Major Issues
Author Links
Essay Questions

Major Issues

"Moral" is an adjective which one often encounters in critical responses to the work of Bernard Malamud. Malamud’s characters frequently suffer, seek redemption, and succeed or fail based on their capacity for personal growth. Malamud’s declaration of being "in defense of the human" has been taken up by many critics in their analysis of his fiction. As remarkable as Malamud’s uncommon themes, such as the nature of faith, is the mixture of profundity with dark comedy in his writing. Scholars have also discussed his unexpected combination of the elements of fantastic folk tales with mundane naturalism, and of Arthurian myth with 20th century sports. Malamud’s significant contribution to post-World War II Jewish American literature has been examined by literary historians.

Author Links

The Unofficial Bernard Malamud Homepage
This extensive site includes a timeline, biography, primary and critical bibliographies, images, and many links.

Books of the Times
Review of the 1983 collection in which "Angel Levine" was published.

Bernard Malamud
This essay examines Malamud’s importance as a Jewish-American writer.

Reflections of A Writer: Long Work, Short Life
Transcript of a 1984 lecture in which Malamud looks back on his writing life.

Author, Dies, at 71
The New York Times Obituary