Two Giants

giantsrith2March must be the birth month of giants. The late literary luminary Philip Roth was born on March 19, 1933; rock star Supreme Court justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was born on March 12, 1933.

It is doubtful that the two ever met or if they did that they would be friends.But despite their differences, these contemporaries have a lot in common: strong mothers who influenced them greatly.

giants rothSaid Roth of his mother Bess who passed away at aged 77 in 1981, “She was so deeply imbedded in my consciousness that for the first year of school I seem to have believed that each of my teachers was my mother in disguise.”

Ginsburg’s mother  spent much of Ginsburg’s adolescence fighting cancer. She died just before RBG’s high school graduation. Of her mother Ginsburg said, “My mother told me to be a lady. And for her, that meant be your own person, be independent.”

Ginsburg has certainly followed that advice.

Both Philip Roth and Ruth Bader Ginsburg (born Joan Ruth Bader) were academic powerhouses, elected to Phi Beta Kappa, and both taught in major universities.

However, their personal lives were very different: the multi-married Roth and the devoted to Martin Ruth Ginsburg.

Roth moved in literary circles where his maleness certainly was no impediment. Ginsburg, too, moved in male circle (one of 9 women in a Harvard law class of about 500). However, she had to prove herself as a lawyer every step of the way.  Indeed, when she graduated from law school, despite her brilliance and recommendations, not one New York firm would hire her.

ruth-bader-ginsburg-lead-1The feisty, outspoken Ginsburg (who wears a sweatshirt with the words Super Diva on it for her legendary workouts) and the taciturn Roth represent great talent. The final chapter in Ginsburg’s life still is to be written although she has been named to Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people.

Roth, with his death, remains the most accomplished writer who did not win the Nobel Prize for Literature, although he has won just about every other literary prize including the Man Booker International Prize.

In 2006, critic A.O. Scott called Roth “the single best writer of fiction of the past 25 years.”

RBG movieOf his own work, Roth commented “I write fictionand I’m told it’s autobiography, I write autobiography and I’m told it’s fiction, so since I’m so dim and they’re so smart, let them decide what it is or it isn’t.”

The library is a good place to find books both by and about these two remarkable people. Also, currently in theaters, is the documentary RBG which looks at Ginsburg’s life, both personal and professional, and the phenomenon that has become RBG.

For biographical information on these two remarkable people, check out the following:

Appelfeld         Beyond Despair: there lectures and a conversation with Philip Roth.

Cooper              Philip Roth and the Jews.

Roth                  The facts: a novelist’s autobiography

Roth                   Patrimony: a true story

Ayer                   Ruth Bader Ginsburg: fire and Steel on the Supreme Court

Bayer                 Ruth Bader Ginsburg (Juvenile)

Carmon             Notorious RBG: the life and times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg

Carmon             Notorious RBG (Young Readers’ version)

Italia                  Ruth Bader Ginsburg (Juvenile)

Levy                   I Dissent: Ruth Bader Ginsburg makes her mark (Juvenile)

Winter               Ruth Bader Ginsburg: the case of R.B.G. vs inequality (Juvenile)

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