Page - 164 - in Entangled Entertainers - Jews and Popular Culture in Fin-de-Siècle Vienna

164 | Entangled Entertainers analyzing the example of Anna Katz, more than a few Jews chose this form of suicide. Th e high number of suicides or attempted suicides, carried out in this manner according to a culturally prescribed pattern, may have been the subject of heated debate among both Jews and non-Jews in Vienna, explaining why the theme found its way into the works of Viennese Volkssänger.1 Another frequent theme in these theatrical works is marital discord brought on by the reversal of traditional gender roles. In these burlesques, women often steer the course of everyday events in the household and oppress their husbands. An emblematic example of a play that features this theme is Th e Journey to Gross- wardein. Lipperl and Maxi fl ee from their wives because the women behave in an authoritarian manner and try to dictate their husbands’ behavior through force. Comic eff ect may have been one reason why the play depicts the Jew- ish man as weak and the Jewish woman as masculine. But it also likely served another purpose. Th is depiction of “reversed” gender roles also served, I argue, to invalidate the stereotype of the eff eminate Jew, a widespread idea in the late nineteenth century. We see the social relevance of this concept in the fact that even the sciences, in particular medicine and anthropology, actively engaged with the stereotype and attempted to substantiate it with facts. In a series of studies, physicians and anthropologists asserted that certain physical characteristics and physiological processes were more prevalent among male Jews than among male non-Jews—qualities that usually characterized non-Jewish women as well. Th ese included a low chest circumference, indicating a weak physical condition, the alleged inability to perform military service, as well as a high susceptibility to nervous diseases. Th e feminization of the Jewish man was thus determined by concrete characteristics, ostensibly proven by empirical evidence.2 Th e “eff eminate” Jew is a common trope in Volkssänger theatrical works. We see this in Th e Apostle of Schottenfeld in the scene where Mr. Goldmann begins to totter in the face of Father Lorenz’s request to give him 1,000 gulden. His wife tersely comments on his reaction, stating, “I’ve known for a long time now that you are a weakling with no virility.”3 In the play Im Schwarzen Rössl, performed by the Budapest Orpheum Society in 1899, the Warsaw merchant Kiewe rents a room in the hotel Im Schwarzen Rössl for a few days with his mistress. As a cover for this assignation, he tells his wife that he has been summoned for military ex- ercises. She does not believe him and secretly follows him. When Kiewe catches sight of his wife descending the stairs at the hotel, he is deeply shocked and afraid that she will beat him.4 Again, the Jewish woman is portrayed as violent and her husband as a coward. As a fi nal example, we identify another form of female dominance in Wrestlers at the Kosher Restaurant (see chapter 2). In this case, there is no threat of physical violence, but Yentl is mentally superior to her husband Zalma and therefore regrets marrying him. Zalma is dependent on her and seems unable to manage the challenges of life without her. This open access edition has been made available under a CC BY 4.0 license thanks to the support of Knowledge Unlatched.