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Vintage (2009), Edition: Reprint, Paperback, 256 pages
Description
What impact can American history have on the life of the vulnerable individual? It is 1951 in America, the second year of the Korean War. A studious, law-abiding, intense youngster from Newark, New Jersey, Marcus Messner, is beginning his sophomore year on the pastoral, conservative campus of Ohio's Winesburg College. And why is he there and not at the local college in Newark where he originally enrolled? Because his father, the sturdy, hard-working neighborhood butcher, seems to have gone mad--mad with fear and apprehension of the dangers of adult life, the dangers of the world, the dangers he sees in every corner for his beloved boy. As the long-suffering, desperately harassed mother tells her son, the father's fear arises from love and pride. Perhaps, but it produces too much anger in Marcus for him to endure living with his parents any longer. He leaves them and, far from Newark, in the midwestern college, has to find his way amid the customs and constrictions of another American world.--From publisher's description.… (more)
Media reviews
In his famous essay "Writing American Fiction," written back in 1960, Roth spoke about the difficulty of writing credibly about the time we live in. "It stupefies, it sickens, it infuriates, and finally it is even a kind of embarrassment to one's meager imagination." As his new book and his many
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other novels show, it can be done by a master. Show Less
User reviews
LibraryThing member Polaris-
This brief novel was one that I found poignant and irresistibly compelling. Set in 1951 with the spectre of the distant Korean War overshadowing events, Marcus Messner is a 19 year old sophomore from Newark. A good Jewish boy, and the only child in a family of butchers, he is desperate to escape
Determined to avoid social frivolities, work hard at his studies and graduate as Valedictorian, the plan is to make sure he gets drafted as an officer in the Intelligence Corps, rather than as a misfortunate Private in the front line. And so, much to his consternation, and accompanied in his head by the Chinese national anthem's dramatic intonation of "In-dig-na-tion, in-dig-na-tion", Marcus' troubles begin... Unable to settle in with his room-mates, unwilling to join in with fraternity life, and unprepared for falling in love with the beguiling and complex Olivia Hutton - the once suicidal and hospitalised 'blow-job princess'- the 'expert'; he struggles to refrain from walking away from it all and heading back to Newark. What with Winesburg's compulsory chapel attendance, the Dean of Men making him physically sick, and the cigar-chomping Republican college President, at least back home he'd only have his father to make his life a misery!
But this is no simple coming-of-age tale, or rite of passage story. Roth's great skill lies with disguising the difficult and the thought-provoking as a basic story, familiar to many of us. There is a cruel twist here that I won't mention, but when it came I was at once both fascinated and saddened. The wonderfully rich portrayal of Marcus' parents is in itself a study of what love means.
After first enjoying Philip Roth when I was about the same age as the young protagonist here (I loved 'Goodbye Columbus'), I'm really enjoying my unplanned for rediscovery of his books in the last year or so. After previously giving 'Zuckerman Unbound' the full five stars, I plan on completing the whole 'Zuckerman Bound' series in due course.
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the cloying claustrophobia yet well meant concerns of his somewhat neurotic father - whose greatest fear is that his son, so clever and full of promise, will do something to land himself in immense danger. After his first year, Marcus switches from his local New Jersey college to a conservative former seminary, Winesburg, out in distant Mid-Western Ohio.Determined to avoid social frivolities, work hard at his studies and graduate as Valedictorian, the plan is to make sure he gets drafted as an officer in the Intelligence Corps, rather than as a misfortunate Private in the front line. And so, much to his consternation, and accompanied in his head by the Chinese national anthem's dramatic intonation of "In-dig-na-tion, in-dig-na-tion", Marcus' troubles begin... Unable to settle in with his room-mates, unwilling to join in with fraternity life, and unprepared for falling in love with the beguiling and complex Olivia Hutton - the once suicidal and hospitalised 'blow-job princess'- the 'expert'; he struggles to refrain from walking away from it all and heading back to Newark. What with Winesburg's compulsory chapel attendance, the Dean of Men making him physically sick, and the cigar-chomping Republican college President, at least back home he'd only have his father to make his life a misery!
But this is no simple coming-of-age tale, or rite of passage story. Roth's great skill lies with disguising the difficult and the thought-provoking as a basic story, familiar to many of us. There is a cruel twist here that I won't mention, but when it came I was at once both fascinated and saddened. The wonderfully rich portrayal of Marcus' parents is in itself a study of what love means.
After first enjoying Philip Roth when I was about the same age as the young protagonist here (I loved 'Goodbye Columbus'), I'm really enjoying my unplanned for rediscovery of his books in the last year or so. After previously giving 'Zuckerman Unbound' the full five stars, I plan on completing the whole 'Zuckerman Bound' series in due course.
