Introduction

This project focuses on Philip Roth’s American Pastoral (1997), a story of

post world war second America gave up to the voilence and disorder of the

1960’s. In particular the story is about a jewish character called Swede Levov,

an outsanding man in every respect brillant athlete, sucessfull businessman,

devoted husband and father whose only goal is to live a tranquil, pastoral life

in rural Old Rimrock, New Jersey. But his ideallic life is shattered forever, by

his revellious 14 yeasr old daughter Merry, who plants a bomb at local post

office, killing one person in the anti-vietnam war.

Statement of Problem

Philip Roth has tried to show a jewish businessman’s unsucessful life by his

daughter’s revillion work. Being a welll established businessman, and the main

character Swede Levov can’t feel happy. Here we can know that his ideallic

life is shattered by his sixteen year old daughter Merry. Obviously Merry is

presented against American individuallism. Philip Roth’s gives us a novel of

unqualified greatness that’s an elegy for all of our century’s promises a

prosperity, civic order and domestic bliss. Roth’s protagonist Swede Levov a

leagendry athlete at his Newark High School, who grows up in the bombing

post war years and marrys a former Miss New Jeresy, inherits his father’s

glove factory and move’s into a stone house in the idyllic hamlet of Old

Rimrock. And than one day in 1968, Swede’s beautiful American luck deserts

him. His own daughter causes posion in his pastoral life.

Hypothesis
The protagonist of the novel, Swede Levov’s, life is shattered for ever. Swede

is an innocent character who is punished only for his good deeds. His daugther

has destroyed his property and peaceful life. In the novel Merry plays vital

role to distrupt her father goal. Her activites in the post war American society

is proved to be the act of terrorism that’s neither respected by the state nor by

her family members. She not only destroys her life but even poisons her

family members bombing the local post office killing a person.

Objectives

The primary objective of the study is to bring discourse of communism with the

hazemonic representation of the fourteen years girl Marry in the text American

Pastoral. This research aims at deconstructing the American tendency of

looking communist as terrorist, that is centrally located in the text. Moreover,

the study aims at defining communism as terrorism in Philip Roth’s novel.

Limitation of Study

This project makes the significant use of a tool of discourse described Micheal

Foucault who clearly says it’s the power that determines the position.

Significance of study

The first impulse is the optimistic strain, self reliance, predicated upon belief in

hard work and progress that is Swede. The second impulse embodied in Merry

represents the dark side of American individualism.

Review of Literature

Roth deftly waves social critism into this compelling story for an entire
generation blindsided by the great upheavels of the 1960s.

Critic Charles Megrath belives “ Roth describes post war American life that

have had the greatest impact on my generation.” Political impact has been

shown a kin gof terrorism in young generation of sixties.

Mark Shechner points out that Roth has failed the need to establish his

credential by taking his stand on cultural myths to which he calls ethical jew

hood. The belief that the jewish character is one that places a premium of

generosity, abstinence, concern, responsiblity and civilization, a view for which

Malmuds early books spoke with gloomy confidence

Another critic Louis Menad takes American Pastoral as a novel about a good

man punished for his virtues. Swede becomes victim of 1960s revolution.

Timothy Parrish argues, Roth reconsidering his earlier affirmation of the post

modern over a Jewish identity gives the last word to Levov, representing the

“the law of the father”.

Leo Marx notes that there is a difference between the rustic who lives the

simple life of a shephard and the modern man who adopts the traping of thec”

centimentalized image of the simple, unworldly common man.”

Jay L. Halio analyzes the novel as Merry’s protest aganist the vietnam war

turns into voilent, cliched complaints, against American imperialism – capitalism,

bourgeois compliancy and finally, her family’s own sucess story.

works cited

McGrath, Charles. “Zuckerman’s Alter Brain”. New York Times (7 May 2008):8-

10.
Shechner, Mark. “Jewish Writer”. Harvard Guide to Contemporary American

Writing Ed.Daniel Hoffman. New Delhi: Oxford University Press 1979.

Louis, Menand. “The irony and The Ecstasy: Philip Roth and the Jewish

Atlantics,”

Rev. of American Pastoral. The New Yorker (19 May 1997) 90-94

Parrish, Timothy. “The End of Identity: Philip Roth’s American Pastoral”. Shofar

19.1 (fall 2008): 84-99

Marx, Leo. The Machine and the Garden: Technology and the pastoral ideal in

America.

New York: Oxford University Press, 1964.

Halio, Jay L. Critical Survey of Long Fiction. Salmen press,2000.