Why did Giti get so angry at Ruhami for comforting her brother this way? Could it do any harm? That scene was heartbreaking. A 14yo is put in charge of four younger children, including a baby, and she gets yelled at. No wonder she runs away to the library...
shareLike so many scenes in this rich drama, the whole episode/story can be seen focused in this one moment. Ruchami has precocious reading taste and is about to rebel, but will find satisfaction within that close Haredi community, not needing to break out. Here her instinct to soothe her squawling brother violates a sexual decorum in her community, so Giti corrects her as kindly as she can. As Ruchami fakes mothering here she fakes fathering when she writes her brothers warm and helpful letters supposedly from their absent dad. Both "parenting" scenes give her the courage to break the community norms by taking the initiative to woo and wed her Hanina. If you're interested in this kind of analysis you might like to check my book, Reading Shtisel: A TV Masterpiece from Israel. It's available at lulu.com, amazon and Branes & Noble online. I find the drama's central theme to be a critique of any social system, whether religious, political or domestic, that upholds a regulation against compassion.
share