It disturbed me to hear on U.S. public radio and read in The New York Times that Saul Bellow was to be seen as simply an American writer — which, of course, he is — and not significantly a Jewish writer.
Maybe they think they\’re doing him a favor? I think they\’re bleaching out a lot of the substance of Bellow, who died Tuesday at 89.
During my genealogy research I was surprised to learn that my great-grandfather was a real scoundrel. While it\’s impossible to know what was happening inside of his head, I\’ve found clues that give me a better understanding of who he was.
More than any one single thing, parents want each of their children to grow up to be a mensch. I have asked parents and educators across the spectrum of Jewish observance and belief what they want most for their children, and this is the answer that comes up more often than any other. Interestingly, when I ask the same question to non-Jewish parents, I get the same answer, though they don\’t use the same word. Parents want their children to grow up to be knowledgeable, responsible, nonviolent and caring. They want their kids to be concerned for others, their families and communities; good team players, yet also possess good leadership skills; decent and ethical; to love justice; to feel compassion for others and to act on those feelings; and be the kind of person one can count on, an all-around complete human being. In other words: a mensch.
Today, I struggle with my grief for Ramon as the \”international hero\” and for Ramon as the man who my family and I were privileged to meet, break bread with and get to know personally.
If Hollywood menschdom has a name, it might be Steve Guttenberg. For years, audiences have identified Guttenberg as a nice Jewish mensch in films such as \”Cocoon\” and \”Three Men and a Baby.\” But in his new film, \”P.S. Your Cat Is Dead,\” which opens Jan. 24, Guttenberg trades in his image — for 90 minutes, anyway — for a much darker persona.
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