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Jonathan Franzen's Freedom

Decent Essays

The novel, Freedom, by Jonathan Franzen, microscopically follows the tensions within an externally successful family, but internally broken American family. In Freedom, Franzen explores the illusion of freedom illustrated by people who can never actually be free. Walter will never be free of his love for Patty, and Patty will never be free of her obsession with Richard. Richard will never be free of his perceived inferiority to Walter. Joey will never be free of Patty’s overbearing allegiance to him. Connie will never be free of Joey. This goes on and on. Every character is stuck in this endless cycle, yet they never understand what they need to properly escape. The characters put on a face of perceived happiness, but on the inside fight …show more content…

Americans want more. The desire for all things good, and living the materialistic lifestyle is shown throughout Joey’s character. This is especially true at the beginning of the book, where Joey is introduced as the initially self-obsessed and overly entitled son. This depiction is precisely the average American teenager. Franzen describes Joey’s capitalism perfectly, especially in Jenna’s wealth and materialism: her lips, the first time Joey kisses her, are as “valuable . . . as they had always looked to him.” Throughout the novel, Joey finds himself caught between being this typical American teenager, or being the emotive and sensitive person he really is. Particularly, when he lets go of his freedom for Connie. At a point in Joey’s narrative, after he has let go of his duality to his conscious love for Connie, it is stated that “it wasn’t the person he’d thought he was, or would have chosen to be if he’d been free to choose, but there was something comforting and liberating about being an actual definite someone, rather than a collection of contradictory potential someone's.” Once Joey has conquered this duality, he comes to terms with feeling obligated to his personal

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