Saul Bellow

 

American writer Saul Bellow was awarded the 1976 Nobel Prize for literature, the judges praising ‘the human understanding and subtle analysis of contemporary culture that are combined in his work’. He received Pulitzer Prize of the same year, and the numerous other awards.  Bellow has been married five times, his current wife being Janis Freedman who, in 2001, edited the volume Saul Bellow: Collected Stories.

 

Bellow's first novel, Dangling Man (1944), Written in the form of a journal, shows the protagonist's estrangement from reality, and gradual retreat into solitude, while awaiting induction into the army. In The Victim (1947) Bellow used the journal form again, presenting a psychological study of the protagonist, Asa Leventhal, alone in New York, being unexpectedly confronted by a man from his past- Kirby Albee, a Gentile. In these two novels Bellow explores the consequences that alienation from society has on his characters’ sense of self, while at the same time they are brought up against forces larger than themselves. Showing his protagonists moral dilemmas against naturalistic settings contributes to the disquieting tone of the narratives.

 

In 1953 Bellow received critical acclaim, as well as his first National Book Award, with the publication of The Adventures of Augie March, a first-person picaresque novel recording the formative experiences of a young Jew from Chicago. This successful novel was followed by  Seize the Day (1956), a short but fascinating novel which presents a single day in the life of Tommy Wilhelm. The narrative voice alternates between third-person descriptions of the New York settings and Wilhelm's monologues, allowing the reader to see the events of the particular day on which the novel is set juxtaposed with important events in Wilhelm's past, seen through flashbacks.

 

In 1959 Bellow published Henderson the Rain King. In which the main character, Gene Henderson, narrates, in a sentimental but  comical manner, the story of his trip to Africa and his encounters with African tribal people  and traditions.

In Herzog (1964), often considered his greatest novel, Bellow presents another study of an individual at odds with the world. Moses Herzog, a professor and intellectual, inwardly fights against his cultural heritage, which he holds responsible for civilization's problems. Partly prompted by his own marital difficulties, he starts to write imaginary letters to friends, and living and dead public figures, about issues that haunt him.

 

In Mr Sammler's Planet (1970) Bellow's narrative tone gets bleaker as the character's fragmented and suppressed memories from the Second World War are gradually forced to the surface of his consciousness, being triggered by contemporary events. The book’s only weakness arises from its lengthy internal monologues which seem to blur the character's voice with that of the author.

 

With Humboldt's Gift (1975) Bellow won his first Pulitzer Prize. This novel examines Charlie Citrine's acquaintance with the poet Von Humboldt Fleisher, showing the beneficial effect the latter, as an artist, has on Citrine while a life crisis forces him into agonized soul-searching.

The Dean’s December (1982) presents the reader with a dual perspective. Through the protagonist's consciousness the reader is confronted with a double- tier narrative concerned with the character's current experiences in Cold War Bucharest, and retrospective reflections on life in Chicago. In this way, Bellow succeeds dexterously in illuminating both the character's inner world, and the surface reality of his daily existence.

As well as further novels, such as More Die of Heartbreak (1987) and Ravelstein (2000), Bellow has written a number of plays, travel books, and academic publications. Bellow's characters are no more, and no less, than ordinary people experiencing and overcoming anguish as they meet the ethical challenges of everyday life.