Alexander Portnoy

E829435

Alexander Portnoy is the neurotic, sexually obsessed Jewish protagonist of Philip Roth’s novel and its film adaptation, whose confessional monologue explores guilt, desire, and identity.

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All labels observed (1)

Label Occurrences
Alexander Portnoy canonical 2

Statements (44)

Predicate Object
instanceOf fictional character
film character
literary character
adaptedInto Portnoy's Complaint (1972 film) NERFINISHED
appearsIn Portnoy's Complaint NERFINISHED
Portnoy's Complaint (film) NERFINISHED
associatedTheme assimilation into American culture
masturbation and sexual fantasy
mother-son relationship
associatedWithAuthor Philip Roth's exploration of postwar American Jewish life
centralConflict conflict between individual desire and familial expectations
tension between sexual freedom and moral restraint
characterTrait guilt-ridden
introspective
neurotic
sexually obsessed
confessesTo psychoanalyst
creator Philip Roth NERFINISHED
culturalImpact controversy over sexual explicitness in American literature
ethnicity Jewish
familyBackground second-generation American Jew
gender male
hasFullName Alexander Portnoy NERFINISHED
hasParent Jack Portnoy NERFINISHED
Sophie Portnoy NERFINISHED
languageOfNarration English
literaryPeriod postmodern literature
mediumOfOrigin novel
narrativeForm monologue to a psychoanalyst
narrativeRole first-person narrator
protagonist
nationality American
notableFor confessional monologue
occupation lawyer
portrayedBy Richard Benjamin NERFINISHED
religion Judaism
settingOfLife Newark, New Jersey NERFINISHED
symbolizes struggle with cultural and religious identity
themeInvolvement Jewish identity
family conflict
guilt
sexual desire
workAuthor Portnoy's Complaint NERFINISHED
yearOfFictionalDebut 1969

Referenced by (2)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Portnoy's Complaint (film) mainCharacter Alexander Portnoy
Philip notableCharacterCreated Alexander Portnoy
subject surface form: Philip Roth