Article How Jewish is Willow Rosenberg?

[sjscottt80]

Hey everyone, I'm a regular poster who loves to hear about what people think of my essays on BtVS -- I'd love to hear what you think!

How Jewish is Willow Rosenberg?

In "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," the character arc of Willow is that which changes the most. However, in contrast to most commentaries on the development of her character, the primary issue might not be her extrovert or introvert personality (depending on the season) or her transition into a lesbian. Her relationship with Judaism also needs to be addressed.

 

[Icarium]

I really doubt Willow's outfit in Welcome to the Hellmouth had anything to do with her being Jewish. She dresses like that because she doesn't see herself as sexy - see Halloween where this is discussed openly.

 

[Ripper666]

So do you agree? Did Willow changed so much because she needed to draw a line between herself and her parents which she started to disrespect the more and more?

 

[WileyDairyGnome]

I don't think Willow was the type of person who was very religious. Her religion was Jewish because her parents were.

I think Willow continued being Jewish, and respected the culture, but she didn't let it control her life like what she ate or wore.

 

[Icarium]

Willow is a prominent example of the Informed Judaism trope, btw - http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/InformedJudaism

Not that TV Tropes is much of an authority on anything, mind you. 🙂

 

[NY State of Mind]

Just cause her family is Jewish doesn't mean she partakes in the religion per se...I didn't see or hear any of the characters being religious...sure her name is jewish by tradition but nowadays theres plenty of people who have jewish names and aren't jewish and theres people with un jewish names who are jewish

If she has any sort of religion then I'd say its witchcraft

 

[Gum Gnome33]

Interesting article! Here's what I think:

-To me, Willow's outfit in WTTHM didn't seem particularly frum to me, at least not in the uniquely Orthodox sense. If anything, I saw it as sort of a nod to the traditional Catholic schoolgirl outfit. Not that that's what Sheila Rosenberg was going for, but I guess what I mean is that it was just conservative, in general. Fitting choice for a mother who wanted her daughter to be covered up and traditionally dressed. But of course if you pair that outfit with the hints Willow has dropped about Ira Rosenberg I understand how it seems like she came from at least a conservative household.

-I think that though her parents might have been conservative, Willow herself isn't by any means a practicing Jew. I could be wrong of course, but since we never see any religious practices alluded to on the show after she leaves her home, that seems to be the case to me. Of course in season 7 however, she puts a stone on Tara's gravesite which is of course a Jewish tradition but doesn't really bear an indication of religious observation as much as it is perhaps merely a nod to her culture.

-I would actually argue that once Willow refers to herself as a "wicca," (which I think she does, right? Not just a witch?) she is embracing the practice and any theology that might come along with it. I would think that a lot of observant Jews would consider her to have violated a lot of the basic laws of Judaism simply by casting spells which call upon "gods" or "goddesses." Spells to Osiris, Hectate, Diana, etc, are all essentially examples of worship or at least acknowledgement of other deities and an expectation of services at their hands. I know you acknowledge in your article that magic is of course inherently in opposition to the ideologies of Judaism but I think because of this many people would say that she can't be Jewish; at least not halachically speaking.

The bottom line for me is this: the show itself forces its characters to acknowledge the existence of other deities, of demons, and of magic. Basically, there is a gigantic, inherent conflict between embracing any of these hellmouthian truths and subscribing to Judeo-Christian beliefs by practice and observation. I think it would be really interesting to consider how someone (maybe like Willow) who comes from a religious background comes to terms with a world like Sunnydale, and whether they are able to maintain their previous religious practices. And if so, how? In effect if they continued to practice, they'd be coming up with sort of a different system altogether...

 

[david4wt]

I believe she respects Jewish traditions and she celebrates Jewish festivities because she grew up doing that, just as I celebrate Christmas or Easter because I grew up in a Catholic family and society, but I still consider myself atheist.
Traditions are really important, they are part of you even though you don't believe in what that religion preaches.

 

[Icarium]

I would actually argue that once Willow refers to herself as a "wicca," (which I think she does, right? Not just a witch?)

Wicca is used many times as just a synonym of witch in BtVS, not to denote religious belief. In fanfiction Willow and Tara are often portrayed as believers in wicca but I don't think this is the case in canon.

And yes, it's odd that no one ever raises the question how can one even be a believer in the Christian or other god whose existence they are not sure of, never mind that they have come across of many deities who exist for sure. Buffy is pulled from heaven - no one bothers raising the question what kind of heaven was that, is it ruled by some particular deity, how come Willow overruled that deity, etc.

