Essay Questions

Show how the concept of extramarital affairs is brought out in Richard Yates’s Revolutionary Road.

In this work, even though Frank is married, he seeks an affair with a woman, Maureen Grube, who is also from his office. Frank uses Maureen only for his sexual gratification seeing as he is only interested in her physical appearance and sexuality. Frank goes on to sleep with her and in this sense becomes an epitome of extramarital affairs.

Explore the idea of dysfunctional families as brought out in Richard Yates’s Revolutionary Road.

Dysfunctional families are well brought out in this work, for instance, Shep finds it quite difficult when it comes to relating to his children. When he comes across them watching television, he immediately feels nauseated, on the other hand, his children do not respect him as they do not pay attention to him. The is an explicit indication of unstable family bonds.

Explore how the idea of masculinity and male dominance is brought out in the Revolutionary Road.

Frank in this novel can be regarded as an emblem of masculinity and male dominance. Even though Frank is not interested in having a third child, his ego becomes bruised when April makes the same decision without his consent. Frank, therefore, convinces April and feels fulfilled when he succeeds in doing so. In a way, Frank is always interested in being in a more dominant position above his wife. His masculinity and dominance can also be seen in his extramarital relationship with Maureen.