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LibraryThing member TimBazzett
Lots of indignation here, but not from me. Roth's protagonist, Marcus Messner, is filled with enough of his own youthful and idealistic indignation to justify the book's title. But the title word could just as easily apply to Marcus's butcher father, to the Winesburg college dean and president and
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a number of other minor characters, as well as to the Chinese Communist hordes swarming down through North Korea in that frigid and often nearly forgotten conflict of the fifties, which forms an ominous and omnipresent background to the story. Indignation, which is a surprisingly slight book, nearly a novella, marks a return to the kind of stories that made Roth famous over forty-some years ago. Like Good-Bye Columbus, it looks at college life and all the excitement, mysteries and sexual frustrations that accompany it. Winesburg College is, of course, an obvious nod (or perhaps eye-rolling shaking of the head) to Sherwood Anderson's classic collection of interconnected stories, Winesburg, Ohio - a book which I first read in my own college days in the sixties. I was reading Anderson, in fact, around the same time I first discovered Philip Roth, in his then-bestselling and then-scandalous novel, Portnoy's Complaint. A novel which finally put the sin of Onan right out there in the open. I thought it was about time too, as I nodded and chuckled my way through Alex's adventures with milk bottles, a slab of liver, and, finally, the Monkey. In fact, I was naive and stupid enough to adopt that book as required reading in one of the first Lit classes I taught in 1970. And I actually got away with it. I have read many other Roth books since then. My favorite is one of Roth's earliest novels, Letting Go, which I have re-read several times and would highly recommend. More recently, The Human Stain is, I think, one of Roth's best realized works, and its film version, with Sir Anthony Hopkins, is equally good. (Which makes me remember Richard Benjamin and Ali McGraw in the classic film, Good-Bye Columbus. Benjamin also brought Alex Portnoy to life on screen, an effort which was less successful.) Indignation, with its showers of semen high into the air, stained socks and the unstable but beautiful "Olivia the Expert" does indeed mark a kind of restrained return to the Portnoy days, albeit under a shadow of war and imminent death. I read this book in just two sittings. It's funny, it's disturbing, and it's immediate, despite its setting of over fifty years ago. A real page-turner, entertaining and real. Show Less
LibraryThing member mrstreme
Indignation is Philip Roth's 25th novel. Sit back and think about that for a moment. What an amazing writing career.
I like Philip Roth because he always sweeps me into his story, and that's certainly the case in Indignation. In this short novel, we meet Markus - a straight-A Jewish kid from Newark
While at Winesburg College, Markus is knee-deep in classic American ideals ala 1950's America. Big cars, panty raids and required chapel attendance all mark Markus' college experience. Markus has a hard time adjusting to Winesburg life. He's successful at academics but entanglements with his roommates and a fling with a troubled girl all leave Markus reeling from the real-life aspects of being far from home.
With subtle social and political undertones, Indignation is a fast read that is a feast to your mind's eye. This may not be Roth's best work, but it's a good story.
I like Philip Roth because he always sweeps me into his story, and that's certainly the case in Indignation. In this short novel, we meet Markus - a straight-A Jewish kid from Newark
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who transfers to a small, conservative college in Ohio to escape his father's neurotic fears. Markus' dad worries that he will fall into harm's way - that one little misstep will result in great harm. While, as a reader, you shake your head at Dad's irrational thoughts, it provides an interesting foreshadowing of things to come.While at Winesburg College, Markus is knee-deep in classic American ideals ala 1950's America. Big cars, panty raids and required chapel attendance all mark Markus' college experience. Markus has a hard time adjusting to Winesburg life. He's successful at academics but entanglements with his roommates and a fling with a troubled girl all leave Markus reeling from the real-life aspects of being far from home.
With subtle social and political undertones, Indignation is a fast read that is a feast to your mind's eye. This may not be Roth's best work, but it's a good story.
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LibraryThing member moonshineandrosefire
In 1951, during the second year of the Korean War, an intensely studious young man has just transferred from Newark, New Jersey to begin his sophomore year on the highly conservative campus of Winesburg College in Ohio. As the son of a kosher butcher, Marcus Messner finds that he can no longer take
To Marcus, the once jovial and diligent store-owner seems to have changed almost overnight. His inexplicable anxiety seems to stem primarily from the man's misperceptions about the dangers of adult life, the dangers of the world, the dangers that he imagines lurks around every corner for his beloved boy. It is this eccentric behavior that finally forces Marcus to move far away from his parents; as he believes that he can no longer endure their stifling behavior. So Marcus leaves the local college where he is originally enrolled and transfers to the pastoral, illustrious and elite campus of Ohio's Winesburg College.
It is in this midwestern college, where Marcus has to find his own way among the customs and constrictions of a completely different world. Philip Roth's twenty-ninth novel Indignation, is a remarkable departure from his more recent books; this is a story of inexperience, foolishness, sexual discovery, intellectual resistance, courage, personal integrity, and error. It is a powerful story told with all the inventiveness and wit that the author has at his command.
I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book; although I cannot adequately explain what I liked most about the story. In my opinion, it was a easy read for me, and quite a unique story. I found myself avidly wanting to know what would happen next and how the story would eventually develop. I would certainly give this book an A+!
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his father's attitude towards him. It would seem as if Marcus' father - the once-sturdy, hardworking neighborhood butcher - has become increasingly fearful for his beloved son. While Marcus' harried, long-suffering mother claims that his father's apprehension only stems from his immense love and pride in Marcus and his many accomplishments, the young man can no longer deny that his father's treatment of him has produced too much tension in their relationship.To Marcus, the once jovial and diligent store-owner seems to have changed almost overnight. His inexplicable anxiety seems to stem primarily from the man's misperceptions about the dangers of adult life, the dangers of the world, the dangers that he imagines lurks around every corner for his beloved boy. It is this eccentric behavior that finally forces Marcus to move far away from his parents; as he believes that he can no longer endure their stifling behavior. So Marcus leaves the local college where he is originally enrolled and transfers to the pastoral, illustrious and elite campus of Ohio's Winesburg College.
