The Philip Roth We Don’t Know: Sex, Race, and Autobiography

Berlinerblau, a professor of Jewish civilization at Georgetown, sorts through Philip Roth’s oeuvre to evaluate common critiques of the late author in this unconvincing work of literary criticism. Berlinerblau takes a “reverse biography” approach, investigating what may be revealed about the author’s life through his fiction. He structures the first half of the book around controversy and the author’s insistence that his work is not autobiographical, and the remainder focuses on wider themes in Roth’s work. More than anything, Berlinerblau writes, Roth was obsessed with “the ways in which men and women—but mostly men—change,” as with the Nathan Zuckerman character, who “wants to dramatically alter his existence.” Berlinerblau is at his best when reckoning with the fact that Roth, the person, had a complicated relationship between “Page Roth” and “Real Roth.” However, he fails to adequately contextualize contemporary arguments about Roth’s racism and misogyny, referencing the possibility that contemporary critics could “cancel” Roth, but neglecting to explain whether and how such criticism could tarnish the legacy of a deceased, well-regarded author. While Berlinerblau’s method of reverse biography is fascinating, this one doesn’t quite satisfy. (Sept.)