“Lamento di Portnoy” is a Woody Allen-like outburst that is at times obscene and on the verge of being annoying. It is surely tear-jerkingly funny at certain moments, but most of the time it is confused and without a clear beginning or end.

Portnoy is a man who, in analysis, unleashes a torrential lament about the most significant events in his life. From his intolerance towards his parents to his relationships with women, he explicates every single sexual detail. He also passes through sharp reflections, sometimes on Judaism and other times on love. However, the whole thing takes on a farcical quality that, unfortunately, in my opinion, ends up being overwhelming and excessive.

Half a point more because when Roth regains a minimum of clarity and remembers that he is the writer that he is, truly the irony returns to be that flaring and wonderful one that is then his true stylistic trademark.

Ludilo od knjige!!

I have never read such a Roth before. Briefly... the main character, Alexander Portnoy, confesses his experiences and frustrations to his psychiatrist. :) :) Obsession with sex, relationship with mother, father, sister and former girlfriends....

A very attractive style, quite a bit of hysteria and humor. Later, unfortunately, the man became serious and went in a different direction. I will also take a peek at "Sabbath's Theater".

This book seems to offer a unique exploration of human nature and relationships. The way Portnoy's thoughts and feelings are presented makes for a captivating read. The combination of humor and hysteria adds an interesting dimension to the story. It makes one wonder about the true nature of our desires and the impact they have on our lives.

I'm looking forward to delving deeper into Roth's work and seeing what else he has to offer. Maybe "Sabbath's Theater" will provide an equally engaging and thought-provoking experience.

4 stars

Short review for busy readers: This is a very funny and extremely explicit sex comedy. It is narrated by a neurotic Jewish civil rights activist who has issues with his mother. Just for the unique Yiddish speech and humour, it is well worth reading. However, it is about 50 pages too long as it can be repetitive at times. It requires a slower read to fully appreciate all the jokes. By rights, it should be considered a classic. But it is definitely not for those who are easily offended!

In detail:
Alexander Portnoy is burdened with three major problems. First, there is his mother. Second, his insatiable sex drive. And third, being a Jew in a Gentile world.

These three aspects of his life plague Portnoy to such an extent that he feels compelled to unload all his frustrations through a long and rambling tirade in his therapist's office. This rant is both completely random and yet always manages to point towards Portnoy's true underlying problem: he is a perpetual outsider who is constantly pounding on the door,渴望被接纳. (And yes, I do mean 'pounding' in a rather literal sense!

I'm certain that this was truly outrageous and uproariously hilarious back then.

However, as time has passed, it has become only infrequently funny and has actually taken on a really creepy aspect.

I'm just not convinced by this particular one.

And I'm also not quite done with Roth either.

There's something about his work that keeps drawing me in, even when I have my reservations about certain pieces.

Maybe it's the way he challenges our expectations or the unique perspectives he presents.

But with this one, it seems to have lost some of its charm and gained an unsettling quality that makes it a bit of a disappointment.

Still, I'm curious to see what else he has in store and whether he can recapture that magic that made his earlier works so captivating.

Funny or bitter? Both

Life is a strange mix of the humorous and the poignant. There are moments that make us burst out laughing, and others that leave a bitter taste in our mouths.

Sometimes, the funniest situations can have an underlying current of sadness. For example, a comical misunderstanding might lead to a series of absurd events that are hilarious to watch, but when we look deeper, we can see the hurt feelings or the missed opportunities that caused the confusion in the first place.

On the other hand, even the most bitter experiences can have a touch of humor. We might find ourselves in a difficult situation and, in the midst of our pain, we realize how ridiculous the whole thing is. It's like finding a silver lining in a very dark cloud.

So, is life funny or bitter? The answer is both. It's a complex tapestry of emotions and experiences that constantly surprise and challenge us. We should embrace both the laughter and the tears, because they are both a part of what makes us human.

Alex has 232 pages of complaints about his family, pouring out a stream of monologues to his therapist. When he's not complaining, it's because he's talking about sex (alone, with others, real or imagined). Most of the time, he complains while he's talking about sex.

Sex and complaints. I don't know about you, but for me, it's not such a great presentation.

However, Roth is always Roth. The irony is very strong, and in several places, it makes you burst out laughing awkwardly.

And it was written in 1969. What a reading it must have been in 1969!

This work seems to be a unique exploration of human nature and relationships. The combination of sex and complaints creates a rather complex and perhaps even a bit chaotic picture. Roth's writing style, with its strong irony, adds a special charm to the story. Reading this in 1969 might have been quite a revolutionary experience, as it challenges the traditional norms and taboos of that era.

Overall, despite its somewhat unorthodox presentation, the work has its own value and吸引力. It makes us think about our own relationships, our attitudes towards sex, and how we express our emotions.

Maybe we can learn something from Alex's experiences and try to handle our own lives and relationships in a more healthy and positive way.

So this - or so I'm informed - is where the archetype of the self-hating, sexually repressed, neurotic Jew originated. Hmm.

