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Joe The Waiter
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December 16, 2020
The book Joe the Waiter by Y. Y Zevin, is set in New York in the late 1800’s early 1900’s. This book, originally written in Yiddish, is a collection of short stories about Jewish life in the Lower Eastside of New York City. Joe is a waiter working at a restaurant, meeting and talking to everyday people with stories and light humor included. Joe is telling these stories to the author Y. Y Zevin. Some of these stories have lessons that Joe has learned and others some have interesting and humorous, . In these stories Jewish life is portrayed through the character of Joe who shows his devotion to his job and his customers, helping people in need is important and that life is filled with humor.
Joe is devoted to his work. He is a very social person who loves to get to know his customers. If he knows the customer well, he can remember their favorite menu items. He is a reliable person who is polite when he is at work. A good example of this is when Joe was not able to work for a few days he said, “As soon as they left I took off my apron and explained to my customers: “ Ladies and Gentlemen! I have to explain to you that I am very sorry that I cannot serve you today. My Union has put me in suspenders.” (Zevin 26). Joe has been punished by his Union for kindly lighting a cigarette for a customer whose picture was taken for an ad in the newspaper that is being boycotted by another Union. Joe respectfully tells his customers before he went to the Union meeting that he could not serve the people that day. This shows that he is devoted to his work, respectful, and that he is an all around kind man trying to do good in the world.
Joe shows kindness throughout the stories by helping people when they are in need. In one of the stories, “A Man with Two Faces,” Mr. Bonder , a regular restaurant customer, is facing a dilemma by his being both a tenant and a landlord at the same time.. His problem is that both the landlords and tenants in the neighborhood are striking and he needs to take a side. The tenants are angry that their rents are too high and the landlords are demanding that the rents are too low. Mr. Bonder doesn’t know which side to choose. Mr. Bonder then asks Joe for his wise advice. Joe is a kind man and he says, “You will work it out with your tenants. You are a mensch with a conscience”(13). Joe is generous with his listening and his advice and is always willing to help however he can. Joe shows that he is a mensch himself.
Not only does the author show that the characters in the book display kindness and commitment, humor also helps these people to face their difficult lives with some laughs. In this book there is some very light humor in some of the stories. One example of this is when Joe is invited by a mysterious woman in a window to come up and visit with her. A innocent conversation between the two follows but they are interrupted by the arrival of the family who lives there. Joe is ordered by the woman to hide behind a couch and not be seen. A conversation between the family members follows and it is evident that they are preparing to celebrate Passover. “Now my daughter played the piano, and Abe and I would practice a little for the High Holidays… A dress sat down at the piano and the two pairs of pants started to sing “Kol Nidre”. I sang out from under the sofa. I couldn’t help myself. A year ago I was a singer for a cantor during the High Holidays.” (36) Joe shows how he even though is hiding he is still tempted to sing along.which gives his presence away. He runs out the house so as not to be caught. The author uses irony to make this a humorous end of the story - Joe’s devotion to his religion and his lack of discipline gives his hiding place away. This is just one of the few light jokes that are in the book which make the story much more enjoyable.
Y. Y Zevin does a great job with these short fictional stories in portraying what immigrant life was like in New York in the early 20th century. These communities were filled with people who were kind and helpful to one another, who were hard working and devoted to their Jewish faith as well as to America. Despite their hardships they saw humor in their everyday lives. The author displays these characteristics in his main and.character of Joe the waiter. Joe’s character is a super nice and kind character who helps people in need. As seen throughout the book, Joe’s kindness is shown in many situations. Everyone who goes into the restaurant knows who Joe is and Joe knows them. He will always give good advice and wisdom if someone needs it. Joe represents the strength of the immigrants who helped build our culture.
