The Conversion of the Jews

Rabbi Binder is the antagonist, standing in opposition to Ozzie’s search for clarity and truth. He represents ineffective, authoritarian power. He is described as a “tall, handsome, and broad-shouldered man of thirty” (315), but his looks and position of authority are deceiving. Readers are first introduced to Rabbi Binder through Ozzie’s mocking imitation.

Ozzie and Itzie’s ridicule of their teacher undermines and discredits his legitimacy. His behavior in the classroom further justifies Ozzie’s lack of respect. He repeatedly misunderstands Ozzie’s questions in class discussions; he is bothered by Ozzie’s earnest attempt to learn Hebrew; and he cannot answer Ozzie’s final question about God: “Why can’t He make anything He wants to make!” (317). Rabbi Binder’s anger at this question perhaps stems from his inability to answer it. His rage reaches its peak when he bloodies Ozzie’s nose, leading to the incident on the roof.

During the crisis on the roof, Rabbi Binder is ineffectual. He doesn’t have the presence of mind to contact local authorities (Yakov Blotnik calls the fire department), and he can’t control the students’ taunting chants to jump, which are led by Itzie. His only recourse is to kneel and agree that he believes in Jesus and the virgin birth.

Mrs. Freedman is Ozzie’s widowed mother; she serves as a pseudo-antagonist and as a foil to primary antagonist Rabbi Binder. She is the spiritual leader in Ozzie’s life. In one of the story’s few tender scenes, Ozzie picks up a ringing phone to allow his mother a quiet, contemplative moment to light the candle for the Sabbath. Unfortunately, his reverence for his pious mother is broken when she slaps him after hearing of his indiscretion at school. This act foreshadows Rabbi Binder’s violence in the classroom later in the story.

Mrs. Freedman’s faith appears spiritual, whereas Rabbi Binder’s is ritualistic and rote. Mrs. Freedman upholds tradition but does not rush through the Hebrew reading (like Rabbi Binder forces Ozzie to do). She has a genuine emotional reaction to the lighting of the candles. The narrator says, “Her eyes would get glassy with tears” (315). She does, however, misinterpret Ozzie’s taunting of the fire department atop the school. She sees it as a connection to the spirit of her ancestors. The narrator says,

Mrs. Freedman raised her two arms upward as though she were conducting the sky. ‘For them he’s doing it!’ And then in a gesture older than pyramids, older than prophets and floods, her arms came slapping down to her sides. ‘A martyr I have. Look!’ (322).

Humorously, she connects Ozzie’s flapping arms and screaming “Wheee!” as the firefighters chase after him as an act of biblical and historical significance—another example of the misunderstandings that run through Roth’s story.