The Images of the Jewish Male in Selected Novels of Philip Roth

TEAM PLAYERS TO SPIRITUAL WARRIORS: THE IMAGES OF THE JEWISH MALE IN SELECTED NOVELS OF PHILIP ROTH by AMY MARIE LOPEZ A Capstone Project submitted to the Graduate School-Camden Rutgers-The State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Liberal Studies under the direction of Professor Lauren Grodstein Approved by: ____________________________________ Capstone Adviser Date Camden, New Jersey May 2012 i ABSTRACT OF THE CAPSTONE Team Players to Spiritual Warriors: The images of the Jewish male in selected novels of Philip Roth By AMY MARIE LOPEZ Capstone Director: Lauren Grodstein Researchers have filled volumes on changing images of women in the past fifty years. Less research has been conducted on the evolving images and ideals of masculinity in modern times. This capstone examined the masculine images constructed by arguably one of the most important American writers living today, Philip Roth. The goal was to determine whether Roth created men who stuck to traditional images of masculinity, or if he crafted men who blended and stretched those commonly accepted roles. Integral to this study was a careful examination of how each character‟s Jewishness affected their masculinity (both internally and externally perceived). Research involved close readings of five Roth selections, 2 short stories and 3 novels. These writings spanned his career. Additional research included readings on masculinity and criticisms of Roth‟s work. ii Results indicated that Roth‟s characters do not simply fit one stereo-type or another. They form a range of masculinities, sometimes embracing the American-myth and at others blending that type in with qualities often considered feminine. Roth‟s concern with the struggle to be both a good Jewish man and American, runs throughout his novels. iii 1 Team Players to Spiritual Warriors: The images of the Jewish male in selected novels of Philip Roth Introduction During the past forty years substantial scholarship has been written concerning the changing images of women throughout history. This research has been inspired by the woman‟s liberation movement and the ever-changing roles of women in the family, workforce, the arts and political landscape. Less research has been conducted on the evolving images/ideals of masculinity (Mihailescu, 87). Not all images of masculinity are created equal. Race, age and sexuality are variables that surely affect whether or not a man fits into the traditional ideal images. Considered by some to be the “greatest living novelist,” writer Philip Roth has built a career focused on investigating the American male experience1. This paper will examine various images of masculinity created by author Philip Roth in his fiction. Selections to be examined include: The Ghost Writer, Eli the Fanatic, Defender of the Faith, The Dying Animal and American Pastoral. These works represent both the early and later 1 Recently writer Joseph O’Neill’s the Atlantic article entitled “Roth v. Roth v. Roth” touted such a cover headline. Inside the article O’Neill refers to the “stubborn masculinity of Roth’s fiction” highlighting that even though Roth’s stories include a myriad of female characters, the focus has been on life as seen through the eyes of a man. 2 stages in Roth‟s career. As such, these works will serve to provide a broader perspective for exploring Roth‟s leading men. In order to get a comprehensive grasp on the different versions of masculinity offered up by Roth, some understanding of past and current definitions of masculinity will first be explored. Specific attention will be given to theories about the images of Jewish-American masculinity and images of masculinity in general. In the final analysis, this paper will look at whether the male characters of Roth labor to fit into the American masculine ideal or, whether these characters are able to utilize their “otherness” as Jews to create a new brand of masculinity for themselves. Definitions of Masculinity Dana Mihailescu offers a three-part definition of traditional masculinity as men who: possess physical vigor (aggressiveness), tangible achievements, and rely more on rationality versus emotions (88). According to Mihailescu in days of old physicality and achievements of men were often based on their skills as warriors, hunters or, defenders (88). However, as the demands on men transitioned away from the actual violence of a warrior, Mihailescu says that masculinity took on a more performative aspect. 