The Paradoxes of the Body in Philip Roth’s Last Novels

Abstract

Abstract This article adopts the phenomenological approach of Merleau-Ponty to explore how the body is both a source of hope and betrayal for the protagonists’ aspirations in Philip Roth’s last four novels: Everyman, Indignation, The Humbling, and Nemesis. When the characters accept the reality of their bodies, it leads them to a sense of responsibility in their communities; when they reject the truth of their bodies, it leads them to social isolation and existential despair. From these novels, Roth’s characters point toward an understanding of community that is corporeal and, for it to be healthy, demands its members recognize the realities of it.