Mythologization of the father’s image in American literary nonfiction of the 1990s

Abstract

At the turn of the 20th-21st centuries, the literary process of the USA demonstrates a steady move towards an organic fusion of fiction and nonfiction, on the one hand, and mythologization / demythologization of national history and images, on the other. This paper addresses mythologization of the image of the father in nonfiction novels “Unto the Sons” (1992) by G. Talese and “Patrimony: A True Story” (1991) by Ph. Roth. In their literary nonfiction, both G. Talese and Ph. Roth often turn to the problems of the search for national identity, which is connected with their origin. In the book “Unto the Sons”, G. Talese dwells upon the history of his family, focusing on the image of his father whom he presents as the embodiment of the national type of a self-made man. “Patrimony: A True Story” by Ph. Roth focuses on the serious illness and death of the writer’s father, which makes him plunge into philosophical reflections on life and death, national history and identity. Based on the material of these works, the article considers the synthesis of fiction and nonfiction in G. Talese’s and Ph. Roth’s creative work, in particular, in terms of transformation of a real person into a mythological figure.