Introduction


Philip Roth

Philip Roth is one of America’s most award-winning authors. He’s won the National Book Award twice, the National Book Critic’s Circle Award twice, three PEN/Faulkner Awards, and a Pulitzer Prize for Fiction. Roth began his literary career shortly after receiving his master’s degree in English literature. In addition to his well-received novels, Roth has also written short stories, film reviews, and political satire. His most famous works are Goodbye, Columbus and Portnoy’s Complaint. Roth also created a character named Nathan Zuckerman that figures prominently in several of his books. Because personal angst is a hallmark of Roth’s writing, the Zuckerman character, which serves as an alter ego for the author, has been a kind of barometer for Roth’s personal and artistic growth.

Essential Facts

  1. Roth’s first wife, Margaret Martinson, inspired several characters in Roth novels, including his well-known Portnoy’s Complaint.
  2. Roth reportedly suffered a nervous breakdown later in life. The event is reflected in his novel Operation Shylock.
  3. In addition to writing award-winning books, Roth has taught comparative literature at the University of Pennsylvania for many years.
  4. Actress Claire Bloom, Roth’s second wife (and second ex-wife), published a tell-all book titled Exiting a Doll’s House, which documented in unflattering detail the breakdown of their marriage.
  5. The title of Roth’s novel The Human Stain is a reference to the sex scandal involving former U.S. President Bill Clinton, intern Monica Lewinsky, and her now-infamous (and unwashed) dress.
 

Recommended Resources

  1. Goodbye, Columbus Study Guide (eNotes)
  2. Operation Shylock: A Confession quickNotes
  3. Philip Roth - Critical Survey of Long Fiction
  4. Philip Roth - Cyclopedia of World Authors
  5. The Conversation of the Jews Study Guide (eNotes)

All Resources

Display as: Categories, List
  1. American Ethnic Writers
  2. American Pastoral Book Review
  3. American Pastoral Book Review
  4. American Pastoral Masterplot
  5. Critical Survey of Short Fiction
  6. Deception - Magill's Literary Annual
  7. Goodbye, Columbus Identity and Issues
  8. Goodbye, Columbus Study Guide (eNotes)
  9. I Married a Communist Book Review
  10. Jewish American Long Fiction
  11. Letting Go Literary Characters
  12. Letting Go Masterplot
  13. Operation Shylock Book Review
  14. Operation Shylock Masterplot
  15. Operation Shylock: A Confession quickNotes
  16. Patrimony Book Review
  17. Philip Roth - Critical Survey of Long Fiction
  18. Philip Roth - Cyclopedia of World Authors
  19. Philip Roth Criticism
  20. Portnoy's Complaint Censorship
  21. Portnoy's Complaint Identities and Issues
  22. Portnoy's Complaint Literary Characters
  23. Portnoy's Complaint Literary Places
  24. Portnoy's Complaint quickNotes
  25. Sabbath's Theater Book Review
  26. Sabbath's Theater Masterplot
  27. Short Story Criticism
  28. The Anatomy Lesson Literary Characters
  29. The Breast - Magill's Guide to Science Fiction and Fantasy Literature
  30. The Breast Study Guide (quickNotes)
  31. The Conversation of the Jews Study Guide (eNotes)
  32. The Counterlife Literary Characters
  33. The Counterlife Masterplot
  34. The Counterlife Study Guide (quickNotes)
  35. The Dying Animal Book Review
  36. The Facts Book Review
  37. The Ghost Writer Literary Characters
  38. The Great American Novel Literary Characters
  39. The Great American Novel Masterplot
  40. The Human Stain Book Review
  41. The Human Stain quickNotes
  42. The Oxford Companion to American Literature Article on Philip Roth
  43. The Oxford Companion to English Literature Article on Philip Roth
  44. The Plot Against America Book Review
  45. The Prague Orgy Literary Characters
  46. The Sixties in America
  47. Zuckerman Bound Masterplot