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Goodbye, Columbus (1959) is the title of the first book published by the American novelist Philip Roth, a collection of six stories.

In addition to its title novella, set in New Jersey, Goodbye, Columbus contains the five short stories The Conversion of the Jews, Defender of the Faith, Epstein, You Can't Tell a Man by the Song He Sings, and Eli, the Fanatic. Each story deals with the problems and concerns of second and third-generation assimilated American Jews as they leave the ethnic ghettos of their parents and grandparents and go on to college, the white-collar professions, and life in the suburbs.

The book was a critical success for Roth, winning the 1960 National Book Award and earning a name for him as a talented up-and-coming young writer. Still, the book was not without controversy, as certain elements in the Jewish community took issue with Roth's less than flattering portrayal of some of his characters. The short story Defender of the Faith, about a Jewish drill sergeant who is exploited by three shirking, co-religionist draftees, drew particular ire. When Roth in 1962 appeared on a panel alongside the distinguished black novelist Ralph Ellison to discuss minority representation in literature, the questions directed at him soon turned into denunciations. Thus the charges of Jewish self-loathing that have dogged Roth throughout his career have their origins from its very beginning. And it is often speculated that the wildly obscene comedy of Portnoy's Complaint was Roth's defiant reply to his early Jewish critics.

Goodbye, Columbus

The title story of the collection, Goodbye, Columbus, is told from the point of view of the narrator, Neil Klugman. Neil is an intelligent graduate of Rutgers University who works in a low paying position in a library. He lives with his Aunt Gladys and Uncle Max in a working class neighborhood. One summer, Neil meets and falls in love with Brenda Patimkin, a student at Radcliffe College who is from a wealthy family. The novella explores the level of classicism which afflicts the relationship, despite the fact that Brenda's father, Ben, is from the same environment as Neil.

The novella was made into the 1969 film, Goodbye, Columbus
, in which the figure of Brenda became an iconic figure through Ali MacGraw's interpretation of the role. Richard Benjamin co-starred.

The Conversion of the Jews

In this story, a young boy of about thirteen, Ozzie Freedman, confronts his Hebrew school teacher, Rabbi Binder, with challenging questions such as whether it is possible that God gave the Virgin Mary a child without having intercourse. Binder sees this kind of questioning to be disrespectful toward his authority, but Ozzie is not trying to be disrespectful. He simply wants to better understand God and his faith. When Ozzie continues to ask challenging questions, Binder slaps him on the face accidentally giving Ozzie a bloody nose. Ozzie calls Binder a bastard and, without thinking, runs up to the roof of the synagogue where his Hebrew school lessons are kept.

The rabbi and pupils go out to watch Ozzie on the roof and try to convince him not to jump. Ozzie threatens to jump unless they all bow down on one knee in the Christian tradition and admit that God can make a virgin birth, and furthermore, that they believe in Jesus Christ before he will willingly come off the roof.

This was perhaps the most controversial of the Goodbye, Columbus stories for its unflattering take on a traditional Jewish education.

The title was taken from a line in the poem "To His Coy Mistress" by Andrew Marvell: "Thou by the Indian Ganges' side / Shouldst rubies find; I by the tide / Of Humber would complain. I would / Love you ten years before the Flood; / And you should, if you please, refuse Till the conversion of the Jews."

(Silverman)

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