Writing Off Updike

In death, John Updike is being remembered as America’s last great man of letters. So why did the literary establishment try to bury him for the past two decades?

Published Feb. 1 2009 1:50PM EST

articles/2009/02/01/writing-off-updike-1/siegel-john-updike_12583_nqv6bv — Caleb Jones / AP Photo

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articles/2009/02/01/writing-off-updike-1/siegel-john-updike_12583_zgrl5p

Gandhi once famously described the four stages of nonviolent protest: “First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.”

Lee Siegel

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Writing Off Updike

In death, John Updike is being remembered as America’s last great man of letters. So why did the literary establishment try to bury him for the past two decades?

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Lee Siegel