Cynthia Ozick was born in New York City. The second of two children, Ozick was raised in the Bronx by her parents, Celia (née Regelson) and William Ozick. They were Jewish immigrants from Russia, and proprietors of the Park View Pharmacy in the Pelham Bay neighborhood.[2]
She attended Hunter College High School in Manhattan.[3] She earned her B.A. from New York University and went on to study at Ohio State University, where she completed an M.A.[2] in English literature, focusing on the novels of Henry James.[4]
She appears briefly in the film Town Bloody Hall, where she asks Norman Mailer, "in Advertisements for Myself you said, quote, 'A good novelist can do without everything but the remnant of his balls'. For years and years I’ve been wondering, Mr. Mailer, when you dip your balls in ink, what color ink is it?"[5]
Ozick was married to Bernard Hallote, a lawyer, until his death in 2017. Their daughter, Rachel Hallote, is a professor of history at SUNY Purchase and head of its Jewish studies program. Ozick is the niece of the Hebraist Abraham Regelson.[4]
Yale University has acquired her literary papers.[6] A forthcoming special issue of Studies in Jewish American Literature will examine her contributions to the art of non-fiction.[7]
