A Thematic Study Of Philip Roth’s Early Short Fictions

Philip Roth is an outstanding writer in the contemporary American literature, he is also a popular candidate of the Nobel Prize for Literature in recent years. Roth was born in the Newark which in the state of New Jersey USA in 1993. He has been awarded the National Book Award by right of a short story “goodbye, Columbus”, it also created the starting point of his creation. Roth introduced innovation and transformed multiple style constantly, he created many excellent works in his 50 years career, and he is known as the “living legend” of American literature.Philip Roth is a representative of Jewish writer in America literary world, his works focus on the problem of survival of the Jews.He has a special thinking and expression about the Jewish identity, sexual ethics, assimilation, involving the “Jewish” problem.Roth’s early works represent his initial creation concept, although the academic circles think that Roth’s later works represent his creative talent, but Roth’s early works, especially his collection of short fiction "Goodbye, Columbus" contains many subjects, such as the crisis of traditional Jewish culture, the anxiety of Jewish identity and the alienation of Jewish relations, they are profoundly affected the later novels.Therefore, if we want have an further study of Roth, it is beneficial by means of study the subjects of early works.The thesis is divided into five parts:The first part is the introduction, mainly introduce the domestic and foreign present situation of Philip Roth study and introduce the reasons and significance of the topic.The second part studies the one of the early works’ subjects-- the crisis of traditional culture.To analyse the performance and thought of Roth when he is facing the crisis of the traditional Jewish culture.The third part studies the other one of the early works’ subjects-- identity anxiety.To present the performance and thought in the works of this problem analysis. The article thinks, the works of Roth by the exhibition of American Jewish cultural identity anxiety in options, revealing that doubts and passive identity are the roots of Jewish identity anxiety, its essence is the traditional Jewish culture brought to every American Jews by the impact of identity confusion.The fourth part studies the last one of the early works’ subjects-- alienation of Jewish relations.To analyse the performance and thought about the alienation of Jewish ethnic relationship in the work. The thesis especially points out: Although Roth’s later novels have a powerful exhibition on the problem of alienation relationship, the influence of Roth’s initial cognition about this issue for the later creation can not be ignored.The fifth part is the conclusion, summaries the influence of the early short fictions on the subsequent creation.