Joe is devoted to his work. He is a very social person who loves to get to know his customers. If he knows the customer well, he can remember their favorite menu items. He is a reliable person who is polite when he is at work. A good example of this is when Joe was not able to work for a few days he said, “As soon as they left I took off my apron and explained to my customers: “ Ladies and Gentlemen! I have to explain to you that I am very sorry that I cannot serve you today. My Union has put me in suspenders.” (Zevin 26). Joe has been punished by his Union for kindly lighting a cigarette for a customer whose picture was taken for an ad in the newspaper that is being boycotted by another Union. Joe respectfully tells his customers before he went to the Union meeting that he could not serve the people that day. This shows that he is devoted to his work, respectful, and that he is an all around kind man trying to do good in the world.
Joe shows kindness throughout the stories by helping people when they are in need. In one of the stories, “A Man with Two Faces,” Mr. Bonder , a regular restaurant customer, is facing a dilemma by his being both a tenant and a landlord at the same time.. His problem is that both the landlords and tenants in the neighborhood are striking and he needs to take a side. The tenants are angry that their rents are too high and the landlords are demanding that the rents are too low. Mr. Bonder doesn’t know which side to choose. Mr. Bonder then asks Joe for his wise advice. Joe is a kind man and he says, “You will work it out with your tenants. You are a mensch with a conscience”(13). Joe is generous with his listening and his advice and is always willing to help however he can. Joe shows that he is a mensch himself.
Not only does the author show that the characters in the book display kindness and commitment, humor also helps these people to face their difficult lives with some laughs. In this book there is some very light humor in some of the stories. One example of this is when Joe is invited by a mysterious woman in a window to come up and visit with her. A innocent conversation between the two follows but they are interrupted by the arrival of the family who lives there. Joe is ordered by the woman to hide behind a couch and not be seen. A conversation between the family members follows and it is evident that they are preparing to celebrate Passover. “Now my daughter played the piano, and Abe and I would practice a little for the High Holidays… A dress sat down at the piano and the two pairs of pants started to sing “Kol Nidre”. I sang out from under the sofa. I couldn’t help myself. A year ago I was a singer for a cantor during the High Holidays.” (36) Joe shows how he even though is hiding he is still tempted to sing along.which gives his presence away. He runs out the house so as not to be caught. The author uses irony to make this a humorous end of the story - Joe’s devotion to his religion and his lack of discipline gives his hiding place away. This is just one of the few light jokes that are in the book which make the story much more enjoyable.
Y. Y Zevin does a great job with these short fictional stories in portraying what immigrant life was like in New York in the early 20th century. These communities were filled with people who were kind and helpful to one another, who were hard working and devoted to their Jewish faith as well as to America. Despite their hardships they saw humor in their everyday lives. The author displays these characteristics in his main and.character of Joe the waiter. Joe’s character is a super nice and kind character who helps people in need. As seen throughout the book, Joe’s kindness is shown in many situations. Everyone who goes into the restaurant knows who Joe is and Joe knows them. He will always give good advice and wisdom if someone needs it. Joe represents the strength of the immigrants who helped build our culture.
December 16, 2020
Joe the waiter, written by Y. Y. Zevin, is a series of stories that were featured in the Yidishes Tageblat newspaper in New York. These stories are told by the main character, Joe, who is a well-known waiter full of humorous stories. The stories in Joe the Waiter are translated into English and are a window into Jewish life in new york towards the end of the twentieth century. All of the stories are incredibly enjoyable and fun to read, containing life lessons, Jewish morals, and depicting Jewish society at that time. It is truly a joy to be able to read all of these short yet insightful stories and learn so much about the Jewish community from that time in New York.
One really interesting element of this collection of stories is that they are all supposed in the exact words of the character Joe, even though an editor from the Yiddish newspaper in which the stories were published actually wrote his words down. Joe even said at the beginning of one of his stories, “Listen to me and write it down word for word, and please don't add any of your own wit, like you have done to me before. I want that it should all stay in my own style, because the style is the man, and the style of the writer is not the style of the waiter,” (Zevin, 25). I really appreciate this aspect of the stories because it makes them even more genuine and helps relate to common people. Joe insisted that all of the stories were written in a casual and understandable way rather than a well worded proper article, which helps add to the enjoyability of his stories.
