Srulik (, ) is a cartoon character symbolizing

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

. The character was created in 1956 by the Israeli cartoonist Kariel Gardosh, known by his

pen name A pen name or nom-de-plume 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 name may be used to make the author's na ...

''Dosh.'' The cartoon appeared for many years in the newspaper '' Maariv''. Yosef Lapid, Dosh's colleague on the editorial board of '' Maariv'', described Srulik as an icon of Israel in the same way that Marianne and Columbia were respectively icons of France and the United States.

Description

Srulik is generally depicted as a young man or teenager wearing a tembel hat, Biblical sandals, and khaki shorts. Dosh drew Srulik in cartoons on current events for '' Maariv'', 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 (: antitheses; 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 introd ...

of the antisemitic caricatures which appeared in '' Der Stürmer'' and other European and Arab journals. As against the stereotype of the weak or cunning Jew that was propagated by Joseph Goebbels, Dosh — a Holocaust survivor — drew a proud, strong and sympathetic Jewish character. The journalist Shalom Rosenfeld, editor of '' Maariv'' in 1974–1980, wrote:

Handala

Srulik has been compared to Handala, the Palestinian national personification (which appeared later), and has appeared together with Handala in murals supporting the two-state solution.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

References

External links

Srulik by Dosh, the official website
{{National personifications National personifications Fictional Israeli Jews Culture of Israel National symbols of Israel

Description

Symbolism

Handala

See also

References

External links