The Shawl by Cynthia Ozick

The grey zone.

I have been putting off writing this review for several weeks now because it feels like such a daunting task to unpack this remarkable work that continues to leave a lasting impression. The Shawl by Cynthia Ozick is the newest addition to my Short Story Hall of Fame for its technique, raw power and absolutely devastating depiction of the Holocaust. This masterpiece is easily one of the most heartbreaking pieces of literature that I have ever encountered in my life and some of the haunting imagery will forever be ensconced in my brain.

I am beginning to develop a certain affinity for authors capable of blending lyricism with realism. Even though language is inadequate to fully capture the horrors of the Holocaust, there is still value in telling these stories. Moreover, the paradox of history and truth is further complicated since so many victims in the concentration camps did not survive to describe what happened to them. Art has the difficult task of filling in the gaps of this erasure, expressing the inexpressible, conveying the silence of trauma. Writers of Holocaust fiction seek an artistic reconstruction of history in a meaningful way.

On the surface, this story is about motherhood, human suffering and survival under the most dire circumstances. The resilience and fortitude of Rosa to keep her baby alive even when facing death, is a testament to the human spirit. She only lives to protect the child and the reader becomes fully immersed in her harrowing plight. This 'silence' becomes an important metaphor loaded with meaning: the silence of trauma, the silence of history, the silence of unspeakable horrors. There is also Stella but she exists on the periphery, a shadowy figure only seen through Rosa's perspective. In fact, the entire narrative construction is full of shadowy fragments. Ozick's elliptical, impressionistic and sparse prose further contributes to this ambiguity. This aesthetic creates a disorienting effect, a hallucinatory style to reflect Rosa's intense trauma. Another salient feature includes vague descriptions and a bare minimum of information, forcing the reader to infer through context. The poetic lyricism and metaphors might seem inappropriate for the subject matter (finding beauty in horror) but this narrative technique paradoxically serves to represent the un-representable. For example, pay attention to the animal metaphors in relation to survival, hunger, starvation. Ozick also utilizes ironic contrasts for dramatic effect: flowers and fecal matter; butterflies and electric fences. 

There are so many rich layers of complexity packed into a few pages, which, for me, is usually indicative of a great short-story. The Shawl is an important and unforgettable artistic achievement.