Philip Roth
1969
Around 275 pages
We just said goodbye to Nabokov, so many of you may be wondering who will replace him as my main love interest. Look no further, because Philip Roth is going to be with us for a long time. A very long time.
The novel is presented as a monologue by Alexander Portnoy to his psychoanalyst Dr. Spielvogel. In this format, Portnoy is able to really be vulnerable about his sexual history, in a way that he wouldn't be outside of that setting. The "clinical" definition of Portnoy's Complaint is: "A disorder in which strongly felt ethical and altruistic impulses perpetually are warring with extreme sexual longings, often of a perverse nature." Based on the novels of this period, the sexual repression of the time really did a number on these people.
This is not Roth's first novel, but you can still tell he hasn't quite mastered his storytelling technique yet, compared to his later works. I feel like this was written to get out his adolescent impulses, so he can write something like The Human Stain or American Pastoral later.
I am not saying there is no value in creating a novel that focuses so heavily on masturbation. It's worth it just to watch the puritans squirm. But Roth can do much better than this.
RATING: ***--
Interesting Facts:
Interesting Facts:
In 1969 the book was declared a "prohibited import" in Australia.
Started as a satirical monologue Roth had written to accompany a slide show proposed for inclusion in the risqué revue Oh! Calcutta! that would focus on the sexual organs of the rich and famous.
Time included this novel in its "TIME 100 Best English-language Novels from 1923 to 2005."
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