Falling in Place (Magill’s Survey of American Literature, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: Ann Beattie
- First Published: 1980
- Type of Work: Novel
- Genres: Long fiction
- Subjects: Family or family life, New York, Northeast, U.S., United States or Americans, Twentieth century, Psychology or psychologists, Middle classes, Connecticut
- Locales: New York, NY, Connecticut
In Greek myth, Icarus's exuberantly beating wings hurl him toward the sun, where they melt, and he plunges to his death in the sea. The Icarian figure adorning the cover of Falling in Place suggests the downside of youthful aspiration; the major characters in Falling in Place do not take control of their lives. Instead, they seem to fall numbly into place through indirection.
Of all the major characters in the novel, only Cynthia Forrest seems fully aware of how disappointing she finds her own life. From her standpoint, she is wasting a very good mind trying to...
[The entire page is 985 words long]
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