I’m in an argument with relatives about Lena Dunham’s piece in The New Yorker that lists 35 things which “refer to (a) my dog or (b) my Jewish boyfriend?” This is the only time the word “Jewish” appears and there’s one reference to her father’s “Waspy, buttoned-up demeanor, flat cadence, and inability to express physical affection toward other men.” Here’s the thing: this is being passed around and noted as anti-semitic and I don’t see it.
IMHO, this is a great list that genuinely could apply to a guy or a dog, including “he doesn’t tip” because dogs don’t. I also think you could substitute Italian or most other ethnic identities for Jewish and it would read the same but Dunham is Jewish and I gather her boyfriend is too. I particularly liked number 33, which has a tinge of anger to it, about meeting a woman named Jill who is “really slim and well dressed, in an all-American, J. Crew-model sort of way. He was immediately all over her, panting and making a fool of himself. It was humiliating. Because here’s the thing: I am not a Jill. I will never be a Jill. And if that’s what he is looking for - some anorexic hipster with a glossy braid and freaking Swedish clog boots she sewed by hand - he should never have set his sights on me in the first place.” Dog or boyfriend? But my favorite is “In addition, he is openly hostile toward the Hasidic community, focussing most of his rage on their bulky (but chic) fur hats.” I’m guessing dog.
If anything, it picks on men generally but men are dogs. We know we’re dogs.
But this is really upsetting some people and I’m having trouble understanding why. I know David Remnick, the editor of the magazine, has sent out an email about this being in the tradition of ethnic humor. I’m a Jewish male.
