The Jewish Parasite Notes on the Seman spec of the Jewish Problem, rence to Germany In purring te, quenion of Row the pene ler, incomprehensible in their orgat ld ever have been possi has, perhaps, problem. When we examine provides the most joughts and conceptions are mirrored; ‘element indispensable to the formation of shapes our mental images and conceptions and gives them final expression. Research into changes of meaning which words and their connotations have undergone has, therefore, gained its rightlul place among the branches of historical study in the course last decades. Iv is now recognised as a di sphere of the name of Semantics and as such bears a specific significance for our ¢ Jews were using Christian blood for rive at a safe conclusion in this case, much syste- research into verbal usage and contemporary con ceptions concerning the Jews would be necessary. But the picture becomes clearer when we turn our attention to modern times and the recent past,4 Alex Bein The Jewish Parasite 5 since here the literaty evidence at our disposal shows an extensive range gular appeal to faith, its magic effect Ernst Cassirer, in Nazidominated roman, tried to al ‘They could be the development ‘and to stir up certain emotions. Our ordinary but these newfangled words are charged with feelings a The second characteristic established by Bumper i the weding of ‘and without regard to its harmful ates for me poetic imagination and stances? Words can act like tiny doses of without being noticed, they appear to have no effect, poison has done its work." Klemperer points out two characteris origin goes back movement, with its emphs phenomenon becomes ‘an only 100 easily ilariier of Tangeage6 Alex Bein notions, ken from natural science, were mainly used by way of analogy and as long as they served, in effect, the purpose of i unorpis so objection seeded wo be altel pe chis Kid of usget tained in the ‘comparison and ‘Thus the image of“ used by the conservative parties in Germany for in the course of time more and more the meaning of a genuine biological Such a presentation can be carr the Nazi voices lament the Jewish problem, words and verbal ter were used t00, at first rather as ana- 's saying — meant by him the phrase of the “cor in this negative sense wi logical term derived fr s in such images as (das Krebsgeschwiir des Wuchers) used by The Jewish Parasite 7 Sieg des Judentums iber das Germanentum, published in 1879; or in the ‘comparison of the Stock Exchange with a poisonous tree (Giftbaurn), first uused by Lagarde and thereupon taken over by antisemites as a catch are branded as a canker, , such an invective — ly neutral appearance. ‘word denotes, in common usage (according to the German Encyclopedia Grower Brockhaus), “animal and vegetable creatures which damage the objects of man in agriculture, forestry, horticul- animals, breeding stock, ly attacked and destroy anker of the people”) as different character. It leads towards » and has been particularly applied to the Jews. It , therefore, of interest 10 follow somewhat more closely the history of this word and its use with regard to the Jewish ss beside”) — originally sacerdotal and municipal ing treatment and the coarsest jokes at the hands of host and ike. The Parasite became a stock character in the Greek comedy and Latin by the Humanists, the word ‘entered into the speech of the European peoples as an expresion of contempt for {hin comedy)