Ginsberg and Roth Choosing Their Own Judaism
I take these things for granted. Tradition and cultural awareness to me is another thing I can shrug off like too much homework. To my generation it's fashionable to embrace other traditions: mendhi tattoos for the Italians, matzo ball soup for the Pakistanis, McDonald's for the Nigerians. When did we learn to borrow from everyone else? When did I learn to come to terms with my own identity? The Civil Rights movement started it all. In quick succession, Asians demanded recognition, Native Americans wanted to carve a place back into their country, women wanted to burn their bras. Why not the Jews in America? Allen Ginsberg used his own tradition and his mother's death to establish that identity, while Philip Roth used a fictional narrative to tell the story of a Jewish family in America. Why compare these works at all? Both are creative accounts of Jewish American culture, one through poetry and one through a fictionalized self. Both use Judaism to express feeling to either tradition or memory. Both are literary works in the 1960s that deal with Jewish self-identity rather than black, white, or other identities. But I'm getting ahead of myself...
Allen Ginsberg says his own work "Kaddish" is "finally, completely free composition, the long line breaking up within itself into short staccato breath units - notations of one spontaneous phrase after another..." (Allen 417). "Kaddish" is a prayer of atonement, making its point through rhythm, repetition and incantation. Ginsberg uses "Kaddish" to express his understanding of his own identity, and also to put that identity into the framework of Judaism. Ginsberg's mother Naomi went through a series of mental hospitals and psychological outbreaks from Ginsberg's childhood, eventually receiving a lobotomy and dying shortly thereafter. The Ginsberg family never held a traditional "Kaddish" because too few men were present to do so. Two years later, Ginsberg performed the ceremony with then friend Zev Putterman, and later wrote his own version of "Kaddish" (Asher). He starts his "Kaddish" incanting the spirit of Naomi by pulling up memories of her and her identity. "I walk toward the / Lower East Side - where you walked fifty years ago, little / girl - from Russia, eating the first poisonous tomatoes of / America - frightened on the dock" (Allen 195). In Part IV, Ginsberg then goes on to chant to his mother with the phrases "O mother," "with your," and "with your eyes.
What can be said about a novel of such luminance as Snow Falling on Cedars that has not already been said? Certainly it is a work of much vision and insight and speaks volumes about prejudice and race. The wordplay of Guterson creates a world of vivid reality-it surrounds the reader with sights, smells and a clearly defined sense of touch. Perhaps lost amidst the smells of the strawberry fields, the cold of the winter storm, and the deep social statements about the nature and quirkiness of prejudice is the fact that this beautifully crafted story of immense complexity is in reality a very simple story about the identity of one man. Guterson himself says, "Post-modernism is dead because it didn't address human needs. The conventional story endures because it does. I'm interested in themes that endure from generation to generation" (qtd. in Kanner). This book is a conventional story, a simple story about the internal battle of Ishmael Chambers as he struggles with himself. This is made evident in the subtle and not too subtle comparisons made between Ishmael and other characters. Taking all of this into account reveals that the true theme of the book centers on the transformation of Ishmael from weak to strong.
Both authors rely on case studies of specific ethnic groups as a platform to push their respective arguments. For the purpose of this essay, only the Jewish and Black ethnic groups will be discussed since conjunctively they reflect the dichotomy of assimilation “success” and “failure”. One of the strengths of Sowell’s work though is how extensive and detailed he goes into ethnic groups. Not only does Sowell cover a large variety of ethnic groups, he also discusses differences within ethnic groups. Steinberg instead groups ethnic groups more
Artists communicate their identity through their work in different ways. Identity can be influenced by culture, community, and diversity, it can be represented and communicated in many different ways as well. The two artists I will be comparing are Ah Xian and Kerry James Marshall. Both artists represent culture identity in their works but in different ways as well as have different views on the subject of cultural identities.
Philip Roth is the most prominent American novelist in American literature. His book, “Portney’s compliant” is one of the most important literatures for the ethnic group in the world especially for the Jews in America. According to Prof. Sasha Senderovich “Philip Roth’s book is the bible for the Jewish people.” (Lecture). Through the practice with cultural tradition and try to assimilate with the gentile world, Roth reveals his gloom with complain to his psychiatric, Dr. Spielvogel to free from orthodox Jewish tradition in the American society. Inversely, through goy’s behavior, lifestyle, food, and their anti-Semitic psycho, dragged up him back to his tradition. Therein, the juxtaposition between two cultures fabricates him with an enormous confusion and he felt rootless about his identity and end up with his complaint to the doctor. However, the experience of Alex life, established a statement that, “being minority in a society, for the first or second generation,
Confucius’ impact on Chinese culture has withstood numerous generations and continues to be one of the most prominent philosophies found in Chinese culture. Firmly rooted in years of education, Confucius spent considerable time developing his set of values and principles. In his article entitled “Confucius and the Effortless Life of Virtue”, author Hagop Sarkissian adds to this by saying, “Confucius set his mind on a course of study or cultivation at the age of fifteen, and pursued such studies for a span of fifty-five years, and was thereby able to cultivate a state of being such that he could follow his immediate inclinations in all of life’s predicaments without transgressing social norms” (Sarkissian 1). Confucius’ extensive studies only added to the philosophy represented in the Analects. This includes the pas...
