Frieda's Sacrificial Destiny

The fate of the eldest sister who gave up her own girlhood to keep the Antin family alive and then watched Mary take the education she was denied.

increasingBearing stren­gth in each eventdecreasing

Fetchke the Good Little Girl

Fetchke the Good Little Girl The Model Sister Fetchke was always good, while Mary was often naughty. She shared Mary's bedtime vows to reform and accepted her share of imagined disgrace. The Mother's Shadow She followed Hannah Hayye to the store from babyhood, warming her hands over charcoal and sleeping among sacks of grain. The Little Housewife She learned early to lift burdens and see sugar plums lie unclaimed. Her hands were made for labor.

The Little Housewife of Twelve

The Little Housewife of Twelve The Fatherless Household Hannah Hayye peddled tea while Fetchke kept house at twelve. She washed clothes in the river and divided the scrap of meat. Minding the Children She kept Joseph, Mary, and baby Deborah safe in one room. The washing, mending, and cooking all fell to her. The Quiet Martyr She had no childhood of her own. The family ran on her uncomplaining strength.

The Dressmaker's Apprentice

The Dressmaker's Apprentice Learning a Trade Pinchus wrote that in America trades were honorable, so Fetchke was apprenticed to a dressmaker. She spent most of her time sweeping and minding babies. Success at Last Despite the drudgery, Fetchke learned her trade well. Mary failed at the milliner's, sealing the sisters' fates. The Diverging Paths Fetchke would work; Mary would go to school. The family understood the arrangement as inevitable.

The Evening School in the Kitchen

The Evening School in the Kitchen Lessons After Supper The sisters formed an evening school around the kitchen table. Frieda's cheeks flamed as she read English monosyllables. Fellow Citizens Mary explained that she, Frieda, and George Washington were Fellow Citizens together. Frieda's eyes shone at the thought. Vicarious Glory Frieda heard her sister's name praised wherever she went. She was content to live Mary's triumphs by proxy.

The Marriage to Moses Rifkin

The Marriage to Moses Rifkin The Offer of Escape Moses Rifkin was a good workman of irreproachable character. Pinchus would not stand in the way of her escape from the workshop. The Spendthrift Season Frieda suddenly spent her wages on finery, but the finery was Mary's graduation dress. She stitched it with her wedding hopes in her hands. The East Boston Kitchen Frieda married and moved to East Boston, leaving Mary the eldest child at home. Her new kitchen became a haven of poetry and affection.

early childhood in Polotzk

after Pinchus left for America

the last year in Russia

during the Chelsea years after Frieda began work

before the move to Dover Street