Powerful account of the Red Scare, told through the rise and fall of a tough blue collar radio star from New Jersey. Roth's political writing has never been sharper, but the intimate scenes fall flat and the family drama is often unintentionally funny.

Some minor issues I had with the overall work:

1.) Ira, the hero of the book, is supposed to be a self-educated, blue collar guy radicalized as a GI in WWII. He becomes famous performing Lincoln's speeches at leftist rallies and on the radio. But what does he learn from Lincoln? Why are no speeches quoted? Why doesn't he reflect on the words? Roth either lacks basic knowledge of Lincoln or is taking a dig at old-time communists. Which is more likely?

2.) Morris, Ira's brother, is a WWII vet, a blacklisted teacher, and a real mensch. But his mensch-hood depends on bragging about being an angry Jew and yelling at the reader about hating Nixon's funeral. Why is this heroic? And why does Roth let the story drop when Morris is about to admit his real anger towards blacks? There's a dangerous irony here as Roth refuses to confront the rage that drove the Newark riots.

3.) Ira's downfall comes in the form of Eve Frame, an actress. The rumor is Roth was getting revenge on his ex-wife. He makes Eve weak and fills her with Jewish self-loathing. But if Ira had fallen for a truly appealing woman, the tragedy of his betrayal would have been more powerful. As Morris points out, Roth is not Shakespeare.

Probably all the books by Roth that I have read were both more numerous and of a higher quality than "The Communist", and for some other authors, "The Communist" would be the pinnacle of creativity. Roth is known for his free language, and when it comes to sex, in this book, a kind of continuation of the American pastoral, he departs from such an approach. And this is the main flaw of this book. It lacks that restlessness, that strange originality of Philip Roth characteristic of books like "The Dying Animal" or "Sabbath's Theater". But despite that, this book is fantastic, educational, inspiring, and thought-provoking.

"How can people give the army three or four years of their lives, watch their friends die, be wounded, have their lives interrupted, and not know why all this is happening and what it's all about? All you know is that Hitler started something. All you know is that the recruitment commission drafted you. Do you know what I'm going to tell you? You guys, each of you would have repeated every German Sunday if you were in their place."

If you have read "The Pastoral", then you know the concept of the story. And in this book, we have two brothers, one who is admired and one who tells the story to a young man who admired and associated with the popular brother. The difference between this book and "The Pastoral" is that here the problem is not the daughter but the pastor, and that amazing hero of the brother, but communism and the paranoid fear of communism and Jews are not lacking in either book. Ira, the younger brother of the English professor Maria, better known as "Iron" because of his strength and size, suddenly becomes the number one public enemy in America because of a book published by Eve, his ex-wife, titled "I Married a Communist". This is actually a story about everything that preceded that book and everything that is the consequence of this book, but it is actually a condemnation of both Soviet communism and American democracy immediately after World War II. Maybe we thought that "The Great American Novel" or "Goodbye, Columbus" was a story about us, and in fact, it is, but Roth also offers such a story where the cynical heroes and the sincere anti-heroes are actually cowards, although the situation on the ground is actually different. Ira is a boy susceptible to influences, he grew up without a father, was forced to make his way through life with what he has, with strength, and as such, he is suitable for implementing beliefs during World War II, which he spent in Iran associating with communists. After returning from the war, he brings with him the desire that everyone be equal, that blacks be the same as whites, that women have equal rights as men, that Jews be people like everyone else. Through education, he gains respect, and through acquaintance with Eve, a former star of an impossible film, he also gains a family and respect, but Eve is a Jew who is ashamed of her origin, but at the same time hates people of her own origin, and has a daughter who hates the whole world, a winning or deadly combination for "Iron" Ira.

Maria and the young man Nathan Zuckerman spend the night reliving Ira's life and everything that led to the destruction of the described family, but also what led to Nathan not receiving the deserved scholarship.

Although at first glance you might assume that the book is a condemnation of communism, you will actually be right only in one aspect, because the book, in addition to highlighting the flaws of communism, also offers all the flaws and all the frustrations of American capitalism during the war known as the Cold War. A mass of people is degraded, destroyed in America, just because someone said that a communist is involved. An interesting subplot offers a nice meditation on identity and depression and the need for a depressed and persecuted person to wallow in self-pity, but at the same time, Roth in some moments clouds with political pamphlets, characteristic of that time as well as for the inflammatory speech of people under the influence of politics. The daughter's tragic fate is again there, contributing to the destruction of the accidental world and happiness between Ira and Eve, but there is also Ira, who, even without the pastor, would actually have destroyed the lives of himself and his new family. This is a book about paranoia and the pitiful fear of two criminal ideologies that for decades have been destroying the peaceful dreams of free people, about the fear of American democracy of communism and the fear of communism of American democracy. For those who like "The Pastoral", all recommendations.

