The Plot Against America
I recently read Philip Roth’s The Plot Against America. You can imagine how it felt to be jammed next to a zillion people on the NYC subway, casually opening a book labeled “The Plot Against America”. Very non-threatening!
As a novel, The Plot Against America rewrites history to explore what would have happened to America/the World if we had remained neutral during World War II. The interventionists argue that as a superpower, we can’t just turn the other way as Hitler spreads fascism and exterminates millions of people. They go further to predict that doing nothing will eventually come back to bite them, because Hitler’s rule will continue to extend until he amasses enough influence to take over America as well. On the other hand, the isolationists maintain that America just came out of World War I, and we shouldn’t needlessly sacrifice our men in “Europe’s war”.
The logic behind both sides is obviously still alive and well. Ideally, we could find a balance between protecting our own and standing up for human rights. As cheesy as it sounds, I consider myself a citizen of the world rather than an American citizen. It is completely and totally arbitrary that I was born here; to pretend that I’m somehow inherently better or more entitled than citizens of other nations is silly and mean. It’s one thing to be proud of your country; it’s another to remain blind to the fact that others don’t necessarily have that privilege, through no fault of their own.
Roth does an excellent job of illustrating how the us vs. them mentality has very real consequences. His story is steeped in historical accuracy, and it is inspired by his experiences as a Jew growing up in 1940’s New Jersey. In his imagined world, Charles Lindbergh is nominated to office in 1940 in lieu of FDR. Lindbergh was an actual person IRL, propelled to fame as an accomplished aviator, who expressed Anti-Semitic sentiments. In the novel, he is portrayed as an openly bigoted candidate who publicly denounces the Jewish population and gets away with it. Once in office, he initiates a series of reforms that so gradually marginalizes the American Jewish population, it’s almost imperceptible to those not paying attention.
Plot-wise, I am very into this. I’m not a huge historical fiction girl, but this is a great blend of semi-autobiographical elements + horrific historical facts + inventive details that are realistic enough to make you uncomfortable. In terms of writing style, Roth strikes an interesting cord by juxtaposing the narrator’s age with the narrator’s voice. Roth speaks in the past tense, recalling his childhood upbringing (and re-envisioning it). He is eloquent AF, which is a bit jarring considering the events are happening to a young boy. Roth carefully mixes a mature, retrospective intelligence with the youthful innocence of his main character at the time.
All of these things sound good…is there any bad? My biggest complaint is that it ends prematurely. I want more closure, and from a creative standpoint, I feel like he leaves several intriguing narrative threads on the table. The book is relatively long (400 pages), and the fact that I wasn’t ready for it to be over is indicative that he could have teased the story further and ended with more finality. I’m a fan of Roth’s ability to transform history and maintain relevancy, and I’ll dock one-flame for his fizzled-out ending. Thus, The Plot Against America receives 4 out of 5 flames.
PS: I’ve reviewed more Philip Roth since this original review. Hit that magnifying glass for more.
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