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The “German Jew” is a traveling entertainer who is drawn to the kiln by the size of the crowd that has gathered to gawk at Ethan Brand. The German Jew, also called the Jew of Nuremberg, travels through the mountains with his diorama—a box that allows him to magnify and display pictures. He has met Brand in the past, as the two recognize each other, and the German Jew knows of Ethan Brand’s Unpardonable Sin. His physical appearance includes a dark or brown complexion, a “strong outline” (or notable profile, likely referring to the stereotype of a hooked nose), and stooping posture. These features, combined with his deference to the audience—he calls everyone “captain”—portray the German Jew as a stock, antisemitic caricature of a Jewish person. His mysterious origins, evidently random travels, past knowledge of Brand, and suggestion that he knows something about the nature of the Unpardonable Sin recall the figure of the “Wandering Jew,” who, according to legend, mocked Christ on his way to the cross and was cursed to live and travel the world until Christ’s Second Coming.
The German Jew Quotes in Ethan Brand
The Ethan Brand quotes below are all either spoken by The German Jew or refer to The German Jew. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
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Ethan Brand
Quotes
Laughter, when out of place, mistimed, or bursting forth from a disordered state of feeling, may be the most terrible modulation of the human voice. The laughter of one asleep, even if it be a little child,—the madman’s laugh,—the wild, screaming laugh of a born idiot,—are sounds that we sometimes tremble to hear, and would always willingly forget.
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But now, all of a sudden, this grave and venerable quadruped, of his own mere motion, and without the slightest suggestion from anybody else, began to run round after his tail, which, to heighten the absurdity of the proceeding, was a great deal shorter than it should have been. Never was seen such headlong eagerness in pursuit of an object that could not possibly be attained; never was heard such a tremendous outbreak of growling, snarling, barking, and snapping,—as if one end of the ridiculous brute’s body were at deadly and most unforgivable enmity with the other.
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The German Jew Quotes in Ethan Brand
The Ethan Brand quotes below are all either spoken by The German Jew or refer to The German Jew. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Ethan Brand
Quotes
Laughter, when out of place, mistimed, or bursting forth from a disordered state of feeling, may be the most terrible modulation of the human voice. The laughter of one asleep, even if it be a little child,—the madman’s laugh,—the wild, screaming laugh of a born idiot,—are sounds that we sometimes tremble to hear, and would always willingly forget.
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Explanation and Analysis:
But now, all of a sudden, this grave and venerable quadruped, of his own mere motion, and without the slightest suggestion from anybody else, began to run round after his tail, which, to heighten the absurdity of the proceeding, was a great deal shorter than it should have been. Never was seen such headlong eagerness in pursuit of an object that could not possibly be attained; never was heard such a tremendous outbreak of growling, snarling, barking, and snapping,—as if one end of the ridiculous brute’s body were at deadly and most unforgivable enmity with the other.
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