In an uncharacteristic venture into the modern, my bookclub recently opted to read the 2010 it-book, Freedom by Jonathan Franzen.
I never read Franzen’s breakout book, The Corrections, because my mama didn’t
like it and I trust her judgment in everything. Freedom, however, is called a stand-alone “masterpiece of American
fiction” and I totally agree.
At our discussion (for which I provided Lemon Bars as
brain-fuel), we mused over the question – does Freedom really define our generation/the current age? Is this book
to the early 2000’s as Tender Is the Night is to the 1920s?
I think my friends and I have a pretty good perspective
on this. To a degree, we are the
characters of the story – middle-class white Americans. Our parents are the
same ages as Patty and Walter, and we’re the same ages as Joey and Jessica.
Franzen’s strength lies in his ability to succinctly describe
inter-personal relationships. And since there are so many relationships in the book (husband-wife, child-parent, sibling-sibling,
spouse-lover, friend-friend, etc.), it’s hard not to see yourself reflected in
their actions and emotions.
This narrative takes things to the extreme – I like to think
that not everyone struggles with depression and alcoholism as much as Franzen’s
characters…but maybe they do? It’s hard to give a good summary, the story is
really complex. But basically, it’s told from the perspective of Patty, and
former All-American basketball player who marries the “safe” guy (Walter) and
has a family.
The individual struggles and personal relationships are
timeless, but the context is spot-on. The book starts in the late-1980s/early
90s, with back-story going back to the 1970s when Patty was growing up. The time-period
themes are interesting and relevant – feminism/anti-feminism, gentrification,
suburbanization, environmentalism, and the politics of the Clinton and Bush
administrations.
The title has layered meanings. Freedom as a theme is
central to Freedom the book.
Individuals strive for personal freedom (i.e. Joey from Patty), while the story
is set in a time where then entire society is re-defining what freedom means
(post-9/11 America).
The book is underhandedly political. I would say liberal,
but sometimes it’s hard to tell if Franzen actually believes in American liberalism,
or if all 576 pages are a critique of it. The NYT review put it well:
Franzen grasps that the central paradox of modern American liberalism inheres not in its doctrines but in the unstated presumptions that govern its daily habits. Liberals, no less than conservatives — and for that matter revolutionaries and reactionaries; in other words, all of us — believe some modes of existence are superior to others. But only the liberal, committed to a vision of harmonious communal pluralism, is unsettled by this truth.
This book is definitely worth the read. It’s long, but I
couldn’t put it down!
- (Ok, so I’m mildly embarrassed to admit it, but Freedom is an Oprah book. And Oprah does a very thorough reading guide here!)