Some of the short stories are more humorous, one example is a chapter titled Joe Sings “kol nidre” where Joe is invited into a young woman's home. He is soon ordered to hide under a sofa because the real owners of the home were arriving and the young woman was their maid. He was no longer able to hide when the owners began to sing and he simply had to join, which caused him to be attacked by the family dog and run away. He leaves the reader with the takeaway to never hide under a sofa if a lady tells you to and says, “No more will I allow myself to be enticed by a woman, and if a lady invites me to lay down under the lounge, I will do better than that and just up and run,” (38). This is just one of the many examples of the funny stories featured in Joe the Water.
Another story included in Joe the Waiter is titled A Man With Two Face, which is about one of Joe’s costumes, Mr. Bonder, who is a landlord. He explained to Joe that tenants in the building where he lived were going on strike and that he actually wanted to join them because he agreed with them. Joe helps Mr. Bonder decide to stand with the tenants, but it soon comes back to bite Mr. Bonder when his own tenants began to strike, causing him to not only have trouble with his own tenants but also the finance committee he was a part of. Eventually, he had to choose between the tenants and the finance committee, and he ended up being kicked out of both unions. Joe leaves the reader by saying, “He had to give in to his landlord and he had to give in to his tenants. With one pair of feet you can dance in two dance halls,” (14). This story stood out to me because even though it was a quick and light-hearted story, Joe left the reader with somewhat of a deep message that you can't please everyone and sometimes you have to choose between two things you support. I really appreciate this component of the stories because it sheds some light on the Jewish morals there were during this time and helps the reader have a better understanding of their society and ideology.
Joe the waiter was truly such an enjoyable collection of short stories and I would recommend it to anyone who wants a good laugh while also learning more about Jewish mores, society, and more.
One really interesting element of this collection of stories is that they are all supposed in the exact words of the character Joe, even though an editor from the Yiddish newspaper in which the stories were published actually wrote his words down. Joe even said at the beginning of one of his stories, “Listen to me and write it down word for word, and please don't add any of your own wit, like you have done to me before. I want that it should all stay in my own style, because the style is the man, and the style of the writer is not the style of the waiter,” (Zevin, 25). I really appreciate this aspect of the stories because it makes them even more genuine and helps relate to common people. Joe insisted that all of the stories were written in a casual and understandable way rather than a well worded proper article, which helps add to the enjoyability of his stories.
Some of the short stories are more humorous, one example is a chapter titled Joe Sings “kol nidre” where Joe is invited into a young woman's home. He is soon ordered to hide under a sofa because the real owners of the home were arriving and the young woman was their maid. He was no longer able to hide when the owners began to sing and he simply had to join, which caused him to be attacked by the family dog and run away. He leaves the reader with the takeaway to never hide under a sofa if a lady tells you to and says, “No more will I allow myself to be enticed by a woman, and if a lady invites me to lay down under the lounge, I will do better than that and just up and run,” (38). This is just one of the many examples of the funny stories featured in Joe the Water.
Another story included in Joe the Waiter is titled A Man With Two Face, which is about one of Joe’s costumes, Mr. Bonder, who is a landlord. He explained to Joe that tenants in the building where he lived were going on strike and that he actually wanted to join them because he agreed with them. Joe helps Mr. Bonder decide to stand with the tenants, but it soon comes back to bite Mr. Bonder when his own tenants began to strike, causing him to not only have trouble with his own tenants but also the finance committee he was a part of. Eventually, he had to choose between the tenants and the finance committee, and he ended up being kicked out of both unions. Joe leaves the reader by saying, “He had to give in to his landlord and he had to give in to his tenants. With one pair of feet you can dance in two dance halls,” (14). This story stood out to me because even though it was a quick and light-hearted story, Joe left the reader with somewhat of a deep message that you can't please everyone and sometimes you have to choose between two things you support. I really appreciate this component of the stories because it sheds some light on the Jewish morals there were during this time and helps the reader have a better understanding of their society and ideology.
Joe the waiter was truly such an enjoyable collection of short stories and I would recommend it to anyone who wants a good laugh while also learning more about Jewish mores, society, and more.
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