February 1, 1885

Smolenskin (1842-1885), a Jewish-Russian writer, is known for his novels, including the “A Wanderer on the Path of Life,” “Burial of the Ass” and “The Inheritance,” which all depict Jewish life in the Russian Empire. “A Wanderer” depicts the unsure existence of Jewish life between the ghetto and the emancipated world. Smolenskin is also the founder of Ha-Shahar, an early Hebrew publication that supports Jewish Nationalism and the Haskalah (Jewish enlightenment) movement.