Dreamers of the Ghetto

Israel Zangwill (1864-1926) was an English humourist and writer. Zangwill wrote a very influential novel Children of the Ghetto: A Study of a Peculiar People (1892). The use of the metaphorical phrase melting pot to describe American absorption of immigrants was popularised by Zangwill's play The Melting Pot, a hit in the United States in 1908. He also wrote mystery works, such as The Big Bow Mystery, and social satire such as The King of Schnorrers. His Dreamers of the Ghetto includes essays on famous Jews such as Baruch Spinoza, Heinrich Heine and Ferdinand Lassalle.