Philip Roth and the Modern Jewish Predicament

On March 19, 2013, Philip Roth, the irreverent and iconic American author, turns 80! The relevance of Roth’s fiction to American history, the sociology of American-Judaism, relations between Israel and the Diaspora, the dilemma of anti-Semitism and for fiction itself is undeniable.

Join literary critic Adam Kirsch, communications scholar Liel Leibovitz and professor of Jewish Civilization Jacques Berlinerblau as they talk about Philip Roth’s prodigious fictional output and its attendant provocations. Aside from assessing his contributions to literature (with special attention to his metafictional turn), this panel will also scrutinize Roth’s survey of the modern Jewish predicament. The author’s exploration of intermarriage, assimilation, the return to Orthodoxy, and the future of secular Judaism will be discussed by three scholars deeply attuned to the dynamic interplay between Jewish history and Jewish literature.

Co-sponsored by The Posen Foundation and the Jewish Cultural Studies Program at The New School for Public Engagement.  This event has been made possible by the generous support of The Posen Foundation.