vanquish any trace of tranquility eventually escalating into complete mayhem.

This story is a biting satire of society as, ironically, everything worked just fine in the village prior to Dulnikker showing up. Through the villagers Kishon shows how the introduction of politics via putting random people into office and therefore giving them a higher social standing and launching a taxation system changes people for the worse. The clumsiness with which the new office-bearers go about their business brings about many hilarities especially in the first half of the book. Conversely, towards the end the tone becomes darker when political opposition gradually turns into a violent dispute. Such a turn of events comes as a surprise considering he innocuous situation from which the story departs initially.

By and large I enjoyed The Fox in the Chicken Coop. In contrast to shorter Kishon satires, this one is more universal in nature skewering politics in general rather than specific Israeli issues. Hence, I found it easier to understand and funnier. I, personally did not like the ending as I had not expected the book to end on such a negative note. Regardless, I can gladly recommend this satire. It offers a few good laughs and is my favorite Kishon so far.
34 reviews
November 26, 2012
Hassen sie Bürokratie und sind seit Jahren gläubiger und überzeugter Nichtwähler? In diesem Buch fühlen sie sich bestätigt... de facto!
Ephraim Kishon reißt seinen Protagonisten Dulnikker, einen berühmter Israelischen Politiker der an chronischer Selbstüberschätzung leidet, urplötzlich aus seinem Leben und schickt ihn in ein kleines Dorf, ohne Strom und Fließwasser.
Dort erst einmal angekommen, merkt Dulnikker erst was es bedeutet, dass ihn keiner kennt, dass man ihn nicht schätzt und auf der Straße nicht den Hut zieht, wenn man an ihm vorübergeht. Eine Tragik? Aber nein!
Dulnikker lässt sich nicht unterkriegen und macht sich gleich daran im winzigen Dorf Kimmelquell eine politische Rangordnung, einen Rat, sowie Wahlen einzuführen und stürzt damit die friedliche Idylle langsam aber stätig den Bürokratischen Bach hinunter.
Alle wollen plötzlich Bürgermeister werden, keiner weißt jedoch was ein Bürgermeister eigentlich ist? Bauern arbeiten sowieso nur mehr auf den Feldern wenn sie einen schriftlichen Bescheid dazu bekommen. Und Steuern werden am besten von denjenigen erhoben die einen 3-Türigen Schrank besitzen, und damit sie nicht zu kurz kommen gründen sie gleich die Partei der Dreitürniks! (In die natürlich jeder hineinkommt, der sich theoretisch einen Schrank leisten könnte ;)
Ein Politiker der mit Feuer und Flamme versucht das Dorf zu "retten", ein Assistent der nichts unversucht lässt aus dem selben zu fliehen, eine verwirrte Dorfgemeinde und viele Bürgermeister de facto! Auskennen, tut sich keiner mehr! Ein Herrliches Buch, und eine super Satire für zwischendurch, in der man sich selbst als Wahlmuffel, oder Protestwähler, oder auch als Aktivist durchaus wiederfinden kann!
Profile Image for Marina.
22 reviews15 followers
September 16, 2015
2.5

Es war sehr unangenehm dieses Buch zu lesen.
Unrealistisch. Selbst die Dümmsten würden (als Reaktionen auf Dulnikkers Handlungen) nicht so handeln.
Das letzte Drittel wurde rapide zunehmendst schlimmer und in ebendiesem traten verhäuft Fehler auf. Ebenso traten vermehrt Sätze oder Handlungen auf, die ich nicht verstanden habe.
Das Ende hat mir nicht gefallen und war ebenso unrealistisch. Wieso sollten ausgerechnet Dulnikker und Zev das ganze überleben?

Dass die beiden nichts draus gelernt und sich nicht verändert haben (sehr wahrscheinlich, wie man auch aus dem letzten Drittel folgern kann; ansonsten ein offenes unnützes Ende), könnte zu einem der Punkte gehören, die der Autor machen will.
Die Konzepte, die darin vorkamen (Politik, Politiker, Sprachgebrauch, "Unbewusstsein" etc.), waren ganz gut.

Dennoch insgesamt ein dummes (Handlungen der Charaktere), unrealistisches und unerträgliches/schmerzliches Buch für mich.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews

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