"When you decide, as I have tried to achieve, when you decide to get rid of all the obvious illusions - religion, ideology, communism - and still there remains for you the myth of your own goodness. Which is the ultimate illusion."

Philip Roth is an outstanding writer, a fact that is already well-known and recognized. However, what I find extraordinary is the way he manages to bring his characters to life and contour them so well. At times, I had the impression that he had received the help of a psychologist when writing his book.

Personally, I liked it, but I couldn't give it 5 stars.

It is worth reading for the knowledge of a new perspective on the most powerful country in the world after World War II or for the reasons for the appearance and development of the extreme left movements in the US territory. I actually gained a new perspective on American society during that period.

"Then, if you want to be a true American aristocratic Christian, you could, whether you feel it or not, show a great sympathy for Jews. Here lies the sophistication. The whole thing, when you are an intelligent and sophisticated aristocrat, is that, unlike others, you force yourself to overcome - or give the impression that you overcome - your contemptuous reaction towards those who are different. You just have to hate them in particular if you can't do otherwise. But not being able to approach Jews easily, with a relaxed and good-natured manner, that would morally compromise a true aristocrat."

Page 227

Reading this book for me was like sitting on a chair beside a fireplace that has no chimney and no flue, but the author would come every now and then and throw a can of oil on it, which would cause the fire to catch me too and I would jump off the chair violently.

Finishing it had been tiresome for me, but I liked almost the last hundred pages and the conclusion of the book.

Casei com um comunista, the second book in the American Trilogy where Roth describes the post-war United States and the incongruities of a moral and intellectual identity that aimed at the destruction of man in favor of the glorification of his baseness, is a work that exalts the power of lies, betrayal, and above all, revenge at the expense of any thought minimally distant from those who held power in the 1940s.

Telling the life of Ira Ringold, an ordinary worker from Newark who became a radio star, and those in his circle, Roth composes a story about the convictions of thought, the freedom of ideology, and the blindness present in an era marked by the strong McCarthyist persecution of anyone who was a communist, allied with communists, or even merely had any connection with a communist.

Like a diary, Ira's life is narrated in retrospect to what his life became after the emergence of the blacklists, anti-Semitism, lies, and tortures to combat an invisible enemy that if not present, would have to be invented to be fought. Allied with a completely dysfunctional family, Ira and Roth will fully demonstrate that "life cannot be accused of any deficiency when it comes to trivializing people" and that "we must take off our hat to life, in homage to the techniques it has to strip a man of all his relevance and completely empty him of his pride", so that after stripping a man of his ideology, not much remains.

Not much remained of Ira, but an excellent story about the political persecution of the time remained, in a work that although a bit drawn out, is as good as Indignation. I really like Roth, and with this book it was no different.

**Title: The Importance of Reading**

Reading is an essential activity that offers numerous benefits.

It allows us to expand our knowledge, improve our vocabulary, and enhance our cognitive abilities.

By reading different types of books, we can explore various cultures, ideas, and perspectives.

It also helps us to relax and unwind after a long day.

Moreover, reading can boost our creativity and imagination, enabling us to come up with new and innovative ideas.

In addition, it is a great way to improve our communication skills as we learn to express our thoughts and feelings more clearly.

Whether it's a novel, a non-fiction book, or a magazine, reading has something to offer for everyone.

So, make it a habit to read regularly and discover the wonderful world of books.

You'll be amazed at how much it can enrich your life.

Give it a try and see the difference it can make!

I would rate this article 3 stars as it provides a good overview of the importance of reading but could be further enhanced with more specific examples and personal anecdotes.

PERFECTION

Perfection is a concept that has intrigued and eluded humanity throughout the ages. It represents an ideal state, a standard of excellence that is seemingly unattainable.

We strive for perfection in various aspects of our lives, whether it be in our work, relationships, or personal achievements.

The pursuit of perfection can drive us to great heights, pushing us to超越 our limits and reach for something greater.

