HERSHL POLYANKER

HERSHL POLYANKER (February 15, 1911-1998)

            He was a prose author, born in Uman, Kiev district, Ukraine, into a family of tailors. His elementary schooling took place in the local school for working youth. At seventeen he came to Kiev where he studied in a trade school for cobblers; when he graduated, he went to work in a shoe factory. He was active in the Yiddish writers’ section of the Ukrainian writers’ union. He debuted in print with stories about working life in 1932. His first book Koyln (Coal) dealt with the theme of young Jewish men and women who came to work in heavy industry. More books followed, and he was to become an editor of Sovetishe literatur (Soviet literature). Over the years 1941-1945, he served in the Soviet army and fought on various fronts against the Germans, writing for Eynikeyt (Unity) reportage pieces and essays from the front lines. In 1943 he published a collection of stories from the front, entitled Nekome (Revenge), and returned to Kiev after being demobilized. He edited the almanac of Yiddish writers from Ukraine, Der shtern (The star), over the years 1947-1948. In 1948 he was purged and exiled to a camp for ten years in the distant North. He was rehabilitated in 1955 and returned to Kiev. In 1971 he brought out his first postwar novel, Der beker fun kolomaye, roman (The baker from Kolomaye, a novel), and afterward he produced one novel and story after another with colorful, down-to-earth characters. He served on the board of Sovetish heymland (Soviet homeland) and published stories in such periodicals as: Sovetishe literatur, Farmest (Challenge), and Komsomolye (Communist Youth League) in Kiev-Kharkov. He also contributed to the almanacs: Af naye vegn (On new roads) and Idishe kultur (Jewish culture) in New York. In his novel Shmaye gazlen (Smaye the thief), he created a colorful image of a man of the people, a kind of innovative Jewish courageous Soldier Schweik. Original and truthful characterize his other typical personages—Maks Kreysler in Shmaye gazlen, Yitskhok Santos in Yitskhok santos un zayne yorshim (Yitskhok Santos and his heirs), Eli Frenkis in Der lerer fun medzhibozh (The teacher from Międzyboż), and Simon Markus in Der goyrl fun a kinstler (The fate of an artist), among others. His realistic and folkish style was characteristically storybook and folkloric. Humor in the tradition of Sholem-Aleichem was the basic quality of his writings. This actually was what distinguished Polyanker’s work among the Yiddish prose writers of the time. His laughter was generally not satirical, although in his writings one meets people who are viciously ridiculed. In general the function of the comical in his work was not critical, as his laughter was not aimed at chastisement, not at destroying, not even at correcting—his humor had a positive goal: to demonstrate the positive spirit of the folks masses, not to peer at what tragic and sad things life brings. Such was in general his world view, and he revealed it through numerous protagonists.

His books include: Koyln, stories (Kharkov: Ukrainian State Publishers for National Minorities, 1932), 88 pp.; Af yenem breg, dertseylungen (On that side, stories) (Kharkov: Ukrainian State Publishers for National Minorities, 1934), 151 pp.; Zkeynim hobn genumen dos vort (The old folks took the floor), a story (Kiev: Ukrainian State Publishers for National Minorities, 1937), 14 pp.; Tsveyte bagegenish, roman (Second encounter, a novel) (Kiev: Ukrainian State Publishers for National Minorities, 1937), 225 pp.; A gast in shtetl, eynakter (A guest in the town, a one-act play) (Kiev: Ukrainian State Publishers for National Minorities, 1938), 27 pp.; Shoyel der zipnmakher (Joel the sieve maker), a novel (Kiev: Ukrainian State Publishers for National Minorities, 1938), 210 pp.; Af tseblite stepes, kalinindorfer fartseykhenungen (On steppes in bloom, notes on Kalinindorf) (Kiev: Ukrainian State Publishers for National Minorities, 1938), 24 pp.; Shmaye gazlen, roman (Shmaye the thief, a novel) (Kiev, 1940), 269 pp., second edition (Moscow: Emes, 1948), 284 pp.; Fun dnyester biz dunay, besaraber fartseykhenungen (From the Dniester to the Danube [River], Bessarabian notes) (Kiev: Ukrainian State Publishers for National Minorities, 1940), 94 pp., second edition (Moscow, 1948); Feter yoshe, tsvey dertseylungen (Uncle Yoshe, two stories) (Kiev: Ukrainian State Publishers for National Minorities, 1940), 32 pp.; Nekome, front dertseylungen (Revenge, stories of the front) (Moscow: Emes, 1943), 47 pp.; Der beker fun kolomaye, roman (Moscow: Sovetski pisatel, 1971), 431 pp., which was published serially in Sovetish heymland over the years 1964-1966; A yam mit arbet (A sea of work) (Moscow: Sovetski pisatel, 1982), 63 pp., supplement to Sovetish heymland (1982); Der lerer fun medzhibozh, roman, dertseylungen (The teacher from Międzyboż, a novel and stories) (Moscow: Sovetski pisatel, 1982), 413 pp.; Dertseylungen (Stories) (Moscow: Sovetski pisatel, 1982); Der goyrl fun a kinstler (Moscow: Sovetski pisatel, 1985), 366 pp.; Geven amol a shtetl, roman (There once was a town, a novel) (Moscow: Sovetski pisatel, 1991), 651 pp.; Baym kval, fun mayne notits-bikhlekh (At the source, from my notebooks) (Odessa: Maiak, 1995), 44 pp. He published extensively in Sovetish heymland, and he also published prolifically in Russian and Ukrainian.

Sources: D. Volkenshteyn, in Sovetishe literatur (Kiev) (July 1939); Y. Nusinov, in Eynikeyt (Moscow) (August 5, 1942); A. Kushnirov, in Naye prese (Paris) (July 27, 1945); A. Kipnis, in Eynikeyt (September 25, 1945); N. Mayzil, Dos yidishe shafn un der yidisher shrayber in sovetnfarband (Jewish creation and the Jewish worker in the Soviet Union) (New York, 1959), see index; Chone Shmeruk, comp., Pirsumim yehudiim babrit-hamoatsot, 1917-1961 (Jewish publications in the Soviet Union, 1917-1961) (Jerusalem, 1961), see index; Y. Yeshurin, 100 yor moderne yidishe literatur, bibliografisher tsushteyer (100 years of modern Yiddish literature, bibliographical contribution) (New York, 1966), p. 189.

Benyomen Elis

[Additional information from: Berl Kagan, comp., Leksikon fun yidish-shraybers (Biographical dictionary of Yiddish writers) (New York, 1986), col. 425; and Chaim Beider, Leksikon fun yidishe shrayber in ratn-farband (Biographical dictionary of Yiddish writers in the Soviet Union), ed. Boris Sandler and Gennady Estraikh (New York: Congress for Jewish Culture, Inc., 2011), pp. 278-79.]