Cynthia Ozick's Comic Art

SARAH BLACHER COHEN is Professor of English at the University at Albany, State University of New York. She is author of Saul Bellow's Enigmatic Laughter and editor of From Hester Street to Hollywood, Jewish Wry, and Comic Relief.

• ACKNOWLEDGMENTSI. Introduction: Cynthia Ozick's Comic Art of Truth-TellingII. Trust: Comedy of Manners and MoralsIII. Envy; or Yiddish in AMerica: Elegy, Satire, and CelebrationIV. The Pagan Rabbi, Levitation, and Usurpation: Wry Jokes on RealismV. The Puttermesser Stories: Feminist FolliesVI. The Cannibal Galaxy: From Caustic Humor to Midrashic LaughterVII. The Messiah of Stockholm and the Cackle of SatireVIII. The Shawl: The Tragicomedy of Revolt and SurvivalIX. Conclusion: From Low to High ComedySELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHYINDEX

"In presenting Ozick as a 'comedian of ideas', Sarah Blacher Cohen has raised the study of Ozick to a new level." Alan L. Berger "[Cohen] understands Ozick's hybrid conception of human nature, her realization that the secret source of humor is not joy but sorrow and that the ironic mode ... is the best way of telling the truth." Daniel Walden "Cohen has succeeded in showing a fusion of Ozick's writing as sacred and comic. Defining humor broadly, Cohen persuasively argues that levity and liturgy are natural companions, enriching each other, especially in the creative imagination of Cynthia Ozick." Midstream " ... a thoughtful introduction to a monumental though underrated writer." SHOFAR "This study is a welcome addition to the growing body of scholarly criticism of Ozick and focuses on her comedic style." Choice "Cohen has written an important ... book, one that celebrates Ozick's 'liturgical laughter', emphasizing on every occasion the connection between the comic and the sacred. It is a connection we should be reminded of often." Belles Lettres "Cohen's readings of these stories reveal their many levels and meanings in a language as acute and perceptive as that of Ozick herself." St. Louis Post-Dispatch Magazine