The Role of Fathers in 20th Century Literature

The Role of Fathers in 20th Century Literature There is a very common trend in 20th century literature, and it is the lack of fathers and/or father figures in the literature. Throughout the course of this class, the readings featured often followed this trend and over half of the stories did not include a father or father figure. In the story Recitatif by Toni Morrison, there are two young girls who are living in a boarding home because their mothers cannot take care of them. In this story, like many others of 20th century literature, there is an obvious absence of fathers and there is not even a single mention of either of the girls’ fathers. This trend is also found in Alice Walker’s Everyday Use and in Conversion of the Jews by Phillip Roth. In a stark contrast to the common trend of lack of fathers in 20th century literature, much of the literature we read was from the perspective of the father or focusing on the father. This paper will explore the differences between the stories that featured an absence of fathers/father figures and the stories that were told from the perspective of the father or focused on the father. In Phillip Roth’s Conversion of the Jews, there is only one passage, a very small mention, of Ozzie’s father; “… and when Mrs. Freedman came through the door she tossed off her coat, kissed Ozzie quickly on the face, and went to the kitchen table to light the three yellow candles, two for the Sabbath and one for Ozzie’s father… Even when his father was alive Ozzie remembered that her eyes had gotten glassy, so it didn’t have anything to do with his dying. It had something to do with lighting the candles.” This small passage acts as a great exception to the all-too-common trend in 20th century literature where there is a lack of fathers/father figures. In Conversion of the Jews, this explanation of the absence of Ozzie’s father adds a lot to the story. Oftentimes, the lack of a father/father figure added a lot to the story even if the