The Family Markowitz
Encyclopedia
The Family Markowitz is a 1996 novel
, made up of a series of linked short stories written by Allegra Goodman
.
to ageing
and from homosexuality
to intermarriage. The novel tells the story of four main characters: Rose Markowitz (the matriarch), her sons Ed and Henry, and her daughter-in-law Sarah. Through these characters, the reader meets many other members of the family including Ed's four children, Henry's wife, and Rose's stepdaughter.
gay man. When he becomes fed-up with the California gay scene, Henry moves to Oxford, England, to manage a Laura Ashley shop, collect antiques, and embrace a traditional European lifestyle. (His sister-in-law Sarah imagines that he is retreating into "the decorated nineteenth century.") As Rose fondly remembers her brief childhood residence in England, Henry is in some sense drawing on his mother's history.
professor specializing in the Middle East and terrorism. His status as an academic defines his life, relationships and actions. To Ed, religion is more a matter of culture than belief. This outlook brings him into conflict with his eldest daughter Miriam, who, as a young medical student, embraces traditional Jewish observance. Most of Ed's stories revolve around his internal conflicts regarding religion, notably his clear disdian for the conference to which he is invited, where rather than present academic papers, the participants discuss their feelings.
Novel
A novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
, made up of a series of linked short stories written by Allegra Goodman
Allegra Goodman
Allegra Goodman is an American author based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Her most recent novel, The Cookbook Collector, was published in 2010. Goodman wrote and illustrated her first novel at the age of seven. -Early years and family:...
.
Plot summary
Centred around a middle-class American Jewish family, The Family Markowitz touches on themes ranging from religiosityReligiosity
Religiosity, in its broadest sense, is a comprehensive sociological term used to refer to the numerous aspects of religious activity, dedication, and belief . Another term that would work equally well, though is less often used, is religiousness...
to ageing
Ageing
Ageing or aging is the accumulation of changes in a person over time. Ageing in humans refers to a multidimensional process of physical, psychological, and social change. Some dimensions of ageing grow and expand over time, while others decline...
and from homosexuality
Homosexuality
Homosexuality is romantic or sexual attraction or behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality refers to "an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectional, or romantic attractions" primarily or exclusively to people of the same...
to intermarriage. The novel tells the story of four main characters: Rose Markowitz (the matriarch), her sons Ed and Henry, and her daughter-in-law Sarah. Through these characters, the reader meets many other members of the family including Ed's four children, Henry's wife, and Rose's stepdaughter.
Rose Markowitz
The Family Markowitz begins by introducing Rose, the matriarch of the Markowitz family. In the opening chapter, Rose cares for her dying second husband in their New York apartment. As the years pass, she moves to California (to be near Henry) and then to Washington DC (to be near Ed and his wife Sarah). Her health declines precipitously and she becomes addicted to painkillers. A highly imaginative and wistful woman, Rose displays a tendency to embroider her own history, beginning in the chapter "Oral History Project." Rose's apparent "lack of history" serves as a jumping off point for a number of themes built on by the other characters.Henry Markowitz
Henry Markowitz, Rose's elder son, is an echo of his mother in many ways—notably in his tendency to invent his own history. Henry begins the novel as an employee in an art gallery in California. He is initially presented as a closetedCloseted
Closeted and in the closet are metaphors used to describe lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer/questioning and intersex people who have not disclosed their sexual orientation or gender identity and aspects thereof, including sexual identity and sexual behavior.-Background:In late 20th...
gay man. When he becomes fed-up with the California gay scene, Henry moves to Oxford, England, to manage a Laura Ashley shop, collect antiques, and embrace a traditional European lifestyle. (His sister-in-law Sarah imagines that he is retreating into "the decorated nineteenth century.") As Rose fondly remembers her brief childhood residence in England, Henry is in some sense drawing on his mother's history.
Ed Markowitz
Ed, the younger and more conventional son, is a GeorgetownGeorgetown
-Africa:*Georgetown, Ascension Island, main settlement of the British territory of Ascension Island*George, Western Cape, South Africa, formerly known as Georgetown*Janjanbureh, The Gambia, formerly known as Georgetown-Asia:*Georgetown, Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh...
professor specializing in the Middle East and terrorism. His status as an academic defines his life, relationships and actions. To Ed, religion is more a matter of culture than belief. This outlook brings him into conflict with his eldest daughter Miriam, who, as a young medical student, embraces traditional Jewish observance. Most of Ed's stories revolve around his internal conflicts regarding religion, notably his clear disdian for the conference to which he is invited, where rather than present academic papers, the participants discuss their feelings.
Sarah Markowitz
Ed's wife Sarah gave up her academic career in order to follow and support her husband. She published one novel but now, in middle age, has come to be content with a less distinguished life: writing book reviews, teaching adult-ed courses in creative writing, and caring for her children and her mother-in-law. Sarah is the most potent voice of common sense in the Markowitz family. The novel sees her face the limitations of her life and the beginning of being an empty-nester.Awards and nominations
- Salon Magazine Book of the Year http://theory.lcs.mit.edu/~karger/Allegra/markowitz.html
External sources
- I. Goerlandt, "Take Us the Foxes. Some Notes on Allegra Goodman's 'One Down'" http://users.ugent.be/~igoerlan/var/TakeUsTheFoxes.pdf