The Counterlife | Objects, Setting & Important Places

The Counterlife Objects/Places

Newark, New Jersey

This is where the Nathan and Henry are from, and it is the setting of some of the character Nathan's novels.

Shiska

This is a Yiddish term for a non-Jewish woman.

Diaspora

This is a term for the scattering of a people away from their traditional homeland. It is often used to describe the scattering of the Jews over thousands of years.

Judea

This is a portion of the country of Israel. Other names for this region include the West Bank.

Goyim

This is a Yiddish term meaning non-Jew. In modern usage it can sometimes have negative connotations.

The Wailing Wall

This is an important Jewish religious structure in Jerusalem. Here Nathan first meets Jimmy Ben-Joseph.

Carnovsky

This is the title of Nathan's well-known novel based on his own family. This novel caused Henry to stop speaking to Nathan for many years.

Chiswick

This is an area within Greater London where Nathan and Maria are having a home...
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