The New York Times described Roth’s novel Call it Sleep as “One of the few genuinely distinguished novels written by a twentieth-century American” (Roth blurb). The book tells us about David Schearl, child of Jewish immigrants in the first decades of the 19th century. Similarities between the author’s biography and David’s life are quite obvious. This paper will give a short overview of the author’s life and point out a few similarities with the book. After a brief abstract of the novel’s content the focus will be on identity created through language and the Jewish origin of the character. Identity is a very important motif in Roth’s novel and it is influenced by the history of Jewish immigrants in New York’s Lower East Side, as well as by the urban experiences of the character. David searches for his own identity within and outside of his own community.
In the following parts Roth’s technique will be explained by Cohn’s theory of psycho-narration, with a focus on the modernist climax in the penultimate chapter. The paper ends in the conclusion that Roth’s novel is about the search of identity, depicted through a variety of methods.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. About the author
3. The Content of the book
4. Identity in Call it Sleep
4.1 Jewish immigrants in New York
4.2 The urban experience
4.3 Language in Call it Sleep
4.4 Search for identity
5. Narrative method in Call it Sleep
5.1 Psycho-narration
5.2 The penultimate chapter
6. Conclusion
Objectives and Themes
This paper examines Henry Roth’s novel "Call it Sleep" with a focus on the protagonist David Schearl’s search for identity. It explores how this identity is constructed through the intersection of Jewish ethnicity, language, and the urban experience in New York’s Lower East Side, while analyzing the author's narrative techniques, specifically psycho-narration and stream of consciousness.
- The influence of Jewish immigrant history on identity construction.
- The role of multilingualism (Yiddish, English, Hebrew) in the protagonist's development.
- The urban experience of the Lower East Side as a setting for identity formation.
- Modernist narrative techniques and the application of psycho-narration.
- The interplay between the author’s biography and the novel's themes.
Excerpt from the Book
4.3 Language in Call it Sleep
In his novel Call it Sleep, Roth uses several languages which are spoken by the characters in different situations: Yiddish, English with a literary dialect, especially Jewish English, Hebrew and Polish.
The first language that occurs in direct speech is Yiddish. Genya speaks Yiddish in the prologue and throughout the whole book. It is the language of the domestic sphere, represented by highly elaborate English. For David and his family, Yiddish is their Native tongue, as it was for 98% of the Jews living in eastern European countries (Fischer 229). At home and in cheder, David and the other characters mostly talk in Yiddish. The rabbi even forbids his students to talk English in school, because for him English is the language of the Christians and thus unholy: “And don’t speak to me in goyish.” (Roth 225). The rabbi translates the holy text from Hebrew into Yiddish.
Yiddish is also the language of Jewish identity. Jewish immigrants talked Yiddish with each other naturally as depictured in one scene when David is called upon by an old lady in his street: ‘Little boy.’ The words were in Yiddish. […] ‘Little boy.’ She repeated in a quavering treble, head rocking infirmly from side to side. ‘Are you a Jew?’ For a fleeting instant, David wondered how he could have understood her if he hadn’t been a Jew. [sic] (Roth 233f)
Obviously the old lady expects the boy to understand her words, because to her it is natural to speak Yiddish. David, who has grown up in an environment of different languages, is aware of the fact that Yiddish is only spoken by Jewish immigrants and that the woman’s question would not have been understood by a non-Jewish boy. The use of Yiddish draws a distinct line between the Jewish immigrants and immigrants of other origin within the neighborhood.
Chapter Summaries
1. Introduction: Outlines the significance of Roth's novel and introduces the primary themes of identity, language, and the author's narrative techniques.
2. About the author: Provides a biographical overview of Henry Roth, highlighting the parallels between his early life as a Jewish immigrant and his protagonist David Schearl.
3. The Content of the book: Summarizes the novel's structure and the plot progression, focusing on David’s experiences from the cellar in Brownsville to the climactic final chapters.
4. Identity in Call it Sleep: Analyzes the multifaceted construction of identity through chapters on immigrant history, the urban setting of the Lower East Side, multilingualism, and the protagonist’s personal quest.
5. Narrative method in Call it Sleep: Explores Roth's modernist stylistic choices, specifically focusing on the use of psycho-narration and the complex perspective shifts in the penultimate chapter.
6. Conclusion: Synthesizes the findings, confirming that the novel’s core theme is the search for identity, rendered through a sophisticated blend of content and narrative structure.
Keywords
Call it Sleep, Henry Roth, David Schearl, Identity, Jewish Immigration, Lower East Side, Psycho-narration, Stream of consciousness, Yiddish, Modernist literature, Multilingualism, Urban experience, Autobiography, Religion, Narrative technique.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core subject of this paper?
The paper explores Henry Roth’s novel "Call it Sleep," focusing on the protagonist David Schearl’s search for identity within the specific cultural and urban environment of early 20th-century New York.
What are the central themes discussed in the work?
The central themes include Jewish immigrant history, the role of language and cultural identity, urban life in the Lower East Side, and the psychological development of a child caught between different worlds.
What is the primary objective of this study?
The objective is to demonstrate how Roth uses both plot content and modernist narrative techniques, such as psycho-narration, to depict David’s search for selfhood and acceptance.
Which scientific methods does the author employ?
The author employs a literary analysis method, utilizing theoretical frameworks like Dorrit Cohn’s theory of psycho-narration to interpret the text’s stylistic and psychological depth.
What topics are covered in the main body?
The main body covers the author's biography, the novel's content, the influence of the Lower East Side, the significance of languages used, and a deep analysis of narrative strategies in the climactic chapters.
Which keywords best characterize this research?
Key terms include Identity, Jewish immigration, Psycho-narration, Modernism, Lower East Side, and Yiddish, reflecting the interdisciplinary approach of the analysis.
How does the setting influence David’s identity?
The Lower East Side acts as a crucible of identities; the diverse, urban immigrant environment confronts David with conflicting cultural expectations, making it difficult for him to establish a singular sense of self.
Why is the penultimate chapter significant for the study?
The penultimate chapter is identified as the modernist climax of the novel, where Roth utilizes complex stream-of-consciousness techniques and perspective shifts to represent David’s internal psychological crisis during his near-death experience.
- Citation du texte
- Bachelor Katharina Eder (Auteur), 2010, Henry Roth "Call it sleep" - an Analysis, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/171959