It is in this midwestern college, where Marcus has to find his own way among the customs and constrictions of a completely different world. Philip Roth's twenty-ninth novel Indignation, is a remarkable departure from his more recent books; this is a story of inexperience, foolishness, sexual discovery, intellectual resistance, courage, personal integrity, and error. It is a powerful story told with all the inventiveness and wit that the author has at his command.
I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book; although I cannot adequately explain what I liked most about the story. In my opinion, it was a easy read for me, and quite a unique story. I found myself avidly wanting to know what would happen next and how the story would eventually develop. I would certainly give this book an A+!
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LibraryThing member ChazzW
In the first 50 pages of his new novel, Roth breezes right along, relating the story of a young Jewish boy, son of a Newark Kosher butcher, trying to get anonymously by in his studies at a small Midwestern College (the fictional Winesburg) in the days of the Korean Conflict. Just trying to stay out
Are all “afterlife’s” alike (Roth channeling Chekhov)? Or are they as unique as each individual? And is Judgement Day really an eternity of self-judgement? Dead long since at nineteen, these are the thoughts that Marcus returns to, over and over again. And all because of a 1951 blow-job. Well, this is Philip Roth, after all! And what we have here is Roth’s Chesil Beach. One thing leads to another, decisions beget consequences, until finally a life is in a place impossible to have predicted. Or a life is terminated.
But Roth pulls us back to the story after this short interlude. though now we know that young Marcus Messner is doomed. Inexorably so, It’s only a matter of how he gets there. Given our foreknowledge, it’s easy to see each mistake as he makes it. Still, there is a certain suspense, a certain hope against the inevitable, that things will somehow work out. But no sentimentalist he. Roth takes away the suspense of not knowing for sure. But leaves the reader with the greater gift of unfolding tragedy.
For Marcus, indignation is “the most beautiful word in the English language”. He’s culled the word as his personal mantra from the Chinese National Anthem.
Indignation fills the hearts of all of our countrymen
In times of stress, Marcus gets in touch with his indignation. And it’s his indignation that is his undoing. Indignation that in another time (”Historical Note”) have almost no consequences at all. The second great tragic irony of Roth’s slender little reminiscence piece. The reason for Marcus’ escape to a completely foreign culture (Midwestern, Protestant Ohio from Jewish Newark) was to release the binds that his father held over him. His father’s paranoia about the safety of his son so far from home. The first great irony is that his father turned out to have reason to be concerned - and that he was in some sense right after all.
I could have read this book in one sitting - something that I almost never do. As it was, I split it up into two. Not only because of its brevity, but because it is so accessible as a family drama, as a coming-of-age tale (though set in a long lost landscape). Partially because of this, even before publication, the novel’s movie rights had already been snapped up. Though it may make a good movie, it most assuredly will be a different story than the book. Roth has compassion for all his characters, and leaves the reader to make their own assessments. Though we may understand where his lay, his respect for his reader is always appreciated.
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of the war. Just trying to get out from under the smothering influence of his father. Suddenly, in the midst of relating what appears to be his first real sexual encounter, the narrator, Marcus Messner, reveals that he is dead. Only a memory of himself. Suddenly, I’m reading at quarter speed. An interesting turn. And the thought occurs that writing for Roth is on several levels, but preparation for death.Are all “afterlife’s” alike (Roth channeling Chekhov)? Or are they as unique as each individual? And is Judgement Day really an eternity of self-judgement? Dead long since at nineteen, these are the thoughts that Marcus returns to, over and over again. And all because of a 1951 blow-job. Well, this is Philip Roth, after all! And what we have here is Roth’s Chesil Beach. One thing leads to another, decisions beget consequences, until finally a life is in a place impossible to have predicted. Or a life is terminated.
But Roth pulls us back to the story after this short interlude. though now we know that young Marcus Messner is doomed. Inexorably so, It’s only a matter of how he gets there. Given our foreknowledge, it’s easy to see each mistake as he makes it. Still, there is a certain suspense, a certain hope against the inevitable, that things will somehow work out. But no sentimentalist he. Roth takes away the suspense of not knowing for sure. But leaves the reader with the greater gift of unfolding tragedy.
For Marcus, indignation is “the most beautiful word in the English language”. He’s culled the word as his personal mantra from the Chinese National Anthem.
Indignation fills the hearts of all of our countrymen
In times of stress, Marcus gets in touch with his indignation. And it’s his indignation that is his undoing. Indignation that in another time (”Historical Note”) have almost no consequences at all. The second great tragic irony of Roth’s slender little reminiscence piece. The reason for Marcus’ escape to a completely foreign culture (Midwestern, Protestant Ohio from Jewish Newark) was to release the binds that his father held over him. His father’s paranoia about the safety of his son so far from home. The first great irony is that his father turned out to have reason to be concerned - and that he was in some sense right after all.