A funny confessional book (absolutely crammed with that glorious Yiddish), Portnoy's Complaint is indeed historically significant for its rambunctious iconoclasm. However, apart from its at the time largely unspoken observations of the restrictions and expectations Jewish identity brings with it, I doubt it will have much staying power compared with others of its "genre" in the future.

Portnoy never solidified himself in my eyes as a particularly memorable character, which didn't exactly help in this area. I feel I have delved into the mindscape of that kind of character countless times. Perhaps at the time of publication (1969, a genius marketing decision eh?), he was something fresh. But not so much now. 45 years of popular culture have seen to that.

It's probably rather clear by now that I didn't really connect with this, although I recognize it is well-written and structurally sound. My theory is that this is a clear case of familiarity breeding (oh so subtle, but unignorable) contempt. After all, the unending expounding on - in certain circles risqué - sexual indulgences has been a rich subject ever since Henry Miller did it - with guns blazing, so to speak - in the 1930s, laying the groundwork for everyone else after that.

I've read my fair share of all that in my twenties. Needless to say, by now I am beset by a weariness of the subject altogether. There is no great insight to be gained from it anymore. Yes, human sexuality can be aberrant, disgusting and messy, and I'm sure one can explicate its coarse mechanisms in excruciating detail. But can we move on now? Frankly, it's become tedious. Sexually explicit language (while it can elicit great hilarity if used appropriately) just has lost its power to shock or impress. For me personally, my taste has evolved towards barely noticed innuendo and symbolism, so there is not much in it for me anymore. That's what's called "maturing", I guess.

Talking about age and its vicissitudes, I am rather surprised this came out when Roth was already 36, since it very much feels like a book a twenty-something year old - admittedly a highly intelligent one - would write. It's pretty reasonable to assume Woody Allen attentively perused it and viewed it as a template for some of his own work, as well. He definitely mined its contents for all it was worth. So thank you, Mr. Roth, good Sir! You were - at least partly - the impetus for some terrific cinematic concoctions.

Okay, that's enough of my kvetching for now. Do excuse me. I feel the irresistible urge to put on 'Annie Hall' for the umpteenth time.

I would have walked away in the conversation when Portnoy proclaimed that he slept with the women who would have him as a way of conquering America. Essentially, those who wouldn't have him were like those historically against Jewish peoples. Dude, you work for the mayor and are educated! You can do what you want! I'm not Jewish and wasn't alive in the '60s. But somewhere, anyone can feel like they don't belong. What I really liked about Portnoy's Complaint is that not fitting in is something anyone can feel. You don't have to feel like you owe your family. How someone else feels about you has a lot to do with them. A lot of self-talk doesn't hurt. You can tell yourself it's okay, you won't regret it later, and think about what the right thing to do is. Sex can just be sex, not the whole damned future. You can live for the now and still regret the past when the next now comes up. Or be afraid you will regret it. That can be anxiety-inducing on its own.

If the book had been written a couple of decades later, there might be worse things than disappointing your parents with no grandchildren.

The good thing about this book is that it's not easy to pin Alexander Portnoy to one thing. He felt sorry for himself, hemmed in and restrained. Always unsatisfied. He worried about what he should feel, just like anyone else. He did believe he was better than the Monkey. I liked the Monkey. If she became "clingy" and hoped for a new life from Portnoy... Well, he might be her some day. Left alone after years of pleasing only himself. Monkey chose her sexual freedom and later discovered the tragedy of shame. I wish she didn't have to feel shame! She could have been like him when younger. It's not fair that thirty was old for her and he was 33! The whole conquering and getting back at them thing was boring and a step back from the good stuff. The freedom with a price ended up in a conversational death because of boredom and a big fat lie. But that doesn't mean there wasn't anything else in there. I just got bored when it became about being Jewish instead of being any man. Besides, it doesn't feel like the truth! If you're going to be your own person, what does being Jewish have to do with it? Especially since you're not religious, Portnoy?

It was too good before. It was about me against them instead of just me. I wish it didn't have to be against anyone. Sighs. That would mean something to me (wishing) instead of just a funny story about a guy who can talk circles around what he really wants. He did talk circles. I liked how he slipped up and was confused about his omnipresent mama, whether to side with dad or not, his sensible and taken-for-granted sister. The possibility of shame and dirtiness from being alone. Aha! Isn't it not alone to group oneself with a label? I don't think so...

P.s. I can't find on YouTube the scene on The Simpsons when Krusty the Clown pretends to have diarrhea to practice his comedy routines in the bathroom. It's a Portnoy homage! I remember the scene but didn't get the reference when I saw it. :(

Portnoy complains to his shrink - a monologue.

That's the essence of the novel. Stylistically, it is well-written, and I breezed through the 250 pages in no time. However, the lack of a substantial plot made the reading experience a bit dull.

Before reading this book, I had read reviews that led me to expect it to be more scandalous and revolting. True, Portnoy is fixated on sex and rather sleazy about it, but it wasn't quite enough to sustain my interest throughout the entire book.

