Freedom by Jonathan Franzen is one of the most acclaimed novels of our time and it’s no wonder why. The novel follows the life of the Berglund family who, despite their seemingly perfect and outwardly all-American lifestyle, is facing a turbulent, internal struggle. Franzen does an incredible job in showing the beauty, heartache, and truth that all families experience, making this book a modern-day classic.
The story focuses on Walter and Patty Berglund, a successful, yet struggling, couple located in St. Paul, Minnesota. Patty is a former athlete whose desire for perfection and loyalty to her family often come at the expense of her own self-fulfillment. Walter is a lawyer who questions the corporate environment he has found himself in and its effects on his conscience. Their marriage and career paths have caused the family to reach an impasse and the story’s tension builds as various events threaten their family and stability.
As the story progresses, we meet Walter and Patty’s two children, Joey and Jessica, as they navigate their own lives. Joey, the eldest, rebels against his parents’ upbringing as he wrestles with his sexuality and works as an activist around the burgeoning Occupy Wall Street movements. Jessica, the younger and quieter one, struggles to find her place in the midst of a tumultuous adolescence.
Through all of the internal drama, Franzen also builds tension through external events that threaten the harmony of the family. An old boyfriend of Patty's crops up to act as a reminder of her pain points and unresolved desires. Walter’s environmental efforts threaten to bring him into direct conflict with the very corporate infrastructure he works with. In addition, political movements and an encroaching college crisis bring the story to an uncertain conclusion.
Throughout the novel, Franzen also subtly examines the differences between liberalism and conservatism that play out within the characters and their environment. Patty finds that her desire for perfecting her role as a housewife puts her at odds with her own desires, while Walter must confront his corporate lifestyle and identify his place within it. Joey and Jessica must wrestle with the complexities of the mental and emotional environment they have been raised in.
Franzen’s acclaimed writing style takes readers page by page through this dissection of the human condition. His ability to take a seemingly “perfect” family and show the imperfections, heartaches, joys, and intricacies that are present still speaks to readers today. Freedom expertly examines the role of family and politics in our lives while showing readers that no family, regardless of wealth or means, is immune from life's turbulence. An honest examination of family and the complex web of connections that bind us together, this book is an absolute must-read.
