The Anatomy Lesson: A Novel

by Philip Roth

Marriage had been his bulwark against the tremendous distraction of women. He’d married for the order, the intimacy, the dependable comradery, for the routine and regularity of monogamous living; he’d married so as never to waste himself on another affair, or go crazy with boredom at another party, or wind up alone in the living room at night after a day alone in his study.

“I assure you, it’s writers who have to make things up, not girls.”

The Jews in the Bible were always involved in highly dramatic moments, but they never learned to write good drama. Not like the Greeks, in my estimation. The Greeks heard a sneeze and they took off. The sneezer becomes the hero, the one who reported the sneeze becomes the messenger, the ones who overheard the sneeze, they became the chorus. Lots of pity, lots of terror, lots of cliff-hanging and suspense. You don’t get that with the Jews in the Bible. There it’s all round-the-clock negotiation with God.”

As though seriousness can’t be as stupid as anything else!

You know what terrifies me more than jail? That he’ll rebel against a father like me, and that’s what I’ll get. Decent society’s fucking revenge: a kid who’s very very very nice—another frightened soul, tamed by inhibition, suppressing madness, and wanting only to live with the rulers in harmonious peace.”

It’s impossible just to suffer the pain, you have to suffer its meaning.

And it’s your honesty that stinks the most. You think because you’re honest and open

about it, that it’s acceptable. But that doesn’t make it acceptable. It only makes it worse. Even your honesty is a way of debasing things.”