I was far more intrigued by the family dynamics, the self-hating Jewish complexities, and the characterizations. Having adored "American Pastoral," this novel left me largely unimpressed.

Nonetheless, there is no denying that it is well-written.

The author's prose is engaging and the narrative flows smoothly.

Perhaps if the plot had been more developed, I would have had a more positive opinion of the book.

As it stands, it is a decent read, but not one that I would highly recommend.

I think there is a very thin line somewhere in our minds between being normal and not being normal. When we encounter different situations such as childhood traumas, shocks like genetics, that thin line may disappear suddenly. The stories where that thin line disappears have always attracted my attention. I always think that the details of the treasure value of a person are hidden somewhere there. Also, reading the experiences of the opposite sex as an experience that I will never be able to live was a wonderful experience. I had read Philip Roth's Ghost Writer before and I quite liked it. And Portnoy's Complaint was like there was a completely different Roth, but he hadn't lost any of his literary skills. Maybe there were some problems with the translation, but it wasn't too difficult to see the writer behind it.

I had come across the name of Roth numerous times. Such mentions were often accompanied by the opinion that Roth is the "greatest living American novelist" and that he masterfully captures what are often referred to as "the problems of assimilation and identity of American Jews." However, I had also come across such praise given to Saul Bellow, an author whom I consider monotonous and uninteresting, so I was somewhat skeptical about Roth's work. One day, I came across "Portnoy's Complaint" at an attractive price and quickly purchased it.

"Portnoy's Complaint" is written in the form of a monologue, in which we get to know the tribulations of Portnoy, an American with an enormous sexual appetite and curiosity, sometimes of a deviant nature, but whose sexual gratification is rarely complete due to an enormous sense of guilt derived from ethical, altruistic or Oedipal impulses. So unique is his condition that Roth felt the need to create a psychiatric condition that he called "Portnoy's Complaint" (characterized on the first page of the novel).

And the novel is just that: a long monologue of Portnoy in which he traces a path of complaints, misfortunes and justifications for his censurable behavior.

Described in this way, it seems like a boring and unnecessary read. It is not. His complaints are woven in a completely frank language, sometimes extremely obscene but always hilarious.

Due to the way the subjects are addressed in this monologue and the considerably amoral nature of its protagonist, this work is usually characterized as a long anecdote. This is a completely wrong way to classify this work because, although it is a fun and somewhat risqué work (at least for puritans and easily offended people), it ultimately addresses, albeit subtly, a series of serious subjects. In addition to the already mentioned problems of assimilation and identity of American Jews, this novel also criticizes the crisis of values and hypocrisy existing in American society in the late 1960s, and this criticism reaches its peak when Portnoy relates his stay in Israel, the cradle of his people.

What surprised me the most was the way Roth managed to attribute so much energy, interest and hilarity to a novel that has the form of an erratic, subjective monologue and that some (not me) would not hesitate to classify as a compendium of obscenities.

I imagine that this novel is not a very representative of his work as an author (although it is one of his best-known novels), but it was enough to convert me to Roth because it made it clear that he is an author with an excellent command of his prose and who knows how to convey the great themes that make up the comedy and tragedy of human life in a somewhat subtle way and at the same time clear and frank.

I will undoubtedly read more of his novels, and the next one will be "The Plot Against America" which I have already purchased and will read soon.

This novel, which was published in 1969, determined Roth's (positive or otherwise) fame.

The undisputed protagonist is Alexander Portnoy, a young, affluent, Jewish and...serial masturbator.

"The penis was the only thing that
I could definitely consider
mine."

The boy spends the entire length of the book telling his psychoanalyst, in a continuous flow of confidences and reflections, his "story of disillusionments", as he himself defines it.

Alex's parents have enormous expectations of him and make the huge and devastating mistake of not understanding that their own dreams are not those of their son, arriving at getting exactly the opposite of what they want for him: psychological imprisonment instead of freedom.

The highest point of this attitude is reached by the mother, a fundamental figure, a suffocating and stifling woman who even makes Portnoy shout: "Why can't I take it anymore! Why are you fucking Jewish mothers so fucking unbearable!"

This woman is so pressing, obsessive and obsessive that she even suffocates the reader; Alex will fail in the attempt to free himself from her, from his father, from the rigid and unacceptable ethical rules, but Roth does not fail, who comes to the aid of his character (and the reader) with a language so free from taboos as to be revolutionary, so full of irony and sarcasm as to lighten even the hardest passages and coordinating everything in a narrative construction that is never static, wandering and undulating without ever losing the thread or the rhythm.

This novel is a desperate cry for help that increases in intensity until it explodes; a deep book on social inequality, on freedom, on guilt.

The ending is absolutely perfect: sadly funny, desperately diverting (yes, Roth can do it).

Lament of Portnoy
Philip Roth
Translation: Roberto C. Sonaglia
Publisher: Einaudi
Pages: 220
Rating: 5/5