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Saul Bellow

ソール・ベロー

Soru Berō

Pen Names: Solomon Bellows（birth name）

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1915-06-10 （Lachine, Quebec, Canada）
Died
2005-04-05 （Brookline, Massachusetts, U.S.） age 89
Nationality
Canada, United States
Languages
English
Religion
Judaism
Residence History
Lachine, Quebec → Chicago, Illinois → Paris, France → New York City, New York → Brookline, Massachusetts

Career

Occupations
Writer, Novelist, Essayist, Professor
Active Years
1934-2005
Affiliations
Committee on Social Thought, University of Chicago, American Academy of Arts and Sciences (Fellow), American Philosophical Society (Member)
Memberships
American Academy of Arts and Sciences, American Philosophical Society
Influenced By
Marcel Proust, Henry James, Great Russian novelists (e.g. Dostoevsky), Delmore Schwartz (writer and friend)
Influenced
Philip Roth, William Kennedy, Martin Amis

Education

University of Chicago
attended (field unspecified)
Period: 1930年代（転校前在籍）
Country: United States
Later transferred to Northwestern University
Northwestern University
Anthropology and Sociology
Degree: BA
Period: 1930年代
Year of Graduation: 1937
Country: United States
Graduated with honors
University of Wisconsin (graduate work)
graduate studies
Period: 1940年代
Country: United States
Did graduate work; degree unclear

Awards

Guggenheim Fellowship
1948
Organization: John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
Result: Winner
National Book Award for Fiction
1954
Work: The Adventures of Augie March
Organization: National Book Foundation
Result: Winner
National Book Award for Fiction
1965
Work: Herzog
Organization: National Book Foundation
Result: Winner
National Book Award for Fiction
1971
Work: Mr. Sammler's Planet
Organization: National Book Foundation
Result: Winner
Pulitzer Prize for Fiction
1976
Work: Humboldt's Gift
Organization: Pulitzer Prize Board
Result: Winner
Nobel Prize in Literature
1976
Organization: Swedish Academy
Result: Winner
O. Henry Award
1980
Result: Winner
St. Louis Literary Award
1986
Organization: Saint Louis University Library Associates
Result: Winner
National Medal of Arts
1988
Organization: U.S. Government
Result: Winner
PEN/Malamud Award
1989
Organization: PEN Center
Result: Winner
Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters
1990
Organization: National Book Foundation
Result: Winner
National Jewish Book Award
1997
Work: The Actual
Organization: Jewish Book Council
Result: Winner

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

The Adventures of Augie March

1953 Novel (picaresque)

A sprawling picaresque novel following Augie March through a series of adventures and careers; noted for its colloquial, philosophical voice.

immigrant experienceformation of selfAmerican experience

Henderson the Rain King

1959 Novel (allegorical/philosophical)

Follows the introspective journey of Eugene Henderson as he seeks meaning and transcendence; contains autobiographical elements.

self-searchtranscendencemix of humor and tragedy

Herzog

1964 Novel (psychological)

A middle-aged academic writes unsent letters to friends, scholars and the dead; explores mental crisis and renewal.

mental instabilityrelation of intellect and geniusself-examination

Humboldt's Gift

1975 Novel (on legacy and friendship)

Examines art, fame and madness through the figure of the poet Humboldt and his friend's reflections; winner of the 1976 Pulitzer Prize.

art and recognitionfriendshipmadness and genius

Bibliography

  • Dangling Man (1944)
  • The Victim (1947)
  • The Adventures of Augie March (1953)
  • Seize the Day (1956)
  • Henderson the Rain King (1959)
  • Herzog (1964)
  • Mr. Sammler's Planet (1970)
  • Humboldt's Gift (1975)
  • The Dean's December (1982)
  • More Die of Heartbreak (1987)
  • A Theft (1989)
  • The Actual (1997)
  • Ravelstein (2000)

Translations by Author

  • Translation of "Gimpel the Fool" by Isaac Bashevis Singer (translated by Bellow, 1953)

Translations of Works

  • The Adventures of Augie March - translated into Japanese
  • Herzog - translated into Japanese
  • Humboldt's Gift - translated into Japanese

Style & Themes

Literary Style
colloquial yet philosophical voicepicaresque elements with dense imagerymix of high-cultural references and humor
Recurring Motifs
Jewish identityurban life (notably Chicago)psychic struggle and desire for transcendence

Health

  • respiratory infection (childhood)
    8歳頃
    Provided long periods of reading that fostered self-reliance and inspired his desire to become a writer.

Legacy

Regarded as one of the major American novelists of the 20th century; three-time National Book Award winner and 1976 Nobel laureate. His exploration of Jewish identity, urban life and the tension between intellect and madness has had wide influence.

Museums

  • National Portrait Gallery (holds portraits) Washington, D.C., U.S.

Academic Societies

  • American Academy of Arts and Sciences
  • American Philosophical Society
  • Chicago Literary Hall of Fame (inductee)

Archives

  • University of Chicago Library (Saul Bellow Papers)

In Popular Culture

  • USPS commemorative stamp issued in 2024 (Chicago)
  • Song "Saul Bellow" by Sufjan Stevens

Quotes

  • His writing exhibited "the mixture of rich picaresque novel and subtle analysis of our culture..."
    Source: Swedish Nobel Committee (Nobel citation) (1976)
  • Bellow said Eugene Henderson, of Henderson the Rain King, was the character most like himself.
    Source: Bellow's remarks / interviews

Trivia

  • First writer to win three National Book Awards across all categories.
  • Naturalized U.S. citizen in 1941.
  • Lived his later years in Brookline, Massachusetts, and died there in 2005.
  • A block in Humboldt Park, Chicago, is named Saul Bellow Way.