However, it can also be a source of stress and frustration when we fall short of our ideals.

True perfection may be an elusive goal, but the journey towards it can be a rewarding one.

It is through our efforts to achieve perfection that we learn and grow, becoming better versions of ourselves.

We should embrace the concept of perfection not as an end result, but as a continuous process of improvement.

By doing so, we can find satisfaction and fulfillment in our pursuit of excellence.

This is not Philip Roth’s best book. It is around-the-bend melodramatic and over the top voluble, much like old movies can be. For example, “His Girl Friday” (1940) with Rosalind Russell and Cary Grant. I can’t say for sure; I’m just speculating, but perhaps this was Roth’s way of giving his novel greater period resonance. Maybe he wanted to infuse it with that madcap, naive-yet-slick-bustling-postwar-New York City atmosphere so prevalent in Hollywood movies of the 1940s.

(N.B. The masterpieces I recommend for first time readers of Philip Roth are American Pastoral, The Human Stain, The Ghostwriter, Patrimony and The Counterlife to mention a few.)

Yet I Married a Communist remains important because it brings to life a period of history when everyone was drunk on Utopia. That is, when half the world was convinced of the promise of Communism. We know now that the revolution was a fraud. Lenin was a con man and a serial murderer. Stalin outdid him by 50,000,000 souls. It’s all there in Richard Pipes’ many books, as well as multiple works by Orlando Figes, Simon Sebag Montefiore, Robert Conquest, Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn, et al.

Yet even a Roth dud is infinitely better than most novels. This one is interesting in the way The Plot Against America was interesting. Though in that later book Roth used a counter-factual foundation—the anti-Semitic aviator Charles Lindbergh is elected president of the USA on an isolationist platform that tragically keeps America out of World War II—whereas here in I Married A Communist he shows the same ability to give us characters caught in the mill of history though without the counter-factual underpinnings.

This novel is built around what happened between 1950 and 1954 when Senator Joseph McCarthy started subpoenaing people to appear before HUAC, the House Un-American Activities Committee, to get them to reveal their Communist party affiliation and that of their friends. This was a terrible fascistic time in American history when limits on personal privacy were contravened by the state and people’s lives were ruined as a consequence. Yet unlike recent declarations by a person who shall not be named, this really was a witch hunt and it ruined the lives and livelihoods not just of individuals but of entire families.

My favorite thing about the novel is the vivid picture it paints of postwar Jewish life. As always on this subject Roth is hilarious and informing. My problem is I find the main character dull. Ira Ringold, the title Communist. For all of the book’s strengths, Ira’s a crashing bore. He rants and raves about the beauty of the USSR, but like most boosters in those days he doesn’t have a clue. Stalin’s show trials occurred in the mid-1930s, but does Ira know anything about that? Collectivization and Dekulakization, which starved the Russian peasantry to death in their tens of millions? The Gulag? He’s likable in many ways, Ira. He’s sincere, but in the end he’s just an ideologue. Now, you may argue, but how can any character be ahistorical in realist fiction? He can only know what he knows when it’s time for him to know it. True, many people were fooled by the Soviet Union well into the 1970s. But that fact doesn’t in any way relieve the reader of the tediousness of Ira’s obsession.

Stopped reading at page 270 of 323. The narrative simply became too repetitious.

Niente. I just can't seem to find a common ground with Roth.

This is my second attempt with the author, after "Pastorale Americana", which didn't convince me, basically for the same reasons as this text, which I chose mainly because of the plot.

The plot, in fact, is salvageable. Indeed, the story about Ira and his wife Evie, their conflicts, the problems related to coming from opposite social classes and having completely opposed values interests me a great deal, and I would have liked it to be explored much more deeply.

The point is that in this book, the narrator constantly changes between Nathan (Roth's alter ego) and Murray (the protagonist's brother, whose "voice" we never hear in the first person - another problem -).

It's all very confusing, the time frames often get mixed up; there's too much history mixed with the plot but in my opinion in a non-uniform way.

I'll give Roth one last chance with "La macchia umana", after which I'll give up on this endeavor.

I was truly ensnared by Roth and his captivating characters. Their stories seemed to draw me in like a powerful magnet, making it impossible for me to look away. The vivid descriptions and complex personalities made them come alive on the pages. However, at the same time, there were moments when I found myself feeling a bit bored.

