Herzog ―from Martin Heidegger to Paul Tillich―

At first, I was unable to agree with the many studies or theories which come to an almost unanimous conclusion as to the protagonist' s attempted sublimation of his harsh sufferings into a full transcendental peace or equilibrium of mind as I discussed in my previous thesis. 1)Although Pifer' s criticism might still be one of these, her theory is outstanding when she analyzes the "religious sense" in Bellow' s fiction.She insists that although the degree to which Bellow' s fiction manifests the vision of life as a "religious enterprise" varies from one fiction to another and, particularly, from to the early to the later novels " f or Bellow the business of life is still an essentially 'religious enterprise' " .Her theory of Bellow' s basic "religious outlook" is developed assertively in her criticism with powerful support offered by the existential-theologian, Paul Tillich.Pifer analyses Herzog almost exclusively in the framework of Tillich' s existential theology. 2)Machida meanwhile pursues the outstanding "Transcendentalist" characteristics expressed in many of Bellow' s works.In his thesis on Herzog , he interestingly quotes Ken Wilber' s comment to the effect that as just Heidegger tended eventually toward a strongly transcendent philosophy, so did Paul Tillich, as one of the theistic existentialists. 3)Accordingly I became convinced of the truth of my first impression: that Bellow is deeply influenced by the idea of Martin Heidegger' s Being and Time, and that his philosophical ideas thoroughly permeate Herzog from start to finish.Accordingly