Yechezkel Feivel

Rabbi Yechezkel Feivel (1755–1833) was the Maggid in Vilnius in the early 19th century and the author of several books, including Toldos Adam, a hagiography of Rabbi Zalman of Vilna, the famed brother of Chaim of Volozhin. Feivel was the Maggid of Vilna from 1811 until his death.

Reception and Analysis of Toldos Adam

Feivel's Magnum opus, the biography Toldos Adam, achieved singular success in the rabbinic world. It is one of the few biographies which is cited in halachic works, including those of such leading scholars as Rabbi Akiva Eiger, Rabbi Efraim Margolies, and Rabbi Shaul Natanzohn. However, Feivel was criticized by various rabbinic authorities, including Rabbi Zvi Hirsch Chajes, for plagiarization and falsifying sources.

It has been demonstrated that large parts of Toldos Adam were lifted verbatim from the works of leading Maskilim such as Moses Mendelssohn and Naphtali Hirz Wessely, though not attributed to them. This was presumably an attempt to slip those ideas into the broader Jewish community, which had rejected the Haskalah movement's ideology.

Works

Among Feivel's works are:

• Toldos Adam (two vol.)
• Mussar Haskel