Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes! Asher Lev is always confronting his past—and the Jewish people's past—and facing those strange changes David Bowie once sang about. The history of the Jewish people is invoked on every other page, and the Lev family history looms large as well. Combined, these two things make Asher more than a little neurotic while moving towards his future.
Questions About The Past
- How is the past important to Asher?
- How does his notion of the past influence his notion of the present? The future?
- Is there a difference in the way Asher and his family think about the recent past versus the distant past?
- How does the mythic ancestor figure into the conversation about the past?
Chew on This
Try on an opinion or two, start a debate, or play the devil’s advocate.
Asher Lev's preoccupation with his own past mirrors Aryeh Lev's preoccupation with Asher's present and future.
In My Name Is Asher Lev, the Ladover Hasidic community structures itself around memories of the past, and plans its future accordingly.