Cultural dialectic
Subtitle: Ludwig Lewisohn and Cynthia Ozick
By: Jane Statlander.
Series: Twentieth-century American Jewish writers ;; v. 10
Publisher: Peter Lang
Published: 2002
Place of publication: New York
Language: eng
Number of pages: 384
Subjects: Lewisohn, Ludwig, 1882-1955 -- Criticism and interpretation.; Ozick, Cynthia -- Criticism and interpretation.; American fiction -- Jewish authors -- History and criticism.; American fiction -- 20th century -- History and criticism.; Jews -- United States -- Intellectual life.; Jewish fiction -- History and criticism.; Judaism and literature -- United States.; Jews in literature.
Description: "This book defines and analyzes the elusive concept of cultural dialectic, as it ambiguously manifests itself in selected works of Ludwig Lewisohn and Cynthia Ozick. Taken separately, the terms "cultural" and "dialectic" each open onto a vast panorama of different - and sometimes competing - significance.

Dialectic is understood to represent not the Western philosophical tradition of duality as opposites, but rather the Judaic dialectic, or pilpul, which describes a complementary webbing of consciousness and centerlessness. Lewisohn's and Ozick's works are viewed as unique examples of a complex mesh of Judaic, Western, European, American, and Gentile cultural determinants.

A slippery confluence of contrasting characteristics, these writings are both autobiographically non-fictional and fictional; factually true, but also invented."--BOOK JACKET.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. [379]-384).
Table of contents: title: Machine generated contents note: Chapter One: Background and Overview; title: Chapter Two: Ludwig Lewisohn; title: Introduction and Background; title: Up Stream; title: Background Discussion I; title: Holy Land: A Story; title: Background Discussion II; title: The Case of Mr Crump; title: Background Discussion III; title: The Island Within; title: Background Discussion IV; title: Trumpet of Jubilee; title: Conclusion; title: Chapter Three: Cynthia Ozick; title: Introduction; title: "The Pagan Rabbi"; title: "Envy; or Yiddish in America"; title: "Levitation"; title: "The Shawl"; title: "Rosa"; title: The Cannibal Galaxy; title: Conclusion; title: Chapter Four: Conclusion.