Roth Response Parts I and II

Part I

In Philip Roth’s, The Plot Against America, the combination of the historicity and manipulation of historical events within the text cause the novel to function as an antidote to myths that are at the very core of American ideals. Often Roth’s abstract/paradoxical sentiments are grounded in unedited, concrete historical events. One myth that many Americans buy into during times of war is a “holier than thou” sentiment. There is no ignoring/denying the atrocities committed by Nazi Germany, however many of us do not realize that we are condemning a nation for carrying out very similar actions that have already happened on American soil. The reader receives this notion when the narrator goes to his Aunt Evelyn’s office and he sees a map of the US. He is going into the office to argue that his family should not be sent to Kentucky, when he is struck by the uncanny resemblance of New Jersey’s borders to an, “Indian’s feathered headdress.” The disruption of the text, and the captivating affect the map has on the narrator, makes it very hard to ignore Roth’s intentions to draw similarities between the family’s relocation and to the relocation of the Native Americans that happened 200 years prior. The sentiment created through this scene is paradoxical to myth of American innocence and righteousness that so many of us buy into. Roth’s ability to reach the reader through an oblique space with the use of concrete historical events grounded in America’s identity drive home its function as an antidote the myths that we justify many of our actions and beliefs with. Interconnectivity is a concept that we have explored many times in our class, and it is a notion that is explored by Roth. This concept is expired when Roth imagines Highway 22 extending out beyond his neighborhood, beyond New Jersey state lines, and as we saw in class all the way out to Kentucky. Roth imagines all of the violence in the east, spreading all across the country. Once again Roth’s use of (this time literally) concrete images, to reach an idea that is very abstract makes the notion expressed that much more relevant. Roth analyzes the myth that we are all separate, and in this case, the US is separate from the rest of the world. The fact that Roth uses a road, the very thing that connects us all, speaks to the notion that such atrocities as those in Nazi Germany could really happen anywhere.

 

Part II

The success of this novel’s ability to function as a “para – doxa” work is grounded in the power of the images created by Roth, and the manner in which they are presented. As I wrote in Part I, the power of the images in this novel come from Roth’s ability to use very concrete/historical events to make a point that is very abstract. When we examine the scene with the map of New Jersey that looks like an Indian headdress we see Roth employ two major techniques: 1. The disruption of text (main character going very in depth about image of NJ) 2. Reaching the reader in an oblique space through the use of concrete events. In addition to this Roth, also picks an event (relocation of Native Americans) that played one of the biggest roles in shaping this country’s identity. All of these elements work toward Roth’s work to function as a “para doxa” text.