A Short Story: The Shawl by Cynthia Ozick

Among all of the short stories I have ever read, there wasn’t one as brutal as The Shawl. Perhaps starting with some trigger warnings would be a great idea. The story has implied rape elements in it. Also, child death is a part of the story and I wouldn’t recommend reading this story for those who are easily affected by these things. The story takes place in a Nazi concentration camp. As one can imagine, it isn’t a pretty story. Yet, even among the stories about the Holocaust, this one has a special place in my heart as it captures the despair of the mother pretty well.

The story follows three characters. Rosa, her baby Magda, and her niece Stella. During their march to a Nazi Concentration Camp, they have become so thin and tired. Rosa is so sure that her baby Magda would die along the way and yet Magda is alive and wrapped into the shawl that gives the story its name. Throughout the story, the shawl is described as akin to heaven. It is safe, offers Magda comfort and even Stella wants the shawl. She wants the shawl so bad that the crucial point of the story happens because of that. Stella steals the shawl and Magda, who is normally very quiet, starts crying. Rosa tries to get back the shawl from Stelle to quiet Magda down and then save her before the Nazi soldiers find and kill her. However, this plan does not work and a soldier finds Magda, throwing the baby to the electric fence, killing her instantly.

Another heartbreaking point in the story is a little bit covered. While describing Magda, the author tells the reader she has blue eyes and blond hair. Then, during the story, Stella observes the baby, saying that she looks Aryan. This implies that the baby is born because of rape. Little points like this in the story are disgusting and blood-chilling but the writing is fascinating and you find yourself reading more and more. It suits the writer, whose parents are Jewish immigrants, pretty well. It is possible to see the brutality of the war within less than 2,000 words. However, despite describing the Holocaust, it is possible to say that the story is not that old. It had been published in 1980 in The New Yorker. This shows that even after the war, it continues to affect those who have seen it or were told stories about it.