I could have read this book in one sitting - something that I almost never do. As it was, I split it up into two. Not only because of its brevity, but because it is so accessible as a family drama, as a coming-of-age tale (though set in a long lost landscape). Partially because of this, even before publication, the novel’s movie rights had already been snapped up. Though it may make a good movie, it most assuredly will be a different story than the book. Roth has compassion for all his characters, and leaves the reader to make their own assessments. Though we may understand where his lay, his respect for his reader is always appreciated.
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LibraryThing member franoscar
SPOILERS
A good serious book. A Philip Roth book. I want to say this:
First, I'm not sure what the connection is to Winesburg. I just read Winesburg, Ohio which feels like serendipity. The first thing to come up with of course, is the issue of sexual agency in women. The existence of it, the
Second, the story. I don't know what it means that the thing I thought of at the end was that it reminded me of the end of Stranger Than Fiction. Why would Philip Roth have seen Stranger Than Fiction, but why not? I think it is one of the better movies made in Hollywood recently, but then...what he is saying/showing isn't that different, is it even less formulaic? I think I had a little bit of hope that, like STF, he would change his mind about killing off Marcus but he didn't.
Third the presence of the war and the threat of the war on the young men, and the finale we don't see, where Marcus finally isn't willing to go along with what is demanded of him in order to maintain his deferment. I don't think I normally read a book taking place in 1951 & think about how the fear of the draft affects everything; I am more like to do that in a book set in 1970; but it such a dominant thing in this book & should be.
(I'm trying to write down what I think before I read reviews.)
A good serious book. A Philip Roth book. I want to say this:
First, I'm not sure what the connection is to Winesburg. I just read Winesburg, Ohio which feels like serendipity. The first thing to come up with of course, is the issue of sexual agency in women. The existence of it, the
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importance of it, the constant denial of it in proper company for so long. The punishment of women for it. But I don't know what else, what might be second or third. What did he mean? Was he just doing a homage, or something more?Second, the story. I don't know what it means that the thing I thought of at the end was that it reminded me of the end of Stranger Than Fiction. Why would Philip Roth have seen Stranger Than Fiction, but why not? I think it is one of the better movies made in Hollywood recently, but then...what he is saying/showing isn't that different, is it even less formulaic? I think I had a little bit of hope that, like STF, he would change his mind about killing off Marcus but he didn't.
Third the presence of the war and the threat of the war on the young men, and the finale we don't see, where Marcus finally isn't willing to go along with what is demanded of him in order to maintain his deferment. I don't think I normally read a book taking place in 1951 & think about how the fear of the draft affects everything; I am more like to do that in a book set in 1970; but it such a dominant thing in this book & should be.
(I'm trying to write down what I think before I read reviews.)
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LibraryThing member brianinbuffalo
While I agree with those reviewers who suggest that this is not Roth's best work by a mile, I enjoyed "Indignation" nonetheless. In fact, I found it far more captivating than "Portnoy's Complaint," which tended to drag in spots. His new work seems more disciplined (for lack of a better word) and
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more focused on a telling a coherent coming of age story. Perhaps the scathing reviews in the national press lowered my expectations. But I really enjoyed this work. Show Less
LibraryThing member jbeckhamlat
INDIGNATION, is a coming of death story by Phillip Roth. Built around the idea that Little things have a suprisingly large consequences (the butterfly exponential perhaps?) the characters move along towards finality. Constantly Jewish in nature, the dialog lacks the slap of Portnoy’s – oy, I
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kvetch too much (too much I kvetch?) Kosher butchering shepherds the often bloody story along . . .a hardworking New Jersey family, a good son, a good father, a saintly mother, the unsuitable girl, a war, a repressed Midwestern (Winesberg Ohio has a cameo role). In a few pages a tangible world takes shape, what more should a novel offer? Ideal to read as I did: in a late October Indian Summer on a park bench behind a university library in Ohio…. Show Less
LibraryThing member mojomomma
I really enjoyed this book. It read more like a short story than a novel, and reminds me a lot of "Catcher in the Rye," although Marc Messner runs into more dire circumstances than Holden ever did. I'd recommend this book.
LibraryThing member crazy4novels
Roth's protagonist, Marcus Messner, is experiencing the painful aspects of college life and young adulthood. Driven to exasperation by his father's constant supervision and overly protective paranoia (Have you been drinking? Have you edited your paper yet? When will you be home?) Marcus has fled
The acute sexual ambivalence that Marcus experiences at Winesburg would probably seem odd to today's college student. He is wildly attracted to the lovely and mysterious Olivia, but he suspects there must be something damaged about her when she willingly accepts his physical advances. Her unexpected gift of oral expertise creates a queasy mix of shock, euphoria, and disgust in Marcus that shakes him to the core and leaves him to conclude that she must be a psychological victim of her parents' divorce (a rare event in those days).
