Making Sense of S. Y. Agnon’s Allusions

The writings of the Nobel Prize-winning Hebrew author S.Y. Agnon are replete with complex and sometimes obscure allusions to Jewish religious texts and other literary works, and expect a reader to be familiar with the traditional Jewish culture of his day. As a result, it can be a struggle to understand his fiction. Avraham Holtz, who produced a heavily annotated edition of Agnon’s novel The Bridal Canopy, and has for several years been working on annotations to another, Only Yesterday, discusses his experience deciphering Agnon, the author’s use of Hebrew, and much else about his fiction. (Interview by Jeffrey Saks. Video, 57 minutes.)