Erica Jong

Erica Jong

Jong in 1977
Born Erica Mann
(1942-03-26) March 26, 1942
New York City,
United States
Pen name Erica Jong
Occupation Author and teacher
Nationality American
Period 1973–present
Genre Primarily fiction and poetry
Notable works Fear of Flying, Shylock's Daughter, Seducing the Demon
Spouse Michael Werthman (1963–1965; divorced)
Allan Jong (1966–1975; divorced)
Jonathan Fast (1977–1982; divorced; 1 child)
Kenneth David Burrows (1989–present)[1]
Children Molly Jong-Fast
Website
www.ericajong.com

Erica Jong (née Mann; born March 26, 1942) is an American novelist and poet, known particularly for her 1973 novel Fear of Flying. The book became famously controversial for its attitudes towards female sexuality and figured prominently in the development of second-wave feminism. According to Washington Post, it has sold more than 20 million copies worldwide.[2]

Early life and education

Jong was born on March 26, 1942 in New York, the second of three daughters of Seymour Mann and Eda Mirsky. Jong attended New York's The High School of Music & Art in the 1950s, where she developed her passion for art and writing. As a student at Barnard College, Jong edited the Barnard Literary Magazine and created poetry programs for the Columbia University campus radio station.[3][4]

Career

A 1963 graduate of Barnard College with an MA (1965) in 18th century English Literature from Columbia University, Jong is best known for her first novel, Fear of Flying (1973), which created a sensation with its frank treatment of a woman's sexual desires.[2] Although it contains many sexual elements, the book is mainly the account of a hypersensitive young woman, in her late twenties, trying to find who she is and where she is going. It contains many psychological, humorous, descriptive elements, and rich cultural and literary references. The book tries to answer the many conflicts arising in women in late 1960s and early 1970s America, of womanhood, femininity, love, one's quest for freedom and purpose.

Personal life

Jennifer Weiner and Erica Jong at the Miami Book Fair International 2013

Jong was born and grew up in New York City. She is the middle daughter of Seymour Mann (né Nathan Weisman, died 2004), and Eda Mirsky (1911 - 2012). Her father was a businessman of Polish Jewish ancestry who owned a gifts and home accessories company[5] known as "one of the world's most acclaimed makers of collectible porcelain dolls".[6] Her mother was born in England of a Russian Jewish immigrant family, was a painter and textile designer who also designed dolls for her husband's company.[7] Jong has an elder sister, Suzanna, who married Lebanese businessman Arthur Daou, and a younger sister, Claudia, a social worker who married Gideon S. Oberweger (the chief executive officer of Seymour Mann Inc. until his death in 2006).[8] Among her nephews is Peter Daou, who writes "The Daou Report" for salon.com.

Jong has been married four times. Her first two marriages, to college sweetheart Michael Werthman, and to Allan Jong, a Chinese American psychiatrist, reflect those of the narrator of Fear of Flying. Her third husband was Jonathan Fast, a novelist and social work educator, and son of novelist Howard Fast. This marriage was described in How to Save Your Own Life and Parachutes and Kisses. She has a daughter from her third marriage, Molly Jong-Fast. Jong is now married to Kenneth David Burrows,[9] a New York litigation attorney. In the late 1990s, Jong wrote an article about her current marriage in the magazine Talk.

Jong lived for three years, 1966–69, in Heidelberg, Germany, with her second husband, on an army base. She was a frequent visitor to Venice, and wrote about that city in her novel Shylock's Daughter.

In 2007, her literary archive was acquired by Columbia University in New York City.

Jong is mentioned in the Bob Dylan song "Highlands" (Time Out of Mind (1997) ). Jong supports LGBT rights and legalization of same-sex marriage and she claims that 'Gay marriage is a blessing not a curse. It certainly promotes stability and family. And it's certainly good for kids.'[10]

Bibliography

Fiction

Erica Jong visiting Barnes & Noble in New York.

Non-fiction

Anthology

Poetry

Erica Jong, Miami 2013

Awards

References

  1. ↑ "Erica Jong Marries Kenneth Burrows". The New York Times. August 6, 1989.
  2. 1 2 Tucker, Neely (7 October 2013). "'Fear of Flying' author Jong zips along 40 years after dropping her literary bombshell". Washington Post. Retrieved 28 February 2014.
  3. ↑ "Erica Jong | Biography, Books and Facts". www.famousauthors.org. Retrieved 2016-03-08.
  4. ↑ www.poemhunter.com/erica-jong/biography
  5. ↑ "Seymour Mann Passes Away - 2004-03-01 05:00:00". Gifts and Dec. Retrieved 2013-10-19.
  6. ↑
  7. ↑ As her granddaughter Molly Jong-Fast has written in her memoir, Read from Book, "Grandma Eda painted flowers and children. Grandma’s flower paintings were filled with lavish colors, sensuous shapes, and the hand of her abused housekeeper, who’d been holding the flowers since early the day before. Grandma’s flower paintings were the stuff of midwestern hotel room walls. But Grandma’s portraits of her children and grandchildren seemed to express something more than just a love of flowers or housekeepers: Grandma’s paintings of her family highlighted her distaste for motherhood". See:
  8. ↑ "Paid Notice: Deaths OBERWEGER, GIDEON S". The New York Times. December 31, 2006.
  9. ↑ "Kenneth David Burrows Lawyer Profile on". Martindale.com. 1941-03-26. Retrieved 2013-10-19.
  10. ↑ Jong, Erica (May 18, 2008). "Hurrah for Gay Marriage". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 2013-10-18.
  11. ↑ "Parachutes & Kisses". Copac. Retrieved 2009-10-20.
  12. ↑ Jong, Erica (March 28, 2008). "It Was Eight Years Ago Today (But It Seems Like Eighty)". Huffington Post. Retrieved 2013-10-18.
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