Erica Jong (née Mann; born March 26, 1942) is an American novelist, satirist, and poet, known particularly for her 1973 novel ''

Fear of Flying Fear of flying is a fear of being on an airplane, or other flying vehicle, such as a helicopter, while in flight. It is also referred to as flying anxiety, flying phobia, flight phobia, aviophobia, aerophobia, or pteromechanophobia (although a ...

''. The book became famously controversial for its attitudes towards

female sexuality Human female sexuality encompasses a broad range of behaviors and processes, including female sexual identity and Human sexual activity, sexual behavior, the physiological, psychological, social, cultural, political, and spiritual or religious ...

and figured prominently in the development of

second-wave feminism Second-wave feminism was a period of feminist activity that began in the early 1960s and lasted roughly two decades. It took place throughout the Western world, and aimed to increase equality for women by building on previous feminist gains. Wh ...

. According to ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

'', it has sold more than 20 million copies worldwide.

Early life and education

Weiner, Jennifer & Jong, Erica -MBFI 2013 fRF 03

Jong was born on March 26, 1942. She is one of three daughters of Seymour Mann (died 2004), and Eda Mirsky (1911–2012). Her father was a businessman of Polish Jewish ancestry who owned a gifts and home accessories company known for its mass production of porcelain dolls. Her mother was born in England of a

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

Jewish immigrant family, and was a painter and textile designer who also designed dolls for her husband's company. 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). Among her nephews is

Peter Daou Peter Daou (born 1965) is a Lebanese-American political strategist, activist, musician and author who has advised major political figures, including Hillary Clinton and John Kerry. He was described by ''The New York Times'' as "one of the most prom ...

, who is a Democratic Party strategist. Jong attended New York's

The High School of Music & Art The High School of Music & Art, informally known as "Music & Art" (or "M&A"), was a public specialized high school located at 443-465 West 135th Street in the borough of Manhattan, New York, from 1936 until 1984. In 1961, Music & Art and the High ...

in the 1950s, where she developed her passion for art and writing. As a student at

Barnard College Barnard College of Columbia University is a private women's liberal arts college in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded in 1889 by a group of women led by young student activist Annie Nathan Meyer, who petitioned Columbia ...

, Jong edited the ''Barnard Literary Magazine'' and created poetry programs for the

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

campus radio station,

WKCR WKCR-FM (89.9 FM) is a radio station licensed to New York, New York, United States. The station is owned by Columbia University and serves the New York metropolitan area. Founded in 1941, the station traces its history back to 1908 with the fir ...

Career

A 1963 graduate of

with additionally an MA (1965) in

18th century The 18th century lasted from January 1, 1701 ( MDCCI) to December 31, 1800 ( MDCCC). During the 18th century, elements of Enlightenment thinking culminated in the American, French, and Haitian Revolutions. During the century, slave trad ...

English Literature English literature is literature written in the English language from United Kingdom, its crown dependencies, the Republic of Ireland, the United States, and the countries of the former British Empire. ''The Encyclopaedia Britannica'' defines E ...

from

, Jong is best known for her first novel, ''

'' (1973), which created a sensation with its frank treatment of a woman's sexual desires. Although it contains many sexual elements, the book is mainly the account of Isadora Wing, a woman in her late twenties, trying to find who she is and where she is going. It contains many psychological and humorous descriptive elements, as well as rich cultural and literary references. The book tries to answer the many conflicts arising for women in late 1960s and early 1970s America, of womanhood, femininity, love, one's quest for freedom and purpose. The saga of thwarted fulfillment of Isadora Wing continues in two further novels, ''How to Save Your Own Life'' (1977) and ''Parachutes and Kisses'' (1984).

Personal life

Jong has been married four times. After a brief marriage to Michael Werthman while at Barnard, and another in 1966 to Allan Jong, a Chinese American psychiatrist, in 1977 she married

Jonathan Fast Jonathan Fast (born April 13, 1948) is an American author and social work teacher. Life and career Fast was born in New York City. He attended Princeton University, and earned graduate degrees at Columbia University and Yeshiva University. He ...

, a novelist, social work educator, and son of novelist

Howard Fast Howard Melvin Fast (November 11, 1914 – March 12, 2003) was an American novelist and television writer. Fast also wrote under the pen names E.V. Cunningham and Walter Ericson. Biography Early life Fast was born in New York City. His mother, ...

