Genre
A novel
Setting and Context
The events take place in the second half of 20th century in Western Connecticut. The author portrays everyday routine of the middle class which is anything but harmonious and happy. The Wheelers, the Campbells and the Givings prove that each unhappy family is unhappy in its own way.
Narrator and Point of View
The narrator is the third person omniscient. The story is written from the third point of view.
Tone and Mood
Tone is contemplative while mood is depressive.
Protagonist and Antagonist
Frank and April Wheeler are protagonists of the novel. It is possible to assume that they are the antagonists too, for they are the only ones, who are responsible for their mutual unhappiness.
Major Conflict
The two biggest conflicts are man vs. self and man vs. man. Almost all characters have a large number of various inner conflicts and that prevents them from finding a common language and solving their problems.
Climax
April’s decision to perform an abortion and her death are the climax of the story.
Foreshadowing
The scene when Frank finds a new abortion kit foreshadows the way the novel is going to end.
Understatement
The branch manager in Toledo was turning out to be as easy to handle as Maurine Grube.
Frank underestimates the mess he made at work and sincerity of Maurine’s feelings.
Allusions
The novel alludes to the Depression, the World War II, Henrik Ibsen, Shaw, O’Neill and Jean-Paul Sartre.
Imagery
Imagery is actively used to give readers a chance to have a look at inner world of the characters.
Paradox
But it does seem the most logical place to start, doesn’t it? With the advantage of your knowing the language and everything?
This is an extract from Frank and April’s discussion of their plants on moving to Paris. The paradox is that Frank doesn’t know the language. He just knows several words.
Parallelism
First thing first.
Metonymy and Synecdoche
It would involve his early and permanent withdrawal to Europe, which he often described as the only part of the world worth living in.
Europe is synecdoche, for it stands only for the Western Europe.
All I want is to get enough dough.
Dough is metonymy, which stands for money.
Personification
I want some big, swollen old corporation that’s been bumbling along making money in its sleep for a hundred years, where they have to hire eight guys for every one job because none of them can be expected to care about whatever boring thing it is they are supposed to be doing.
A big, swollen old corporation is an example of personification.