 

[david4wt]

Buffy is pulled from heaven - no one bothers raising the question what kind of heaven was that, is it ruled by some particular deity, how come Willow overruled that deity, etc.

I really think that the "I was pulled out of heaven" just means "I was in this perfect dimension where everything was great, and it was comparable to what our culture calls 'heaven'!"

 

[FlowerPower]

I agree with GumGnome that from a religious perspective, the knowledge of other deities and heavens kind of overrules Judeo-Christian teachings in the Buffyverse. The Jewish religion does not foresee a goddess like Glory.

However, I also agree with david4wt on the importance of traditions. A huge part of being Jewish is really just acknowledging that you're Jewish and feeling affiliation to the religion. Taking on a Jewish identity is a big deal within the culture because of the persecution that it's suffered and many Jews really stop at that. Willow's life experiences and interests have caused her to move away from literal practice and belief but she cares enough to note that she has a Menorah in her window that Santa must pass right over and to put stones on Tara's grave both long after she's accepted Wiccan precepts.

Maybe I have an oversensitive ear because I'm Jewish but there's something about some of Shelia Rosenberg's intonations and way of speaking (the way she says, "This isn't exactly a surprise") had a Jewish feel to me. While Willow's level of fidelity to Judaism can be questionable, the fact that she grew up in a politically liberal but in practice, conservative household is unquestionable and that informs her wardrobe and attitude, especially in the first three seasons. I always wanted to see Shelia's meeting with Oz so very badly. 🙂

 

[Ianigsy]

My understanding is that ethnic and cultural Judaism are separate but connected things, and individuals with Jewish heritage kind of have to work out for themselves where they stand on that scale. It's possible to be ethnically Jewish and have no connection with your ancestors' belief systems, or for a Gentile to marry into a Jewish family and adopt their practices.

The other thing that interests me is the casting aspect- rather than casting somebody of more typically Jewish appearance (dark hair, Mediterranean complexion) to play Willow, the producers cast somebody with Irish heritage and the flame red hair and pale skin usually associated with Celtic ancestry. It suggests to me that Willow's Jewish background was primarily intended as a bit of character detail and to put some variety into the make-up of what is otherwise a very Anglo-Saxon main cast, rather than being crucial to the character.

 

[FlowerPower]

The other thing that interests me is the casting aspect- rather than casting somebody of more typically Jewish appearance (dark hair, Mediterranean complexion) to play Willow, the producers cast somebody with Irish heritage and the flame red hair and pale skin usually associated with Celtic ancestry. It suggests to me that Willow's Jewish background was primarily intended as a bit of character detail and to put some variety into the make-up of what is otherwise a very Anglo-Saxon main cast, rather than being crucial to the character.

I thought Willow's red hair and green eyes worked really well with her being a natural at being a super-powerful witch to the point that it felt like "kismet casting" even if it's not the stereotypical Jewish appearance.

It's part of all the extremes of labels inherent in Willow's character- gay v. straight, scientist v. mystic, Jewish v. Pagan, "truly the best of all of us" v. Big Bad.

 

[Icarium]

Isn't Alyson's natural hair colour brown (like it was for Willow back in season one)?

While Willow's level of fidelity to Judaism can be questionable, the fact that she grew up in a politically liberal but in practice, conservative household is unquestionable and that informs her wardrobe and attitude, especially in the first three seasons.

I don't know, if Sheila didn't notice for months that her daughter had cut her hair, I doubt she bothered noticing Willow's clothes much either.

 

[FlowerPower]

I don't know, if Sheila didn't notice for months that her daughter had cut her hair, I doubt she bothered noticing Willow's clothes much either.

My impression is that Shelia and Ira had strict codes of conduct that they instructed to Willow (no boys in her room even though her best friends growing up were boys, no crosses allowed on her walls, the Catholic schoolgirl outfit of the pilot, won't ever hear out her case if the principal phones home) and those codes of conduct informed some of her behavior. Then, Shelia and Ira weren't there/didn't care enough to regularly enforce their rules and then *that* influenced Willow's behavior in and of itself. It's a curious contradiction of child-rearing.

 

[Icarium]

Yes, sure, Willow's somewhat contradictory attitude towards following rules (hacking=good, leaving campus=bad, etc.) does seem to be shaped by her parents' inability to enforce their rules. I just don't think her clothing style is influenced that much by her parents, it's not like she started wearing more revealing clothes after she moved out. In The Body she says: "Why can't I just dress like a grownup?" She just has a quirky style of clothing.

I wonder if Sheila saw Willow's Halloween costume. 🙂 I wish we had seen more of her and actually seen Ira.