. 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 Molly Jong-Fast (born August 19, 1978) is an American writer, journalist, author, political commentator, and podcaster. Career As of November 2021, Jong-Fast is a contributing writer at ''The Atlantic'' and at ''Vogue''. She had previously w ...

. Jong is now married to Kenneth David Burrows, a New York litigator. Jong lived on an army base in

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...

, Germany, for three years (1966–69) with her second husband. She was a frequent visitor to

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

, and wrote about that city in her novel ''Shylock's Daughter''. In 2007, her literary archive was acquired by

in New York City. Jong is mentioned in the

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

song "Highlands" on his album '' Time Out of Mind'' (1997), and satirized on the

MC Paul Barman Paul Nathaniel Barman (born October 30, 1974), better known by his stage name MC Paul Barman, is an American rapper. He resides in Manhattan, New York. In 2012, ''LA Weekly'' placed him at number 14 on the "Top 20 Whitest Musicians of All Time" l ...

track "N.O.W.", in which the rapper fantasizes about a young leftist carrying a fictitious Jong book titled ''America's Wrong''. Jong supports

LGBT ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is a ...

rights and legalization of

same-sex marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same Legal sex and gender, sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being ...

. She says, "Gay marriage is a blessing not a curse. It certainly promotes stability and family. And it's certainly good for kids."

Bibliography

Fiction

* ''

'' (1973) * ''How to Save Your Own Life'' (1977) * ''Fanny, Being the True History of the Adventures of Fanny Hackabout-Jones'' (1980) (a retelling of ''

Fanny Hill ''Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure''—popularly known as ''Fanny Hill''—is an erotic novel by English novelist John Cleland first published in London in 1748. Written while the author was in debtors' prison in London,Wagner, "Introduction" ...

'') *''Megan's Book of Divorce: a kid's book for adults''; as told to Erica Jong; illustrated by Freya Tanz. New York: New American Library (1984) * ''Megan's Two Houses: a story of adjustment''; illustrated by Freya Tanz (1984; West Hollywood, CA: Dove Kids, 1996) * ''Parachutes & Kisses''. New York: New American Library (1984) (UK ed. as ''Parachutes and Kisses'': London: Granada, 1984.) * ''Shylock's Daughter'' (1987): formerly titled ''Serenissima'' * ''Any Woman's Blues'' (1990) * ''Inventing Memory'' (1997) * ''Sappho's Leap'' (2003) * ''Fear of Dying'' (September 8, 2015)

Non-fiction

* ''Witches''; illustrated by Joseph A. Smith. New York: Harry A. Abrams (1981) * ''The Devil at Large: Erica Jong on Henry Miller'' (1993) * '' Fear of Fifty: A Midlife Memoir'' (1994) * ''What Do Women Want? bread roses sex power'' (1998) * ''Seducing the Demon: writing for my life'' (2006) * Essay, "My Dirty Secret". ''Bad Girls: 26 Writers Misbehave'' (2007) * ''It Was Eight Years Ago Today (But It Seems Like Eighty)'' (2008)

Anthology

*''Sugar in My Bowl: Real Women Write About Real Sex'' Ed. Erica Jong (2011)

Poetry

* ''Fruits & Vegetables'' (1971, 1997) * ''Half-Lives'' (1973) * ''Loveroot'' (1975) * ''At the Edge of the Body'' (1979) * ''Ordinary Miracles'' (1983) * ''Becoming Light: New and Selected'' (1991) * ''Love Comes First'' (2009) * ''The World Began with Yes'' (

Red Hen Press Red Hen Press is an American non-profit press located in Pasadena, California, and specializing in the publication of poetry, literary fiction, and nonfiction. The press is a member of the Council of Literary Magazines and Presses, and was a final ...

, 2019)

Awards

* Poetry Magazine's Bess Hokin Prize (1971) * Sigmund Freud Award For Literature (1975) * United Nations Award For Excellence In Literature (1998) * Deauville Award For Literary Excellence In France * Fernanda Pivano Award For Literary In Italy

References

External links

* – official site ** * *
What this woman wants
– in-depth interview & profile in ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'', April 3, 1999
Review of ''Seducing the Demon''
at Powells.com
Aging and Sex with Erica Jong – October 3, 2007

Interview on ''Fruits and Vegetables''
at the

WNYC WNYC is the trademark and a set of call letters shared by WNYC (AM) and WNYC-FM, a pair of nonprofit, noncommercial, public radio stations located in New York City. WNYC is owned by New York Public Radio (NYPR), a nonprofit organization that di ...

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