PAUL KOHN S

La Difference

"The most interesting part of the
Wendy Wasserstein among many oth-
research really had to do with the con-
ers and explores the issues in their
ceptual problem of how to distinguish
plays as Jewish and as larger in scope.
what is Jewish from what is
In much of their work, Whitfield
American," explains the author, who
writes, the absence of an intense
has written seven other books, includ-
Jewish faith nourishing characters who
ing The Culture of the Cold
at least have ethnic
War.
names testifies to the
"My research showed how
effects of
ambiguous Jewish identity has
Americanization."
been in the whole course of
"In Search of
the 20th century, not just at
American Jewish
the end of the century but at
Culture is both a per-
the beginning as well."
sonal book and a
Whitfield presents anec-
book that tries to
dotes to go along with the
address the complica-
history and gives brief person-
tions of Jewish culture
ality portraits to illustrate how
in the United States,"
individual Jews have altered
Whitfield says. "Part
their styles as their careers
of my argument at the
have intensified. The career of
very end of the book
Stephen J. Whield•
Bob Dylan, for example, is
is that cultural Jews
analyzed from both entertain- "The future of American are likely to disappear
Jewish culture will
ment and religious points of
unless that culture is
consist not of cultural
view.
defined
in religious
Jews but of
In the field of music,
terms.
The
secular
believing jews."
"because Jews were present at
Jews think that they're
the creation of the national
Jewish only because of
marketing of popular music, they
a whole series of associations, memo-
erased whatever fine lines might be
ries, style and perhaps some Yiddish
drawn between what is Jewish and
vocabulary.
what is American," Whitfield writes
"That kind of identity, which was
about influential immigrants who
once very powerful and identifiable, is
turned music publishing into a busi-
going to be on a life support system
ness.
very soon. The future of American
The merging of Jewish and
Jewish culture will consist not of cul-
American styles, according to
tural Jews but of believing Jews. The
Whitfield, is certainly most pro-
topic remains an absorbing and fasci-
nounced in Broadway shows, most
nating one for me." II
notably through the 1960s,
when they were very close to
the center of American mass
culture and the Jewish inflec-
tion was very strong.
"It's very difficult to figure
out what's Jewish about the
Rodgers and Hammerstein
musicals and how that differs
from the Irving Berlin musi-
cals, or what Irving Berlin has
in common with Rodgers and
Hammerstein that he does
not have in common with the
only non-Jew to work in that
classic era, namely Cole
Porter," notes Whitfield.
"Leonard Bernstein said
the very same thing. He knew
that his music is in some ways
American, but he also said
that only a Jew could have
written that music."
As Whitfield explores the
influence of Jewish play-
wrights, he enters the worlds
of Clifford Odets, Arthur
Miller, David Mamet and

IN SEARCH
AMERICAN
JEW! S
CULTURE

STEPHEN J. WHITFIELD

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