On all other fronts, however, Marcus' struggles resonate with those of today's undergraduate. He looks back fondly at his childhood years spent helping his father at the family butcher shop, where his blue collar father taught him the dignity of hard work and the value of committed effort, even when you despise the task. "That's what I learned from my father and what I loved learning from him: that you do what you have to do." College widens Marcus' view, however, and opens his eyes to the myopic parameters of his parents' world. His father chides him into improving a class paper without ever haven written one himself; his long suffering mother desperately wishes "the best" for him without the slightest idea of what "the best" might be in a world outside of Newark. Marcus' frustration at his parents' inability to absorb new ideas or take a broader view of the world is surpassed only by his frustration at their inability to perceive their "benighted state" in the first place.
Marcus is forced to deal with class issues (he works as a waiter at the college inn taproom, with socially toxic consequences), disastrous roommate situations (he is too sexually naive to realize that Flusser, his abrasive and verbally abusive suitemate, is desperately attracted to him), and thwarted attempts to reinvent himself (Dean Caudwell pointedly asks Marcus why he put "butcher" down as his father's occupation instead of "kosher butcher.")
Above all else, however, Marcus' story conveys the white hot indignation that occurs when a young person's budding conviction about the way things should be in an ideal world conflicts with the arbitrary and ridiculous demands of reality. Marcus is outraged that his own father has so totally misjudged his character as to suspect that he may become an alcoholic or engage in barroom fights. He is furious that his fellow students treat him with contempt and suspicion because he works at the college inn taproom and refuses to join a fraternity (not even the "lame" one). He is incensed by Dean Caudwell's ridiculous assumption that he must be psychologically unbalanced because he prefers to live alone in an attic dorm room. As a matter of fact, he is incensed by Caudwell's power to call him into the dean's office at all; as long as Marcus is a good student, why must he endure Caudwell's prying inquiries into his private life in the first place? Marcus is also driven to distraction by his mother's narrow, single-minded perception of Olivia; once she observes the healed cut marks on Olivia's wrists, she is blind to any other input -- Olivia may as well not have a head.
Marcus' indignation reaches a breaking point when he is forced to attend Sunday worship services at the college chapel as part of his graduation requirement. Not content to pay someone to attend the service and sign the attendance record for him (as many students do), he goes head to head with Dean Caudwell on the issue, armed with a inflamed sense of injustice and Bertrand Russell's "Why I Am Not A Christian." Marcus' sense of righteous fury in all of these situations is heightened by his firm belief (correct or incorrect) that everyone he opposes is clearly less enlightened than he is. Marcus' passion of conviction is both heroic and tragic; it simultaneously serves as the catalyst of his selfhood and his self destruction.
"Indignation" is a short book -- one or two nights of reading at the most -- and despite some of the details that I've mentioned above, I haven't really ruined the plot line, which contains some shocking twists. It's well worth the time.
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his local city college in Newark, New Jersey to attend a pastoral college in faraway Winesburg, Ohio. The year is 1951, and Marcus' continuing education is essential if he is to avoid being drafted and shipped off to Korea (his father's ultimate nightmare).The acute sexual ambivalence that Marcus experiences at Winesburg would probably seem odd to today's college student. He is wildly attracted to the lovely and mysterious Olivia, but he suspects there must be something damaged about her when she willingly accepts his physical advances. Her unexpected gift of oral expertise creates a queasy mix of shock, euphoria, and disgust in Marcus that shakes him to the core and leaves him to conclude that she must be a psychological victim of her parents' divorce (a rare event in those days).
On all other fronts, however, Marcus' struggles resonate with those of today's undergraduate. He looks back fondly at his childhood years spent helping his father at the family butcher shop, where his blue collar father taught him the dignity of hard work and the value of committed effort, even when you despise the task. "That's what I learned from my father and what I loved learning from him: that you do what you have to do." College widens Marcus' view, however, and opens his eyes to the myopic parameters of his parents' world. His father chides him into improving a class paper without ever haven written one himself; his long suffering mother desperately wishes "the best" for him without the slightest idea of what "the best" might be in a world outside of Newark. Marcus' frustration at his parents' inability to absorb new ideas or take a broader view of the world is surpassed only by his frustration at their inability to perceive their "benighted state" in the first place.
Marcus is forced to deal with class issues (he works as a waiter at the college inn taproom, with socially toxic consequences), disastrous roommate situations (he is too sexually naive to realize that Flusser, his abrasive and verbally abusive suitemate, is desperately attracted to him), and thwarted attempts to reinvent himself (Dean Caudwell pointedly asks Marcus why he put "butcher" down as his father's occupation instead of "kosher butcher.")
Above all else, however, Marcus' story conveys the white hot indignation that occurs when a young person's budding conviction about the way things should be in an ideal world conflicts with the arbitrary and ridiculous demands of reality. Marcus is outraged that his own father has so totally misjudged his character as to suspect that he may become an alcoholic or engage in barroom fights. He is furious that his fellow students treat him with contempt and suspicion because he works at the college inn taproom and refuses to join a fraternity (not even the "lame" one). He is incensed by Dean Caudwell's ridiculous assumption that he must be psychologically unbalanced because he prefers to live alone in an attic dorm room. As a matter of fact, he is incensed by Caudwell's power to call him into the dean's office at all; as long as Marcus is a good student, why must he endure Caudwell's prying inquiries into his private life in the first place? Marcus is also driven to distraction by his mother's narrow, single-minded perception of Olivia; once she observes the healed cut marks on Olivia's wrists, she is blind to any other input -- Olivia may as well not have a head.
