Word: cartaphilus
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Dates: during 1960-1969
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...final chapters, Rosenberg discusses a minor myth--that of the Wandering Jew. "The story of Cartaphilus, who struck Christ on His way to the Cross and was condemned to tarry until His second coming, has left far less of an impact on literature than the Shylock story; but it is in many respects a more useful legend. It answers the purpose of literary history more readily; it changes; it adapts itself to the demands of diverse generations and diverse beliefs. It provides a more reliable and more 'readable' barometer than Shylock to the kind of civilization, ideology, and regnant literary...
Rosenberg excavates two late eighteenth century novels, Lewis' The Monk and Godwin's St. Leon, which portray the isolated Jew as black magician, and traces their lineage from Cartaphilus to DuMaurier's Svengali. In Trilby "the myths of Judas and of Cartaphilus met in the figure of a Victorian bogey-hypnotist...
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