Secular Jewish Identity in Asaf Hanuka's "The Realist"

Abstract

ABSTRACT:Non-religious Jews in Israel may define themselves as secular, yet they often observe Jewish traditions. While not monolithic in their practice, they are far less secular on the whole than their counterparts in other western countries. Recent surveys have effectively demonstrated the different forms these religious practices take but not the rationale behind them. Six of Asaf Hanuka's 400 weekly comic strip "The Realist" provide insight into why he self-identifies as secular but observes Jewish traditions with his nuclear family on a regular basis. Hanuka is appreciative of ritual while observing it with his parents and children but when left on his own, he is either dismissive of it or else adapts it so that he can take part in the familial or communal framework.