Marcus' indignation reaches a breaking point when he is forced to attend Sunday worship services at the college chapel as part of his graduation requirement. Not content to pay someone to attend the service and sign the attendance record for him (as many students do), he goes head to head with Dean Caudwell on the issue, armed with a inflamed sense of injustice and Bertrand Russell's "Why I Am Not A Christian." Marcus' sense of righteous fury in all of these situations is heightened by his firm belief (correct or incorrect) that everyone he opposes is clearly less enlightened than he is. Marcus' passion of conviction is both heroic and tragic; it simultaneously serves as the catalyst of his selfhood and his self destruction.
"Indignation" is a short book -- one or two nights of reading at the most -- and despite some of the details that I've mentioned above, I haven't really ruined the plot line, which contains some shocking twists. It's well worth the time.
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LibraryThing member bobbieharv
I liked the beginning of this book, but it deteriorated into one of Roth's lesser efforts and I skimmed it.
LibraryThing member sushidog
Another beautifully written novel that left me cold. What am I to take from this? That the 50s were so oppressive that dying in Korea is the only reasonable end for a bright, ambitious, intellectually active teenager? By the end I wondered if it was one of those novels where the whole thing is a
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joke and I didn't get it. Show Less
LibraryThing member blackhornet
Not vintage Roth but better than the disappointing Exit Ghost, with flashes of his old magic. I was left indignant at what happened to the narrator, Marcus Messner, but I'm not sure the indignation planted throughout the rest of the novel was fierce enough.
I do feel Roth is at his best when
A good book from a man who has written many great books.
I do feel Roth is at his best when
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writing, as here, about the 1950s. Simultaneously he manages to get across the absurd hypocracies of the time with a sense that it was still a better time.A good book from a man who has written many great books.
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LibraryThing member Beej415
This book was a mess. It's the story of a young, blue-collar college man, Marcus, who grows up happily working in his father's butcher shop and idolizing the old man. Then, for reasons that remain unexplained, his father succumbs to traumatic anxiety about his son's future, and ends up questioning
The characters were flat, which seemed to coincide with the lack of thematic development. Many themes were introduced, but were not fleshed out. Unfortunately, in the end, it left me wondering what was the point.
While I did not enjoy this story, it is clear that Roth is an excellent writer in terms of style. The story flowed so smoothly that it felt as if I were watching a movie rather than reading a book. I am looking forward to reading another novel by Roth, hopefully one telling a better story.
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every decision of his and Marcus's. Of course, the parental anxiety of letting go is understandable as a motive, but Marcus's father jumps far beyond the ordinary, with no explanation (and no attempt, or even seeming desire, to explain on the part of the author). To find respite from his father's infatuation, Marcus transfers to a college 500 miles from home, where he meets gentiles, homosexuals, easy, mentally tortured girls, and obnoxious fraternity guys. Yet, rather than rebelling with his newfound freedom, Marcus is wedded to his studies, and as he admits, it's all for his parents' sake (which, having detested Holden Caufield, this aspect of Marcus's personality I found quite pleasing).The characters were flat, which seemed to coincide with the lack of thematic development. Many themes were introduced, but were not fleshed out. Unfortunately, in the end, it left me wondering what was the point.
While I did not enjoy this story, it is clear that Roth is an excellent writer in terms of style. The story flowed so smoothly that it felt as if I were watching a movie rather than reading a book. I am looking forward to reading another novel by Roth, hopefully one telling a better story.
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LibraryThing member davidrothman
Although verbose in places, Indignation is witty and engrossing with wonderful caricatures.
I spent time in Ohio eons ago, not that far from Sherwood Anderson's old haunts, and enjoyed Philip Roth's depictions of the mythical Winesburg College. Roth lives up to his reputation with hilarious attacks
What's more, I enjoyed his clever use of the bleeding motif. Those who've read Indignation will know exactly what I mean; Marcus Messner's story is not for readers who shy from the sight of blood. Fittingly, Marcus's father is a butcher intent on controlling the son's life; quite unintentionally and indirectly, through the events depicted in the novel, he ends it.
And one other little detail: Marcus is dead or near-dead at the start of the story.
No, my revealing this is not a spoiler; other reviewers have, too. You'll still want to know all the history that lead to Marcus's current condition, and like me, you may be so engrossed in Indignation's plot and characterizations that you really won't care he's already a corpse. I used a somewhat similar technique when I wrote The Solomon Scandals, my Washington newspaper novel---beginning Chapter One with mention of the suicide of one of the journalists, at the Watergate. The "Why?" counts as much as, "What'll happen?"
For reasons that I won't discuss here, lest I do spoil things, Indignation should especially appeal to those who came of age during the Vietnam era--even though Korea is the war of the moment.
I spent time in Ohio eons ago, not that far from Sherwood Anderson's old haunts, and enjoyed Philip Roth's depictions of the mythical Winesburg College. Roth lives up to his reputation with hilarious attacks
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on moralists, blended in with the protagonist's libido-and-ego-driven fondness for defying them.What's more, I enjoyed his clever use of the bleeding motif. Those who've read Indignation will know exactly what I mean; Marcus Messner's story is not for readers who shy from the sight of blood. Fittingly, Marcus's father is a butcher intent on controlling the son's life; quite unintentionally and indirectly, through the events depicted in the novel, he ends it.
