An Interpretation Of Indignation From The New Historical Perspective

In his later works,Philip Roth often recreates a significant historical event,representing the vulnerability and insignificance of the ordinary in face of history.Against the background of the Korean War,Roth creates his semi-autobiographical protagonist Marcus Messner in Indignation.Marcus,a rebellious Jewish youth,attempts to escape the control and surveillance from his father and college,unfortunately,he is inevitably involved into the flood of history,becoming a victim of the Korean War.In the light of New Historicism and Foucault’s theory of power,this thesis attempts to interpret the historical reconstruction and rewriting in Indignation.By analyzing the disciplinary power around Marcus and making comparison between the 1950 s American history in official recordings and the American ethos of the same period created by Roth,this thesis explores the social and historical roots of Marcus’ s tragic fate.The introduction includes literary review,the background and the significance of this thesis.Chapter one studies the theory New Historicism,as well as its relation with literature and politics.Chapter two deals with the “textuality of history” and “historicity of text” in Indignation,by which the author interprets the novel’s historical significance.As a man who has gone through the age,Roth recreates the ethos of the rules,regulations and surveillance of the 1950 s which is quite different from the historical recordings,depicting the marginalized individuals and reflecting a more truthful historical reality.Chapter three makes a study of the subversion and containment,analyzing Marcus’ s subversion to the patriarchy and power system and the containment of subversion in the novel.The conclusion grounds on the relation between text and history and combines with the background of Roth’s creation,summarizing the practical significance of Indignation in the present society.