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Challenging the Representation of Masculinity in the Work of Richard Yates, Richard Ford, and Jonathan Franzen

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Challenging the Representation of Masculinity in the Work of Richard Yates, Richard Ford, and Jonathan Franzen UNIVERSITY OF DUBLIN, TRINITY COLLEGE Why Is Your Brand Crisis? Challenging the Representation of Masculinity in the Work of Richard Yates, Richard Ford, and Jonathan Franzen A Thesis submitted to the School of English at the University of Dublin, Trinity College, in fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Jennifer Daly September 2016 Declaration I declare that this thesis has not been submitted as an exercise for a degree at this or any other university and it is entirely my own work. I agree to deposit this thesis in the University’s open access institutional repository or allow the library to do so on my behalf, subject to Irish Copyright Legislation and Trinity College Library conditions of use and acknowledgement. _____________________ Jennifer Daly Contents Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................................ 2 Summary .............................................................................................................................................. 3 Introduction: Masculinity and America .......................................................................................... 6 Chapter One: “Hopeless Emptiness?” Deceptive Narratives and Richard Yates’s Revolutionary Road ............................................................................................................................... 32 Chapter Two: “Better Luck Next Time.” Ideas of Crisis and Feminism from Yates to the Second Wave ..................................................................................................................................... 81 Chapter Three: “Reality Speaking English.” Richard Ford’s Bascombe Books and the Elevation of the Ordinary ............................................................................................................. 128 Chapter Four: “The Comfort of Victimhood.” Jonathan Franzen’s Lament for America’s Middle-Class White Men ............................................................................................................... 171 Afterword ......................................................................................................................................... 219 Bibliography..................................................................................................................................... 223 Acknowledgements The first thing I learned about doing a PhD is that half the battle is finding a good supervisor. It has been my great fortune to be blessed with an outstanding supervisor in Prof. Stephen Matterson. His encouragement, support, and endless knowledge guided me through the entire process with a good humour and calmness that was equally inspiring and empowering. I would also like to thank everyone in the School of English, academic and administrative staff alike, and my fellow students for all of the opportunities that have been afforded to me during my time at Trinity. Over the last four years, I have been the grateful recipient of financial assistance from the Irish Association for American Studies and the Trinity Trust which enabled me to travel to conferences, present work in progress, and receive feedback that went on to form the basis of much of this thesis. Sarah Nangle and Dara Downey had already gone beyond what is reasonably expected of friends, but somehow managed to take it to another level when I hit the red pen stage. Both offered valuable feedback at a time when I couldn’t see the words on the page, and have also earned a special place in whatever heaven they believe in for regular caffeine-based interventions as they helped me navigate some of the stickier parts of the process. At various points over the past few years Sarah-Louise Cleary, Karen Tierney, Andrea Schutz, Gretchen Benson, and Gillian Groszewski have all been accidental, and often intentional, cheerleaders in Project Jenny’s Thesis. The list of other honourable mentions is too long to include here, so it will have to suffice to say that I am forever grateful to the brilliant people I can call my friends. In one of my first meetings with Stephen he said “and of course you’ll get involved in the IAAS.” To be horribly clichéd, the rest is history, but I now have a group of wonderful colleagues and friends who have all at some point made me laugh (always with them, never at them), reminded me why we do this, pushed me to be better, and have enriched my PhD experience beyond measure. Thank you in particular to Ron Callan (a constant inspiration and source of wise counsel since my first day in UCD 17 years ago), Rosemary Gallagher (forever my PG rep partner-in-crime), and Philip McGowan (“aye, why not?” is now my default response to everything) for creating an environment in which imposter syndrome couldn’t possibly get a look in, and for being some of the best people you could ever hope to meet. And finally, my incredible family. From the wider extended family, various aunts, uncles, cousins, and Granny have all offered kind words at some point, but none more so than the super Smyths and O’Rourkes. My sisters, Elizabeth and Barbara, are two of the funniest and kindest people I know, and were always on hand with cups of tea, emergency chocolate, belly laughs, and much-needed distractions. I hope they’re as proud to be my sister as I am to be theirs. My parents, Jim and Bridget, are an endless source of support and encouragement, enthusiastic about everything my sisters and I have ever done. Not many people would be happy about having an adult daughter under their feet for four more years, but my parents gladly gave me the space and time to pursue this ambition because they knew it was something I dearly wanted to do. I can never thank them enough – not for the last four years, all the years that went before them, or all the years that are hopefully still to come. And not a single one of them will mind me giving the last mention to Dot the Dog, who kept me company during many long, quiet days of research and writing. She got me as close to the finish line as she possibly could, before having to go for a well-earned sleep after a lifetime of being a faithful companion to the whole Daly family. Bow wow, little buddy. 2 Summary Through an analysis of American fiction, with a special focus on the writing of Richard Yates, Richard Ford, and Jonathan Franzen, this thesis argues that American men have always struggled with what it means to be an American Man, but that this does not equate to a crisis in masculinity. This thesis maintains that American culture propagates a myth of white masculinity in crisis more out of habit than any basis in fact, thereby ignoring how the American creed of achievement and success impacts on men and women alike. The Introduction lays out the theoretical framework which will be employed throughout this thesis. It discusses the theory behind the crisis in American masculinity, and engages with a number of prominent critics, such as Michael Kimmel and Sally Robinson, who endorse the concept of a gender-based crisis. This chapter situates the crisis theory in relation to aspects of American history such as the influence of the earliest settlers, and the conflict inherent in the establishment of the United States. It also analyses the concept of a masculinity crisis in relation to specific American social ideas such as the American dream, and exceptionalism. Chapter One is an analysis of the Richard Yates novel, Revolutionary Road. Beginning with a brief outline of Yates’s life and career, the analysis moves on to discuss the representation of the suburbs in the novel and how this has been misinterpreted through the years. This chapter also deals with the idea of exceptionalism and the expectations this engenders in American citizens. Supporting analysis is provided through the discussion of Sinclair Lewis’s novel Babbitt, and Sloan Wilson’s The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit. Chapter Two uses the Yates novel, The Easter Parade, as the central text to move the analysis on to include discussions of feminist theory, including Betty Friedan’s The Feminine Mystique. The chapter examines representations of female characters and how they come to be afflicted by the same malaise as effects the male characters in similar novels. Using Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar, Sinclair Lewis’s Main Street, Jacqueline Susann’s Valley of the Dolls, and Stoner by John Williams, the chapter also examines attitudes to education and work, expectations for women in the home and the workplace, and changing attitudes to mental health in America. Chapter Three is based on Richard Ford’s series of Bascombe books; The Sportswriter, Independence Day, The Lay of the Land, and Let Me Be Frank With You. Examining the books as a whole piece, rather than discrete novels, this chapter assesses the critical analysis Ford’s writing has received, and offers alternative readings of the Bascombe books that suggest Frank Bascombe is not experiencing a masculinity crisis, but is actually a character quite content with his lot in life. This chapter also analyses ideas of home ownership, the nature of work, exceptionalism, and how men interact with each other in suburban America. Chapter Four is an analysis of the Jonathan Franzen novels, The Corrections, Freedom, and Purity. This chapter begins with a discussion of white masculinity based on correspondence between Franzen and David Foster Wallace, and then moves to examine how Franzen has uncritically absorbed the idea of
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