SuburbiaNation: Reading Suburban Landscape in Twentieth-Century American Fiction and Film

300 Pages·2004·27.859 MB·English

by  Robert Beuka (auth.)

SuburbiaNation
Additional praise for Beuka's SuburbiaNation:
"In his introductory remarks, Robert Beuka describes his argument presented in
the ensuing pages, that the suburban landscape 'stands as the material counterpart
to specific drives and tendencies in American culture apparent from the postwar
years onward.' Those drives and tendencies include the massive expansion of the
middle class, the elevation of the ideal of the nuclear family, and collapsing of the
distinction between public and private spaces.
"There have been many books published on the development of suburbia
in the twentieth century, but none as thorough, comprehensive, and illuminating
as Beuka's, primarily because it is not a sociological treatise, but rather a sensitive
examination of the impact of suburban development on American culture-from
F. Scott Fitzgerald, John Cheever, and John Updike through films that address
problems in suburban life, including matters of race and gender. For example,
although Fitzgerald studies have addressed the meaning of the city in The Great
Gatsby and other works, no other book has attempted to place the novel in the
context of the first years in the development of a suburban culture.
"Beuka's new approach to the meaning of the 'American Dream,' as
reflected in popular culture-notably in television and popular magazines-sheds
new light on the contemporary scene, and our response to historical events,
particularly in the aftermath of 9/11.
"Above all, his treatment of the meaning of 'place' as a dynamic element in
our lives offers new insight into the study of fiction and film.
"This is an important book for everyone interested in American Culture,
American Studies, and fiction and film affected by the growth of suburbia. After
reading it, I cannot look at the suburban nation as I did before, and my understand
ing of contemporary events has been deepened and enriched by Beuka's work."
-Ruth Prigozy
Professor of English, Hofstra University
Executive Director, F. Scott Fitzgerald Society
SuburbiaNation
Reading Suburban Landscape in
Twentieth-Century American
Fiction and Film
Robert Beu ka
palgrave
macmillan
From the song, "Little Boxes." Words and music hy Malvina Reynolds. Copyright © 1962 Schroder
Music Co. (ASCAP). Renewed 1990. Used hy permission. All rights reserved.
From the song, "Pleasant Valley Sunday." Words and music by Gerry Goffin and Carole King. Copyright
1967 (Renewed 1995) SCREEN GEMS-EMI MUSIC INC. All rights reserved. International
copyright secured. Used hy permission.
From "Executive's Wife" from A Short Walk from the Station by Phyllis McGinley, copyright 1951 by
Phyllis McGinley; renewed Copyright © 1979 by Julie Elizabeth Hayden and Phyllis Hayden
Blake. Used by permission of Vi king Penguin, a division of Penguin Group (USA) Inc.
Portions ofc hapter 1 first appeared in "Imagining the Postwar Small Town" in Journal ofF ilm and Video
51, FallfWinter 1999/2000. Reprinted with permission.
Portions of chapter 3 first appeared in "'Just One Word ... Plastics'" in Journal ofP opular Film &
Television 28, Spring 2000. Reprinted with permission ofT he Helen Dwight Reid Educational
Foundation. Published by HeldrefPublications, 1319 18th St. N.W., Washington D.C. 20036-
1802. Copyright 2000.
Portions of the conclusion first appeared in '''Cue the Sun'" in Iowa Journal ofC ultural Studies 3, Fall
2003. Reprinted with permission.
Film still from The Swimmer reproduced by permission of Columbia Tristar Motion Picture Group.
SUBURBIANATION
Copyright © Robert Beuka, 2004.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without
written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews.
First published 2004 by PALGRAVE MACMILLAWM
175 Fifth Avenue, New York, N.Y. 100lO and
Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire, England RG21 6XS.
Companies and representatives throughout the world.
PALGRAV E MACMILLAN is the global academic imprint of the Palgrave Macmillan
division of St. Martin's Press, LLC and of Palg rave Macmillan Ltd. Macmillan® is a registered
trademark in the United States, United Kingdom and other countries. Palgrave is a registered trademark
in the European Union and other countries.
ISBN 978-1-4039-6340-6 ISBN 978-1-349-73210-4 (eBook)
DOI 10.1007/978-1-349-73210-4
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Beuka, Robert A., 1965-
SuburbiaNation : reading suburban landscape in twentieth-century American fiction and film / by
Rohert A. Bueka.
p.cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-4039-6357-4
1. American fiction--20th century--History and criticism. 2. Suburban life in literature. 3. Motion
pictures--United States--History. 4. Landscape in motion pictures. 5. Landscape in literature. 6.
Suburbs in mass media. 7. Suburbs in literature. I. Title: Suburbia nation. II. Title.
PS3 74. S82B48 2004
813'.509321733--dc21 2003054914
A catalogue record for this book is available from tbe British Library.
Design by Planettheo.com
First edition:January 2004
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Transferred to Digital Printing 2008
For Nadine

Contents
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ...................................... IX
INTRODUCTION
Utopia, Dystopia, Heterotopia
The Suburban Landscape in Twentieth-Century
American Culture and Thought. .......................... 1
ONE
liThe hour of a profound human change"
Transitional Landscapes and the Sense of Place in
Two Proto-Suburban Narratives ......................... 23
TWO
Finding the Worm in the Apple
John Cheever, Class Distinction, and the Postwar
Suburban Landscape .................................. 65
T H R E E
Babbit Redux
The Perils of Suburban Masculinity ...................... 107
F 0 U R
Approaching Stepford
Suburbia and the Limits of Domesticity ................... 149
F I V E
Color Adjustment
African American Representations of Suburban Life
and Landscape ....................................... 187
CONCLUSION
Cue the Sun
Soundings from Millennial Suburbia ..................... 227
NOT E S •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 245
I N 0 EX •••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• 277
Eight pages ofp hotog;raphs appear between pages 148 and 149.

Acknowledgments
One of the most enjoyable and fruitful aspects of this project has been
discussing it with others; everyone has an opinion on the suburbs, it
seems, and I have profited greatly from feedback I've received over the past
several years from colleagues, students, and friends. lowe a particular debt
of gratitude to those who helped me formulate and articulate my ideas in
the early stages. This work began as a dissertation, and I wish to thank my
J.
dissertation committee from Louisiana State University, professors
Gerald Kennedy, Elsie Michie, Richard Moreland, Robin Roberts, and
John Rodrigue, for their advice, support, and insightful criticism. Jerry
Kennedy, my director, has been a mentor and trusted friend, and I thank
him for his guidance. I am indebted as well to the LSU Graduate School,
whose award of a Dissertation Year Fellowship provided me with much
needed time to focus on research and writing. Professors Sarah Liggett and
John Lowe from LSU, Patrick Meanor from State University of New York
Oneonta, and Lt. Col. James Meredith from the U.S. Air Force Academy
offered suggestions, materials, and timely encouragement. The friends I
was fortunate enough to meet during my graduate school days, Daniel
Gonzalez, Chris Rieger, Brian Arundel, and Chad Husted, helped me
probably more than they know through their intelligence, good humor,
and camaraderie.
I benefited greatly from feedback I received as I was revising and
expanding this work over the past two years. In particular, I wish to thank
professors Ruth Prigozy of Hofstra University and Branimir Rieger of
Lander University for their willingness to read and respond to the manu
script with thoughtful and practical critiques. I also owe thanks to Bronx
Community College and the City University of New York for allowing me