And one other little detail: Marcus is dead or near-dead at the start of the story.
No, my revealing this is not a spoiler; other reviewers have, too. You'll still want to know all the history that lead to Marcus's current condition, and like me, you may be so engrossed in Indignation's plot and characterizations that you really won't care he's already a corpse. I used a somewhat similar technique when I wrote The Solomon Scandals, my Washington newspaper novel---beginning Chapter One with mention of the suicide of one of the journalists, at the Watergate. The "Why?" counts as much as, "What'll happen?"
For reasons that I won't discuss here, lest I do spoil things, Indignation should especially appeal to those who came of age during the Vietnam era--even though Korea is the war of the moment.
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LibraryThing member meroof
Well written. First Roth book I have read. I will now want to read another. The travails of Marcus Messner remind me somewhat of my own growth and development, especially, the somewhat tortured relationship with his father.
LibraryThing member NoLongerAtEase
I have read between one third and one half of Philip Roth's novels and Indignation rates among the best of them.
Roth is at his best when his obligatory web of lust, Newark, onanism, beautiful Goyim, and half-hearted resistance to WASP culture is constrained by broader and deeper purposes rather
Indignation is an instance where Roth has properly constrained his old standards and worked them into something of a backdoor homage to the stoicism of earlier generations of Americans.
Roth's Marcus Messner is hoisted by his own petard in large part because he is unwilling to take the lessons of the butcher shop (where he grew up working) out into the Goyish world as such.
The even-keeled, studious, well-mannered A student can disembowel a chicken without a second thought but is unable to sit through compulsory chapel service at his mildly stuffy midwestern college.
Righteous anger overwhelms Marcus Messner and Roth gives us every reason to empathize with him...but Roth's genius move here is that he leaves us little time to wallow with Marcus in the warm bath of the conscious victim of wrongdoing. Instead, we come to see that Marcus's anger is not only exaggerated but a threat to his own well being. To respond to every injustice one suffers by summoning an army is to take on an insufferable existence. Thus, it's better to choose the important battles and learn to live with a certain amount of injustice in one's life. Purity is overrated, especially when the quest for purity leads, as it ever-so-often does, to oblivion.
In large part the lesson of Roth's novel is not new, but it's one that must be hammered home again and again and who better than Roth, certainly no poster-child for restraint, to do so?
I also think there is a subtle but no less burning sense of anger operative in these pages . Roth occupies that generation too young to have fought in WWII but too old to have been involved in the 1960s. He has, in many, instances, presented the legacy of the 1960s in a less than positive light. Part of the Faustian bargain of the 1950s was conformity for security; doing and behaving as one must rather than as one wishes. This is was the exchange Marcus Messner was unwilling to make and one that Roth has always been ambivalent about. But never down right negative. Roth's is an internal critique of mid-century American society. He accepts most of its major premises but also sees the absurdities for what they are; by pointing to them he hopes to improve upon the vision, to add a greater degree of internal coherence to a particular vision of American society. He is angry here because he participated in the Faustian exchange only to have the protest movements, the external critiques, the singular destructiveness of the baby out with the bath water mindset of the boomers effectively eviscerate the society he attempted to grudgingly conform to.
Roth is at his best when his obligatory web of lust, Newark, onanism, beautiful Goyim, and half-hearted resistance to WASP culture is constrained by broader and deeper purposes rather
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than when it is allowed to roam free. Indignation is an instance where Roth has properly constrained his old standards and worked them into something of a backdoor homage to the stoicism of earlier generations of Americans.
Roth's Marcus Messner is hoisted by his own petard in large part because he is unwilling to take the lessons of the butcher shop (where he grew up working) out into the Goyish world as such.
The even-keeled, studious, well-mannered A student can disembowel a chicken without a second thought but is unable to sit through compulsory chapel service at his mildly stuffy midwestern college.
Righteous anger overwhelms Marcus Messner and Roth gives us every reason to empathize with him...but Roth's genius move here is that he leaves us little time to wallow with Marcus in the warm bath of the conscious victim of wrongdoing. Instead, we come to see that Marcus's anger is not only exaggerated but a threat to his own well being. To respond to every injustice one suffers by summoning an army is to take on an insufferable existence. Thus, it's better to choose the important battles and learn to live with a certain amount of injustice in one's life. Purity is overrated, especially when the quest for purity leads, as it ever-so-often does, to oblivion.
In large part the lesson of Roth's novel is not new, but it's one that must be hammered home again and again and who better than Roth, certainly no poster-child for restraint, to do so?
I also think there is a subtle but no less burning sense of anger operative in these pages . Roth occupies that generation too young to have fought in WWII but too old to have been involved in the 1960s. He has, in many, instances, presented the legacy of the 1960s in a less than positive light. Part of the Faustian bargain of the 1950s was conformity for security; doing and behaving as one must rather than as one wishes. This is was the exchange Marcus Messner was unwilling to make and one that Roth has always been ambivalent about. But never down right negative. Roth's is an internal critique of mid-century American society. He accepts most of its major premises but also sees the absurdities for what they are; by pointing to them he hopes to improve upon the vision, to add a greater degree of internal coherence to a particular vision of American society. He is angry here because he participated in the Faustian exchange only to have the protest movements, the external critiques, the singular destructiveness of the baby out with the bath water mindset of the boomers effectively eviscerate the society he attempted to grudgingly conform to.
