Srulik

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Srulik is an illustrated character who symbolizes Israel. The character was first drawn in 1956 by the cartoonist Dosh (Kariel Gardosh), a Holocaust survivor who immigrated to Israel from Hungary, and appeared for many years in cartoons that were published in the newspaper "Maariv." Yosef Lapid, Dosh's colleague on the editorial board of Maariv, said that Srulik symbolizes Israel just as Marianne is the symbol of France and Uncle Sam symbolizes the United States. His name is a diminutive for "Yisrael," or Israel.

Srulik is generally depicted as a young man wearing a "Kova tembel" hat, biblical sandals, and khaki shorts. Srulik is a pioneering Zionist, a lover of the land of Israel and its soil, a dedicated farmer who in time of need puts on a uniform and goes out to defend the state of Israel equipped with an Uzi. Dosh drew Srulik in cartoons on current events for Maariv, and also for various "specials" and occasions of the young state. During wartime, Srulik put on a uniform and was drafted to raise the national morale.

Many have pointed out Srulik's function as an antithesis of the antisemitic caricatures which appeared in Der Sturmer and other European and Arab journals. As against the stereotype of the weak Jew that was propagated by Joseph Goebbels, Dosh — a Holocaust survivor — drew a proud, strong Jewish character.