3 Athletic skill, often at the college level, replaced actual killing as a means of demonstrating masculinity (88, 90). Mihailescu claims that this alteration, in conjunction with a growing inclusion of Jewish males in the pressures of American-masculine ideals, allows a greater number of Jewish men to “more easily adopt the American masculine norm”2 (92). Philip Roth‟s leading male characters challenge the implied ease of Mihailescu‟s position, as readers observe men like Eli Peck struggle to live up to ideals of both Jewish masculinity and American masculinity. Daniel Boyarin has spent a great deal of time focusing on the relationship between Jewish men and traditional expectations of masculinity. In his book entitled, Unheroic Conduct, Boyarin examines the ways in which the invention of heterosexuality (and the expectations of masculinity that flow from the invention) impact how Jewish men have been conceived in Jewish minds and in the minds of others. According to Boyarin, there is a disconnect that results because of the clash between hegemonic concepts of masculinity and the culturally traditional images of the 2 Mihailescu seems to be arguing a couple of different points in this passage. First, the alteration of the performative scene from battlefield to college sports arena opened up ideas about American masculinity. Secondly, Mihailescu believes that through experience and literature Jewish men and women were able to realize that the hegemonic ideals about masculinity were not built upon concrete truths (88). Even if the basic American code of masculinity is founded upon athletic performance and not primitive violence, the affects for marginalized men are the same: they continue to react to the pressure by wanting to conform to the ideal (91-92). 4 Jewish male as being “gentle, studious and sweet.” (Boyarin, 2) Boyarin insists that this dissonance creates a gender dysphoria for Jewish boys like himself (Boyarin, Unheroic Conduct: The Rise of Heterosexuality and the Invention of the Jewish Man ,2). Boyarin suggests that beginning in Europe, in particularly during the fin de siècle; the Talmudic traditional images of Jewish men were utilized as a way of constructing a feminized Jewish male.3 These feminized images could then be used to contrast Jewish and European men, fueling anti-Semitism. Boyarin criticizes concepts of masculinity that persist in emphasizing the performative aspects of masculinity. He believes that the “dominant strain within European culture, in contrast continues to this day to interpret activity, domination and aggressiveness as „manly‟ and gentleness and passivity as emasculate or effeminate” (Boyarin, Unheroic Conduct: The Rise of Heterosexuality and the Invention of the Jewish Man ,2) It will become clear as the novels of Philip Roth are examined that such an emphasis on action and domination is also considered as manly behavior in the United States as well. A struggle between Jewish concepts of masculinity and those of the larger culture characterize 3 Daniel Boyarin states in his book that Jewish men who embodied characteristics such as kindness, wisdom and modesty were seen as either sexually perverse or impotent. Throughout Roth’s novels there is a tension found in the characters that arises from this dichotomy between traditional Jewish ideals of manhood and the hegemonic ideals. 5 the tension-filled journeys of Roth‟s male characters as they seek to navigate these two very different expectations. As the characters fail to easily, or completely, assimilate they are reminded of their otherness. Herb Goldberg states that the current definition of masculinity involves a “compulsion to perform, to prove himself, to dominate, to live up to the masculine ideal” (5). Goldberg believes that it is more important that a man be constantly striving towards the ideal rather than actually attaining the goal (6). Goldberg also states that in the American landscape, man‟s domain is that of work (7). The male domain itself implies action compared to the protected sphere of the home, a woman‟s traditional domain. Goldberg‟s conceptualization of masculinity implies a level of intentionality that is lacking in some of the other perspectives. Each of Roth‟s male characters spends time internally focused on their identities in relation to their careers. Seymour Levov takes great pride in giving tours of Newark Maid, the business he has helped build (Roth, American Pastoral , 119). Eli Peck knows that the reason the townspeople of Woodenton have asked him to handle their Yeshiva problem is because of his role as a lawyer (Roth, 6 Goodbye, Columbus , 251, 253). In later sections, this compulsion to act, and strive towards an ideal, which animates the men of Roth‟s novels will be discussed in greater detail. What these definitions have in common is the focus on masculinity as being achieved through action. If dominance, action, athleticism/aggression, and rationality are the key characteristics of masculinity, the implication is that men who are more submissive, passive, intellectual (vs. physical) and emotional are thus viewed as less masculine. Mihailescu discusses the idea of disqualifying characteristics in her essay. If rational thought is a characteristic of masculinity then men who exhibit overly emotional behavior are to be considered less than masculine (89). Andrea Freud Loewenstein addresses the issue of Jewish masculinity to the writings of William Gerhardi and George Orwell. Loewenstein states that the characteristics of Jewish men are closely linked to the same characteristics used to describe a woman‟s behavior (147).

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