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LibraryThing member spounds
Another short book - like "Everyman." I still love the way Roth writes, but he's definitely ticked off at religion.
LibraryThing member ccayne
Roth revisits familiar themes - growing up Jewish in a non-Jewish setting, conflicts over sex, love and family.
LibraryThing member EpicTale
Worthy, well-written read -- but I thought the book was incomplete and left loose ends handing. Several of the characters were simply incomplete depictions, and in several places the story simply does not hang together in Roth's usual tight fashion.
On the plus side, Roth offered a good exploration
On the plus side, Roth offered a good exploration
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of the idea that a person's life can be the result of a small number of supposedly minor decisions, which in retrospect turned out to be hugely significant. Also, I appreciated the author's dabbling with the notion of how some people instinctively run away from conflict, rather than confront it. On the negative side, I was left feeling that Roth had rummaged through his catalog of partially-written stories and decided to publish it for what it was, rather than for what he could make it with additional effort. Show Less
LibraryThing member TheAmpersand
Philip Roth's late innings have been about as productive as any writer you could name, but you can't hit a home run every time you step to the plate. To keep that analogy going, let's call "Indignation" a clean single. It's by no means a bad novel, just a familiar one, a decidedly minor novel
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that's shorter and slighter than one of Roth's many blockbusters. Roth puts us back in mid-century New Jersey again, where Marcus Messner, the son of a kosher butcher, is simultaneously trying to escape the tightening grip of his father's authority and fit in to a college filled with socially conservative gentiles. Roth is usually a deliciously Dostoevskian storyteller, allowing the reader to listen in as a couple of old friends, perhaps lubricated by a couple of drinks, recount events long past. In "Indignation," he changes up this tried-and-true formula, employing a curious narrative device, which I won't reveal here, to tell his story back-to-front. This novel framing device doesn't prove particularly successful. The problem isn't that the reader learns the fate of the novel's protagonist just a few pages in. Who, after all, reads Roth for the suspense? The problem is that "Indignation's" odd set-up robs Roth's writing of a great deal of the causal, tossed-off detail that usually make it such a pleasure to read. The lack of a traditional "audience" for Roth's narrator also seems to rob "Indignation" of the sense of warm familiarity that many Roth's habitual readers have come to expect from his work. No-one could accuse "Indignation" of sloppiness or faulty construction, but it's a hard book to love, and one gets the feeling Roth could have written it in its sleep. It's feels wrong to criticize a great writer for a book that's merely okay, but I'm hoping that Phil swings for the fences his next time at bat. Show Less
LibraryThing member piefuchs
How do you rate mediocre Roth?
Indignation was a novella that focused on the life of an intelligent, Jewish, Newark butcher's son who was coming of age and trying to separate from his past at a midwestern college. There are a number of twists in the plot which make it a fast read - yet, it doesn't
Indignation was a novella that focused on the life of an intelligent, Jewish, Newark butcher's son who was coming of age and trying to separate from his past at a midwestern college. There are a number of twists in the plot which make it a fast read - yet, it doesn't
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make you think as much as typical Roth, there are not quite as many moments when you open your mouth with the wonder of his wording. But, it is still Roth. Show Less
LibraryThing member suesbooks
This was my favorite Philip Roth book of the ones I read. I cared very much about many of the characters and was very interested to see what would happen. It brought up many important issues that are still relevant today.
LibraryThing member realbigcat
I won't repeat the whole story as there are many reviews of this book. I have read many of Philip Roth's books and this one is no different. Excellant writing based on many of his themes including religion and sex. Not his best work but I really enjoyed the story in particular the great meeting
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between Marcus and the college Dean. Show Less
LibraryThing member jigarpatel
Well, this is just brilliant. On the surface a first-person Bildungsroman, this is a multi-faceted novel with the Korean War as a backdrop. Don't be duped, this is not about war, but about human weakness and how the minutiae of our lives can have far-reaching consequences. Heart-wrenching at times,
Its climactic twist ranks alongside the memorable conclusions to Schlink's The Reader, McEwan's Atonement, Barnes' The Sense of an Ending. All short poignant novels which sow impressions that only grow on you.
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this novella takes you down what seems a well-trodden road, until it reaches a denouement that leaves you reassessing all that's been, possibly even your attitude to life.Its climactic twist ranks alongside the memorable conclusions to Schlink's The Reader, McEwan's Atonement, Barnes' The Sense of an Ending. All short poignant novels which sow impressions that only grow on you.
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Subjects
Awards
Dublin Literary Award (Longlist — 2010)
Booklist Editor's Choice: Adult Books (Fiction — 2008)
The New York Times Notable Books of the Year (Fiction & Poetry — 2008)
San Francisco Chronicle Best Book of the Year (Fiction — 2008)
Language
Original publication date
2008
Physical description
256 p.; 5.43 x 0.75 inches
ISBN
0307388913 / 9780307388919
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