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The Country Husband | Introduction

‘‘The Country Husband,’’ first published in 1954, appeared in John Cheever’s 1958 collection of short stories, The Housebreaker of Shady Hill. This collection offered various points of view reflecting life in the New England suburb of Shady Hill. ‘‘The Country Husband’’ is considered one of the best stories in the book, and besides winning a 1956 O. Henry Award, it was included in the 1979 Pulitzer Prize-winning collection, The Stories of John Cheever.

‘‘The Country Husband’’ has many of Cheever’s trademarks. It is set in the suburbs, features a character at a crossroads, and reveals the spiritual bankruptcy of many aspects of suburban life. It is a complex yet accessible story that portrays a lifestyle that was common fifty years ago yet continues to be meaningful for readers today.

The Country Husband Summary

‘‘The Country Husband’’ opens as Francis Weed, a middle-aged family man, is aboard a plane that is making an emergency crash landing in a corn field. When he returns home, his wife, Julia, and their four children are uninterested in his experience. Francis, however, feels that he has been given a second chance to live life.

After dinner, Francis goes to his backyard garden where he thinks about his experience and listens to the usual sounds of his suburban neighborhood. The narrator tells the reader that the Weeds are social people. Julia is especially wrapped up in the social life of Shady Hill, the New England suburb in which they live.

The next evening, Francis and Julia attend a party, and everything seems as usual. When Francis notices the maid, he recognizes her. He recalls a time during the war when he was in France and saw a woman... » Complete The Country Husband Summary

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1. The Country Husband: Introduction
2. The Country Husband: Summary
3. The Country Husband: John Cheever Biography
4. The Country Husband: Characters
5. The Country Husband: Themes
6. The Country Husband: Style
7. The Country Husband: Historical Context
8. The Country Husband: Critical Overview
9. The Country Husband: Essays and Criticism
   1. The Similarities Between "The Country Husband" and American Beauty
   2. Gender and Structure in John Cheever’s "The Country Husband"
   3. "The Country Husband"—A Model Cheever Achievement
10. The Country Husband: Compare and Contrast
11. The Country Husband: Topics for Further Study
12. The Country Husband: What Do I Read Next?
13. The Country Husband: Bibliography and Further Reading
14. The Country Husband: Pictures
15. Copyright

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