Options
Destroying the Armor of "Dignity": Philip Roth on Scandals, Political and Personal
Type
conference paper
Date Issued
2012-06-21
Author(s)
Abstract
The American writer Philip Roth (*1933) has experienced the feeling of causing scandals, but he has likewise been inspired by scandals - his own and those of former Presidents. At the beginning of his career, Roth was criticized for his breakthrough novel "Portnoy's Complaint" (1969), wherein he portrayed the (sexual) woes of a young Jewish man. Roth drew inspiration from the outrage his novel caused in the Jewish community, and he satirized future reproaches of misogyny and anti-Semitism at several instances, but particularly forcefully in "Zuckerman Unbound" (1981). In a similar vein, Roth used political scandals as, on the one hand, stories setting the atmosphere and defining central questions of his novels, for instance in "The Human Stain" (2000). On the other hand, Roth likewise satirized politicians and their scandals, notably Richard Nixon, who is the model for the pre-Watergate closet drama "Our Gang" (1971). Finally, Roth also likes to provoke his readers by inventing scandalous political developments, as he did in "The Plot Against America" (2004) and "Nemesis" (2010).
This paper explores how Philip Roth's writing is inspired by personal and political scandals, and how he develops imaginary scandals in his counterfactual writings. An analysis of the narrative devices and modes of fictionalization provide insight into the many readings and re-narrations of scandals, as well as into the interplay of fact and fiction. Roth's oeuvre thus allows us to see the impact of scandals from different angles and helps us imagine possible cultural impacts and consequences for society.
This paper explores how Philip Roth's writing is inspired by personal and political scandals, and how he develops imaginary scandals in his counterfactual writings. An analysis of the narrative devices and modes of fictionalization provide insight into the many readings and re-narrations of scandals, as well as into the interplay of fact and fiction. Roth's oeuvre thus allows us to see the impact of scandals from different angles and helps us imagine possible cultural impacts and consequences for society.
Language
English
Keywords
scandal
Philip Roth
politics and literature
counterfactual
satire
Richard Nixon
Bill Clinton
HSG Classification
contribution to scientific community
Refereed
No
Start page
24
Event Title
Scandal!: An Interdisciplinary Conference on the Consequences, Outcomes, and Significance of Political Scandals
Event Location
University of Shippensburg, Pennsylvania
Event Date
21.-23.06.2012
Subject(s)
Eprints ID
212937