Philip Roth, the iconic American author of such classics as Portnoy’s Complaint, The Human Stain, The Plot Against America, and American Pastoral, died late last night in New York City. He was 85.

A pillar of 20th-century American literature, Roth often wrote — with great wit — about life as a man and a Jew, though he resisted the title “Jewish-American” writer.

Along with the Pulitzer, Roth garnered multiple other awards, including the National Book Award (two), the PEN/Faulkner Award (three), and the Man Booker International Prize. He famously “retired” from writing in 2010, although he never really stopped contributing to the world of letters.