The Human Stain: Book or Letter

In the final pages of The Human Stain, Roth writes a complicated piece of dialogue. Zuckerman and Les end their icy confrontation as follows:

“The only time a secret gets out, Mr. Zuckerman, is when you tell that secret”

“I hear ya.”

And, hey, Mr. Zuckerman--the book.”

“What book?”

“Your book. Send the book.”

“You got it,” I said, “it’s in the mail” (Roth 360). One of the most compelling pieces of this argument is how, in a way, Zuckerman’s commitment to mail his book to Les transforms his novel into a letter of sorts. Distinct, of course, from The Human Stain that we read, Zuckerman’s The Human Stain has taken on some aspects of a letter as a mailed resolution (or continuation) of this conflict. A book sent through the mail is, of course, missing some important aspects of a traditional letter: it doesn’t open by addressing the reader, so there is no explicitly intended audience, there is no signature at the end. However, the promise from the author that the book will be sent, makes this particular delivery of the book increasingly relational. Additionally, the delay between this confrontation and its culmination separates the two characters in both time and space. Zuckerman’s offer to send the book reflects his strong suspicion that Les is Silk’s killer, but it also separates Zuckerman from the consequences and conflict that revealing this suspicion would create in a face to face confrontation, much as letters can be tools to mediate conflict despite the distance between two parties.

This promise of “mail” changes how Les will interact with the novel. But it also complicates how this book relates to some aspects of letters that we analyze throughout this work. Much like letters themselves cross boundaries by separating the sender and recipient, this book will now be able to cross boundaries.