ABSTRACT

Behind the Fence is a modern story wherein reality and symbol are interwoven. But beyond the stock plot is an ingenious story, an educational novella. Noah, the protagonist, evolves from childhood to adolescence and finally to maturity. Noah, the child and the adolescent, is not totally oblivious to the realities of his Jewish milieu and the wide cultural gap that separates the two lovers. The fence separates the homes of Noah's father and Marinka's witchlike guardian, separates Jew from gentile. The Jewish merchants chop down the trees and turn them into lumber. Noah longs for the fruit. His first encounter with Marinka occurs after he plants his own vegetable patch on his side of the fence. Noah is attracted by the beauties of nature, the brawn and bravado of his peasant friends. He nostalgically recalls the country village where he was born, its forests, its glowing sunshine, and its' lush fields.