Chapter+5

Chapter 5: Never Before March 1942-June 1942 In this chapter a couple of very important events happen. Roth talks about Alvin and how he lives his life after the loss of his leg, Mr. Wishnow's death, the Von Ribbentrop dinner, the famous Roosevelt sppech, and the incident with Phillip in the Newsreel Theater.
 * Summary**

The chapter begins with Alvin telling Phillip how hard it was for him to do normal, everyday things, like going to the bathroom. He talked about how degraded he felt. Then Alvin goes on to say what it was like in the army hospital in England and makes a connection back to his childhood. Then the story goes on to talk about Alvin's first day at home in the Roth house. He finds Sandy's portraits of Lindbergh and then the thought of his cousin digusts him.

Next the author begins to tell us of Alvin's life after he has somewhat gotten used to his new surrounding in New Jersey. Alvin played craps with his old high school chums and hangs out with then almost all day and is rarely in the house, except for at meal times. FINISH

Then Roth goes on to describe an orphanage in the neighborhood. He describes the orphanage with a mysterious tone, not exactly knowing the concrete facts behind its purpose or rumors regarding it. The horses are also mentioned here, which of course will come up again in the novel. Then Phillip returns to the craps table where Alvin is and he gives Phillip two ten dollar bills, which was a forutne for a boy in 1942. Next Phillip was on his way home, chatting it up with the orphanage horses, when a men allegedly from the FBI approaches him and asks him various questions regarding his very Jewish family.

When Philip finally gets home, he discovers that his neighbor, Mr. Wishnow, has died. The weird thing about this passage is that Phillip thought that his own father had commited suicide. "The woman who emerged from the house accompanying the medics wasn't Mrs. Wishnow but my mother. I couldn't understand why she was home from work until it dawned on me that the dead father they were carrying away was my own. Yes, of course-my father had commited suicide. " These words from Phillip do not make sense, seeing as it is obvious that it is Mr. Wishnow who has passed away and not his own father.

The next few parts in the chapter have to do with the Roth's fighting about Alvin's unproductive lifestyle and the bad turn he's taken. Alvin reluctantly got a job from his uncle Monty, but that did not last long. Then the von Ribbentropp dinner comes up at the White House and the controversey starts up again. Vice President Wheeled accuses Walter Winchell of saying untrue things. Then he and Roosevelt fight back with various comments and speeches, including the famous speech from FDR "The only thing we have to fear..." Then Mrs. Roth's sister, Evelyn and Rabbi Bengelsdorf, bring more confusion and grief to the family, when they side with Lindbergh by going to the von Ribbentropp dinner and wanting to take Sandy with them. This is the point in the book where Sandy really begins to turn away from his family and starts to face Lindbergh.

Next comes the scheme that Phillip tried to pull by watching a news show in the Newsreal Theater, without his father. Phillip doctors up a fake note, from a nun, saying that he is allowed to watch the film unaccompanied because it is for a school project. Of course he is caught and bursts into tears and his father comes to pick him up. This basically ends the chapter.

**Analysis** So far in the book everything seems to be falling apart in the Roth's lives. Between Lindbergh's presidency, Sandy's new outlook on life, and Alvin's stump, it becomes hard for Philip to have any hope for the unruly flux's of life. This observation is shown in this chapter when Philip comes home after playing craps with Alvin. Philip sees the police cars and a dead body being carried out followed by his mother. Then he immediatly assumes that the dead body is his father. Since Philip seems to always be thinking the worst of situation, he believes that his father has committed suicide. "**Yes, of course-my** father had commited suicide. " This quote embellishes Philip's pessimistic point of view on life and it makes it seem like "obviously it would by father" type of attitude and everything else in the world is going badly. Here are some examples of when Philip's family is falling apart and what gives him a bad attitude.
 * After Philip gets caught for sneaking into the movie, his furious father picks him up and they step outside the theatre. In all of Herman's rage, he strikes Philip across the face, leaving Philip in tears. All of the pressure and disputes Herman has been having with Lindbergh, Mrs. Roth, Alvin, and the war had been building up inside of him. Philip sneaking into the theatre was the probably the least of Herman's worries. However, with all the pressure, Herman snapped and finally let it all out. Although it was not uncommon for a father to hit his son, Philip was stunned and confused.
 * Earlier in this chapter when Alvin sees the pictures of Lindbergh that Sandy drew, Alvin becmes disgusted with Sandy. Philip witnesses this and understands that part of his family is torn apart. The relationship between his anti-Lindbergh cousin and brother will never be the same. Not just Alvin and Sandy but Alvin and their incle as well. Their uncle comes into Alvin and Philip's room and criticizes Alvin. It seems to effect Philip more than it did Alvin.

These two events as well as others slowly break up the family and turn Philip into a pessimist. This shows the effect of the unruly fluxes of life.