T 1290.pdf - Pondicherry University DSpace Portal

The importance of the family and the primacy of familyrelationships is another relevant aspect of Malamud's Jewishtradition. The supremacy Of the father 1s emphasized again andagaln in his fiction. Many of Malamud's protagonists areorphans. They are U ~CO~SC~OUS~Y searching for the male parent,they lost or never had. Alpine, Levin, Bok and Fidelman - allare benefactors Of wisdom or companionship by accepting asurrogate father. Roy Hobbs rejects the fatherly influence ofPop Fisher and Suffers. Although many cultures have legends andmyths about orphans in search of fathers, Malamud's stance has~ t s roots firmly entreched in the Old Testament. Thepatriarchal monotheism of the Jews derives from the conceptionof their God if they would agree to worship him alone and toobey hls commandments. This covenant was first entered Into bythe patriarch Abraham and later renewed by his heirs, Isaac andJacob. God's high ethical standard brought frequent punishmentand suffering to the Hebrews. As a result, the Jewshistorically developed a very special relationshrp with theirGod and none else but they(Jews) would accept his Commandments.In "Angel Levine" Manlschewltz must set aside hisprejudices to enable the black angel to perform a miracle - isPart of the Biblical influence. Frank Alplne, ~evin, Bok,Fidelman, Lesser, Dubin and Cohn obtain a new ethical meaningand identity to their lives by re-enacting Abraham's entry into