Perhaps it was the slow pace of certain sections or the repetition of some themes. But despite these moments of boredom, I couldn't deny the overall allure of Roth's work. His ability to create such rich and detailed worlds was truly remarkable. I found myself constantly torn between being completely engaged and having those brief spells of disinterest.

Nonetheless, I continued to read, eager to see where the characters would go and what new surprises Roth had in store for me. In the end, I was left with a sense of both satisfaction and a hint of disappointment. But that's the beauty of literature, it can evoke such a wide range of emotions within us.

A truly memorable Nathan Zuckerman story comes to mind.

As a young lad, he struck up a friendship with the larger-than-life communist brother of his English teacher. This English teacher was married to a movie star, and this all took place just before and during the McCarthy madness.

The events of this story made me deeply wonder if, perhaps, the relative strength of the US communists/stalinists during that era might be the very reason why social democracy never really caught on in the US.

It's an interesting thought, especially when we consider that it wasn't until Bernie Sanders came along that there was a significant resurgence of interest in social democratic ideas in the US.

Could it be that the earlier influence of the communist/stalinist movement somehow overshadowed or hindered the growth of social democracy?

These are the kinds of questions that this Nathan Zuckerman story prompts us to consider, and it adds yet another layer of depth to our understanding of American history and politics.

I am certain that anyone who has significantly engaged with Philip Roth in their readings cannot deny that a book like this was essential. In other words, ever since the time of the Communist Party Manifesto, Jews have been accused of being Communists, and Communists have been accused of being Jews, especially in America (and as a person from a Communist family, I have always wondered what sense such idiocy made, I might add).

Just imagine if one of the most formidable pens of the 20th century, a diaspora Jew and an American to boot, who has experienced McCarthyism firsthand and has made being Jewish an almost eroticized subject of shame and disgrace, could refrain from addressing such a topic. And indeed, not only could the old man from Newark not do so, but after forty-five years, he has explained to me with this biography of the most capitalist Communist I have ever encountered in my readings, in what sense in the eyes of the liberal world (not just the American one), Jew and Communist are the same thing.

It is obvious to a reader with my background that "I Married a Communist" is first and foremost and more than anything else a faithful account of what the persecutions, fears, and prejudices of Cold War America were like, which is rather secondary. The point is that Ira Ringold, whose biography is told in this book, not only shows me that an American communism effectively existed, however incredible it may seem, but also provides me with an answer to so many questions about anti-Semitism, anti-Communism, and anti-everything that have always characterized the conservative world even in our country.

So who is Ira Ringold? He is an American Jewish Communist. His life fails miserably precisely because communism and Americanism are the zenith and nadir of 20th-century humanity, elements that have nothing in common. What gives meaning to the American man is success, making money, obtaining the possession of new things that others cannot get. The house with a garden, the most beautiful possible wife and the most beautiful possible children, in a pleasantly stable and repetitive life: imagine Vladimir Lenin imagining such a life, the apostle of the revolution, of renouncing affection in the name of an ideal, of the economic and social system that destroys the individual and with it property.

To be a Communist in the American ruling class is a bit like being black ("the human stain"), or homosexual, or Jewish ("the American pastoral"): it is a perversion that no one can do without but that no one can ever bring to light in the WASP country, for no reason. If it is only a perversion, a hidden game to let off steam, it can be forgiven, but it must be hidden and only a game. Otherwise, it is treason.

To be a Communist in America means to be a traitor not so much and not only because the only adversary in the history of the USA that has truly questioned its existence has been the USSR, but especially because the most venomous and destructive idea for Yankee culture has been precisely the Communist one. For having wanted to pursue the American dream under the fluttering of the red flag, for having wanted to maintain the revolutionary charm and the red ideological purity in the shade of the house with a garden, the American Jewish Communist Ira Ringold will end up annihilated.

The average American is able to declare himself a Communist only because the color of blood goes well with that of the covers of the books bought and never read to be put on the dining table of the second house in the mountains. Something else entirely, something very different, is the communism of Gramsci and the Italians who died for that flag, and for freedom, in the years in which this book is set.

So why, when turning the last page of the story of the life of this Communist born in the wrong nation, or of this American born with the wrong idea, do I discover that ultimately Judaism and communism are the same thing? Because both speak of something that radical liberalism will never be able to speak of, because of its cynical veneration of money.

They speak of redemption.

The rest is America, is Philip Roth, with his pen.