ABSTRACT
Despite the declaration of intellectual independence, Ralph Waldo Emerson assumed and understood that the formulation and development of "high culture" has been primarily European, evolving from the classical heritage of Greece and Rome, preserved and extended through the Church, then broadened and secularized from the Renaissance through the Enlightenment. American culture could not help defining itself against a certain recognizable tradition, and appraising itself according to standards that were indebted to Europe. Operating so closely within the groove of the marketplace, such Jews have offered a distinctive perspective, even as they have helped to shape a notably democratic culture. The Nobel laureate, who is now the single most translated American novelist in the People's Republic of China, felt obliged to defend his choice, and in doing so affirmed the promise and the meaning of American Jewish culture.
