Hershele Ostropoler, also known as Hershel of Ostropol

Ostropol

Ostropol , also known as Staryy Ostropil, is a small town on the Sluch River located in the Khmelnytskyi Oblast about 133 miles WSW of Kiev, Ukraine. It is located at latitude 49°48' N, longitude 27°34' E and is situated at an altitude of 742.5 feet...

, is a prominent figure in Jewish humor

Jewish humor

Jewish humour is the long tradition of humour in Judaism dating back to the Torah and the Midrash from the ancient mid-east, but generally refers to the more recent stream of verbal, self-deprecating, crude, and often anecdotal humour originating in Eastern Europe and which took root in the United...

, and the Jewish equivalent of Nasreddin

Nasreddin

Nasreddin was a Seljuq satirical Sufi figure, sometimes believed to have lived during the Middle Ages and considered a populist philosopher and wise man, remembered for his funny stories and anecdotes. He appears in thousands of stories, sometimes witty, sometimes wise, but often, too, a fool or...

 and Till Eulenspiegel

Till Eulenspiegel

Till Eulenspiegel was an impudent trickster figure originating in Middle Low German folklore. His tales were disseminated in popular printed editions narrating a string of lightly connected episodes that outlined his picaresque career, primarily in Germany, the Low Countries and France...

. Hershele was a prankster who lived in poverty and targeted the rich and powerful, both Jew and Gentile. Common folks were not safe from his shenanigans, either, but usually got off lightly. He is also remembered by Ukrainian gentiles as something of an ethnic folk hero, who could take on establishment forces much larger than himself with nothing but his humor.

While his exploits have been mythologized over the years, the character of Hershele is based on a historic figure, who lived in what is today Ukraine

Ukraine

Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...

 during the late 18th or early 19th century. He may have used his wits to get by, eventually earning a permanent position as court jester

Court jester

A jester, joker, jokester, fool, wit-cracker, prankster, or buffoon was a person employed to tell jokes and provide general entertainment, typically for a European monarch. Jesters are stereotypically thought to have worn brightly colored clothes and eccentric hats in a motley pattern...

 of sorts to Rabbi Boruch of Medzhybizh

Boruch of Medzhybizh

Rabbi Boruch of Medzhybizh , was a grandson of the Baal Shem Tov.Reb Boruch was the first major "rebbe" of the Hasidic movement to hold court in Mezhbizh in his grandfather's hometown and Beis Medrash, which he inherited.As recorded in the early Hasidic work...

.

In the Hershele stories, he was chosen by members of Rabbi Boruch's court in order to counter the rebbe's notorious fits of temper and lift his chronic melancholy.

It is believed that Hershele died of a fatal accident that was brought about by one of Rabbi Boruch's fits of anger. Hershele lingered for several days and died in Rabbi Boruch's own bed surrounded by Rabbi Boruch and his followers. He is thought to be buried in the old Jewish cemetery in Medzhybizh

Medzhybizh

Medzhybizh, previously known as Mezhybozhe, population 1731, is a town in the Khmelnytskyi Oblast of western Ukraine. It is located in the Letychivsky Raion , 25 kilometres from the Khmelnytskyi on the main highway between Khmelnytskyi and Vinnytsia at the confluence of the Southern Buh and...

, though his grave is unmarked.

Hershele was the subject of several epic poems, a novel, a comedy performed in 1930 by the Vilna Troupe

Vilna Troupe

The Vilna Troupe , also known as Fareyn Fun Yiddishe Dramatishe Artistn and later Dramă şi Comedie was an international and mostly Yiddish-speaking theatrical company, one of the most famous in the history of Yiddish theater...

, and a US TV program in the 1950s.

Two illustrated children's books, The Adventures of Hershel of Ostropol, and Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins, have been published. Both books were written by Eric Kimmel

Eric Kimmel

Eric A. Kimmel is an American Jewish author of more than 50 children's books. His works include Caldecott Honor Book and Newbury Honor Book Hershel and the Hanukkah Goblins , and Sydney Taylor Book Award winners The Chanukkah Guest and Gershon's Monster.Kimmel was born in Brooklyn, New York and...

 and illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman

Trina Schart Hyman

Trina Schart Hyman was an American illustrator of children's books. She illustrated over 150 books, including fairy tales and Arthurian legends, and was the recipient of three Caldecott Honors and one Caldecott Medal....

.

A tale about him, When Hershel Eats- by Nathan Ausubel

Nathan Ausubel

Nathan Ausubel was an American historian, folklorist and humorist.-Biography:Ausubel was born in Leżajsk, Galicia, the sixth of eight children, and immigrated with his family to New York City in 1907, where he later attended Columbia University...

, was included in Joanna Cole

Joanna Cole

Joanna Cole , is a United States author of children’s books. She is most famous as the author of The Magic School Bus series of children's books...

's 1982 work, Best-Loved Folktales of the World.

In 2002, a play entitled Hershele the Storyteller was performed in New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

.

Tales and examples

Rolls and Doughnuts

Hershele once entered a restaurant and asked for two rolls. When these were brought to him he changed his mind, asked for two doughnuts instead, ate them, then walked out without paying. The owner ran after him and demanded to be paid for the doughnuts.

- “But I gave you the rolls for them,” Hershele said.

- “You didn’t pay for the rolls, either,” the owner said.

- “Well, I haven’t eaten the rolls, have I?” Hershele replied and walked away.

Good Manners

One time Hershele and a vagabond friend bought two loaves of bread. Hershele picked them up from the baker, then handed the smaller one to his friend and kept the larger one for himself.

- “This is very impolite,” his friend said.

- “What would you have done if you were me?” Hershele asked.

- “I’d give you the large loaf and keep the small one, of course!” The friend said.

- “Well, you’ve got the small one. Now what do you want?”

On a Dare

On a dare to slap a hated man in his Jewish hometown, Hershele did just that, unprovoked. When the man asked him why he did this, Hershele replied that he thought the man was Berle.

- “And if I’m Berle,” said the offended man, “does this give you the right to hit me?”

- “Keep your nose out of mine and Berle’s affairs,” Hershele replied.

The Pig

During the feast of Passover

Passover

Passover is a Jewish holiday and festival. It commemorates the story of the Exodus, in which the ancient Israelites were freed from slavery in Egypt...

, Hershele once sat across from a self-absorbed rich man who made derogatory remarks about Hershele’s eating habits.

- “What separates you from a pig, is what I’d like to know,” the man said derisively.

- “The table,” Hershele replied.

The Painting

Once, Hershele was selling antiques and trinkets in the market. Among his wares was a large canvas, that was entirely blank. A customer asked Hershele what it was, and Hershele replied:

- "For a silver shekel, I will tell you about this painting. [The man, overwhelmed by curiosity, gives him a shekel]. Well, this painting is a famous painting, depicting the Jews crossing the Red Sea, with the Egyptians in pursuit."

- "Well, where are the Jews?"

- "They've crossed."

- "And the Egyptians?"

- "Haven't come yet."

- [Getting frustrated at having been duped] "And where's the Red Sea?!"

- "It's parted, dummkopf!"