The Identity Dilemma Of The Protagonist In Philip Roth’s “Kepesh Trilogy”

The “Kepesh Trilogy” is a series of novels written by American famous contemporary author Philip Roth.The “Kepesh Trilogy” created a unique image of Jewish intellectuals who struggling with erotic world and inner conflict,which has great significance to the study of the living state of American Jews.This paper studies the dilemma brought by the different identities of Kepesh,the protagonist of “Kepesh Trilogy”.On the one hand,it explores the perplexities faced by the third-generation Jews in the dual environment of American multiculturalism and traditional Jewish culture.On the other hand,it considers the alienation brought by modern technological society through the image of Kepesh.Then consider its siren and enlightenment.The thesis consists of three parts as follows.The first chapter is the presentation of identity dilemma in “Kepesh Trilogy”,which analyzes the dilemma faced by the protagonist Kepesh in different identities from the perspectives of political identity,gender identity and ethical identity.The political identity of the first section corresponds to his intellectual identity.The dilemma under this identity is mainly manifested as: the contradiction between the desire and yearning to become an intellectual and his own character;The contradiction between the identity and the cognition of intellectual identity.The gender identity of the second section corresponds to Kepesh’s male identity.As a man,Kepesh’s problems are mainly the dilemma of trying to seize the initiative in his relationship with women but failing,and the dilemma of objectifying women and thus making himself the object of gaze.In the third section,the ethical identity refers to the sense of separation and family ethical dilemma that Kepesh felt when he got along with his parents and his son.The second chapter is the reason for the formation of identity dilemma,respectively from the Jewish national identity,American society culture analysis and the author’s own creative thought.The first section deals with the collective memory of the Jewish nation.By analyzing the change of Jewish tradition reflected in the protagonist and the influence of the Holocaust narrative,it clarifies his confusion about Jewish identity.The second section discusses American social culture,mainly from the thought of sexual liberation in the counterculture movement in the 1960 s and the anti-intellectualism implied in American culture to analyze why the protagonist is facing the spiritual dilemma.The third section discusses Philip Roth’s creative thoughts,mainly from the literary influence he received and his literary ideas.Influenced by Kafka,Roth tried to blur the boundary between reality and fiction.At the same time,he had the temperament of “Redskin” and “Paleface” of American writers,so his works reflected these characteristics.The third chapter discusses the meaning and artistic expression of identity dilemma,from the perspective of individual identity dilemma,social identity reflection,and artistic methods of writing identity dilemma.The first section discusses individual value and family value from the perspective of Kepesh,and points out the significance of individuals to find “love” and family again.The second section discusses the causes of identity anxiety in modern society from a social perspective,which is the loss of modern people’s sense of security caused by the influence of the technological era and the lack of humanistic spirit.The third section,based on the unique writing techniques reflected in the novel,explores the symbolic meaning of the body metaphor of "breast" and the transformation of Philip Roth’s writing style from postmodernism to neorealism reflected in the “Kepesh Trilogy”.