Volume 48, Number 9 · May 31, 2001
The Thinking Man's Comedy
By Charles Simic
Bellow, A Biography
James Atlas
Random House, 686 pp., $35.00
It is the voice rather than the plots of Saul Bellow's novels that sticks in my mind. His heroes don't do much. They talk endlessly, mostly to themselves. In long, diverting, and funny monologues they unburden themselves of their troubles in a mix of rough street talk and bookish philosophizing. Like soapbox characters I heard in my youth on Bughouse Square in Chicago, they have hundreds of grievances and hold outrageous opinions on everything from women to the way our country is run. They are brainy, self-absorbed, perpetually fixated on some wrong done to them, and in a constant state of agitation. The basis of Bellow's humor is that the hero is usually someone who has made a complete mess of his life. This has always been the comic writer's view of humanity. Tragic heroes complain only to the gods; the comic ones squabble with their families and dream of settling scores with their real and imaginary enemies.
Review, 4047 words
To read the full text of this piece, please choose one of the following options:
|
If you are already a subscriber to the Review's electronic edition, please sign in: |
To subscribe to the electronic edition, please press the button below. |
To purchase access to this article for $3, please press the button below. |