Graffiti Tel Aviv, Ha-Rav Yitskhak Yedidya Frenkel St - close up

Srulik ( he, שרוליק, ) is a cartoon character symbolizing

Israel Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...

. The character was created in 1956 by the Israeli cartoonist

Kariel Gardosh Kariel Gardosh ( he, קריאל גרדוש; April 15, 1921 – February 28, 2000) was an Israeli cartoonist and illustrator known by his pen name Dosh ( he, דוש). He worked as a political cartoonist for the Israeli daily newspaper ''Ma'ariv'' an ...

, known by his

pen name A pen name, also called a ''nom de plume'' or a literary double, is a pseudonym (or, in some cases, a variant form of a real name) adopted by an author and printed on the title page or by-line of their works in place of their real name. A pen na ...

''Dosh.'' The cartoon appeared for many years in the newspaper ''

Maariv ''Maariv'' or ''Maʿariv'' (, ), also known as ''Arvit'' (, ), is a Jewish prayer service held in the evening or night. It consists primarily of the evening ''Shema'' and '' Amidah''. The service will often begin with two verses from Psalms ...

''.

Yosef Lapid Yosef "Tommy" Lapid ( he, יוסף "טומי" לפיד, born as Tomislav Lampel, sr-cyr, Томислав Лампел; 27 December 1931 – 1 June 2008) was a Yugoslav-born Israeli radio and television presenter, playwright, journalist, polit ...

, Dosh's colleague on the editorial board of Maariv, described Srulik as an icon of Israel in the same way that

Marianne Marianne () has been the national personification of the French Republic since the French Revolution, as a personification of liberty, equality, fraternity and reason, as well as a portrayal of the Goddess of Liberty. Marianne is displayed in ...

and

Uncle Sam Uncle Sam (which has the same initials as ''United States'') is a common national personification of the federal government of the United States or the country in general. Since the early 19th century, Uncle Sam has been a popular symbol of ...

were respectively icons of France and the United States. Srulik has been a common nickname in Israel for boys named "Yisrael" ("Israel", from he, ישראל), although by the 2000's it has become an outdated nickname.

Description

Srulik is generally depicted as a young man wearing a tembel hat,

Biblical sandals Biblical sandals ( he, סנדלים תנ"כיים, ''sandalim tanakhim''), also called Tanakhi sandals and Khugistic sandals ( he, סנדלים חוגיסטיים, ''sandalim ḥugistim''), are sandals consisting of a sole with two leather straps ...

, and khaki shorts. Srulik is a pioneering Zionist, a lover of the land of Israel and its soil, a dedicated farmer who in time of need puts on a uniform and goes out to defend the state of Israel. Dosh drew Srulik in cartoons on current events for ''

'', and also for various "specials" and occasions of the young state. During wartime, Srulik put on a uniform and was drafted to raise the national morale.

Symbolism

Many have pointed out Srulik's function as an

antithesis Antithesis ( Greek for "setting opposite", from "against" and "placing") is used in writing or speech either as a proposition that contrasts with or reverses some previously mentioned proposition, or when two opposites are introduced together ...

of the

antisemitic Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Ant ...

caricatures which appeared in ''

Der Stürmer ''Der Stürmer'' (, literally "The Stormer / Attacker / Striker") was a weekly German tabloid-format newspaper published from 1923 to the end of the Second World War by Julius Streicher, the '' Gauleiter'' of Franconia, with brief suspensions ...

'' and other European and Arab journals. As against the stereotype of the weak or cunning Jew that was propagated by

Joseph Goebbels Paul Joseph Goebbels (; 29 October 1897 – 1 May 1945) was a German Nazi politician who was the '' Gauleiter'' (district leader) of Berlin, chief propagandist for the Nazi Party, and then Reich Minister of Propaganda from 1933 to ...

, Dosh — a Holocaust survivor — drew a proud, strong and sympathetic Jewish character. The journalist Shalom Rosenfeld, editor of ''

'' in 1974–1980, wrote:

Handala

Srulik has been compared to Handala, the

Palestinian Palestinians ( ar, الفلسطينيون, ; he, פָלַסְטִינִים, ) or Palestinian people ( ar, الشعب الفلسطيني, label=none, ), also referred to as Palestinian Arabs ( ar, الفلسطينيين العرب, label=non ...

national personification A national personification is an anthropomorphic personification of a state or the people(s) it inhabits. It may appear in political cartoons and propaganda. Some early personifications in the Western world tended to be national manifestation ...

, and has appeared together with Handala in murals supporting the

two-state solution The two-state solution to the Israeli–Palestinian conflict envisions an independent State of Palestine alongside the State of Israel, west of the Jordan River. The boundary between the two states is still subject to dispute and negotiation ...

.Gil Stern Stern Zohar
Guest Columnist: Srulik, meet Handala: Introducing the two iconic cartoons, known respectively by Israelis and Palestinians yet unknown to each other, is not a bad way to begin
January 7, 2011,

Jerusalem Post ''The Jerusalem Post'' is a broadsheet newspaper based in Jerusalem, founded in 1932 during the British Mandate of Palestine by Gershon Agron as ''The Palestine Post''. In 1950, it changed its name to ''The Jerusalem Post''. In 2004, the paper ...

References

External links

Srulik by Dosh, the official website

שרוליק - הישראלי הנצחי
("Srulik - The Eternal Israeli"), on the website of the Ministry of Education of Israel
Srulik maximum card from Israel

Another Srulik maximum card from Israel
National personifications Fictional Israeli Jews Israeli culture National symbols of Israel {{Culture-stub

Description

Symbolism

Handala

See also

References

External links