The Hasidic lifestyle may be radically different than other lifestyles but it Hasidism is considered normal for Hasidic Jews. Hasidism began in the 1730s and created a unique religion focused on God and the Talmud. Their purpose in life, lifestyle, beliefs, and views set them apart from the rest of the world.
¡§Texts both inform us of the social identities available to us, and problematize them; both police our social selves and subvert them.¡¨
Both novels demonstrate the characteristics of gender, race, and family relations. Black culture has endured through challenges as represented in these books. Both books present the struggle that individuals go through regarding slavery or society changing. They present diverse stories regarding things actually falling apart in both books.
Confucius is the founder of Confucianism. The name "Confucius" is the Latin name for Kong Qiu-zi. Confucius was born in the village of Zou in the country of Lu in 551 BC. He was a poor descendant of a disposed noble family. As a child, he held fake temple rituals; as a young adult, quickly earned a reputation for fairness, politeness, and love of learning, and he was reputed to be quite tall. When he was 35 years old, Duke Zhao of Lu led his country to war, this was routed and fled to Qi. While he was there, Duke Zhao would frequently go to him for advice, but after the counsel of one of his minister, Zhao was unable to give Confucius land and eventually stopped seeking advice. He eventually went back to Lu.
Confucius was brought to the world sometime in 551 BCE in the state of Lu. Confucius was born to the name K’ung Ch’iu, and his father died when he was only 3 years old, leaving his family to a life of poverty. Even though poor, Confucius was given a fine education. Then at the age of 19, he married and had a son and two daughters, but after two years of marriage he was stricken with poverty once again. With poverty striking again he was forced into menial labors for the chief of the district in which he lived. When his mother died in 527 BCE he mourned for a long period of time. After this stage of his life he began a new way of life as a teacher, traveling from place to place with a small group of disciples preaching. His teachings of Chinese ideals and customs soon spread all throughout Lu. In his speeches he also taught the people gathered his view of filial piety and his views of moral values. Then at the age of fifty he was appointed as the minister of crime of Lu. This administration was very successful, and Confucius made Lu very powerful and free from crime. Confucius never wrote his teachings out on paper himself, however they were passed down through his disciples and later wrote out in text form in a document called "Lun Yu."(Encarta ’98, "Confucius)
Kaplan argues that anti-semitism was mainly focused on men. He claims this because from his studies he has found that men were treated worse. Men had a harder time dealing with the gestapo. After losing their jobs and realizing the severity of the situation, families decided that it was best if the men fled the country and made a place for them to live elsewhere. Alongside this decision, women and children were to stay back for a little, while their fathers/husbands made a future somewhere else, due to the fact that the women and children had an easier time with law enforcement then the men did. Marsha (Senderowski) Taplin fled during the war and survived. When she came back a man helped her go from house to house looking for the things that had been looted from her family during the war.
During the 1950’s, a group of young American writers began to openly oppose societal norms in favor of other radical beliefs. These writers believed in ideas such as spiritual and sexual liberation, decriminalization of drugs, and opposition to industrialism as well as consumerism (Parkins). Over time, these writers became known as the Beat Generation and created the Beat Movement. Among the members of this rebellious group was the infamous Allen Ginsberg, who is considerably one of the most influential poets of his time. By utilizing tools like imagery, allusions, and symbols, Allen Ginsberg’s “A Supermarket in California” discusses themes such as consumerism, sexuality, and alienation, which reflect Ginsberg’s personal beliefs and desire for change.
Written during the Period of Warring States, The Analects consists of what Confucius and his disciples believed to be the key values required for a harmonious society. Through various exchanges between an entity only recognized as “The Master” and people of other backgrounds such as Dukes and students, the disciples define the fundamental Confucian values that everyone in society must conform to such as ren (kindness), yi (altruism), li (everyday norms), and zhi (morality). The discourses evince a very conservative stance when it comes to citizens conforming to these values in that “The Master”, or Confucius, is unrelenting in his criticism of the “small man” or anyone led astray from the traditional Confucian values. Centrally, Confucius argues
Analects, a compilation of Confucius’ teachings, is greatly recognized as a work of utmost importance and influence in the Chinese culture. The book conveys Confucius’ beliefs on a wide variety of topics, including propriety, education, family relations, and government in efforts to enhance social order.
Confucius was born in the village of Zou in the country of Lu in 55 BCE, he was a poor descendant of what used to bee a noble family. As a child, he held make-believe temple rituals; as a young adult, he earned a reputation for being fair, polite and he had a great love for learning. He travelled a lot and studied at the capital, Zhou, where he is said to have met and spoke with Lao Zi, the founder of Daoism.