Oh Freedom, Where Art Thou?

So I broke my rule of never buying new books in hardcover and bought Freedom by Jonathan Franzen. Moreover, I tend not to get too excited about books set in contemporary America. Reading for me--fiction or nonfiction--is another form of travel; both stem from my innate desire to experience new places, people, and ages. And lacking an interest to travel to 21st century America, I tend to turn away from such works. I am, however, happy to report that I surprised even myself, and fell for Freedom almost instantly. Although the story is captivating in and of itself, and is certainly well written, I found unraveling the characters' various quests for the titular goal of Freedom the most fascinating aspect of the piece.

Although it sometimes bordered on cheesy how every character--and story line--was a commentary on Freedom, looking past that I found a deep commentary on Franzen's view of true liberation. Whether it be Patty's quest to escape the overbearing apathy of her parents, or Walter's seemingly selfless need to save the environment from humanity, or Joey's desire to become financially and emotionally independent, or Richard's motivation to rid himself of the idealized expectations thrown upon him by Walter, each character was struggling, in his or her own way, to become free from the entanglement of their past and their family and friends populating the present. The main story line, Walter's efforts to preserve a parcel of land for the warbler in West Virginia, also speaks to the book's central theme.

As each character tries, fails, and then tries again to find freedom, the reader is faced with the fact that the freedom most people yearn for isn't just about a lack of restriction or outside influence or physical intrusion. That type of freedom, personified by Walter's alcoholic, homeless brother, is a hollowed, empty existence that when achieved, only fails to satisfy each character. It is only with the story drawing to a close that a sense of calm finally descends upon the Berglunds. But what is interesting is the cause. For it isn't the achievement of the freedom they initially sought, but a more personal freedom. Instead of isolating themselves, each character faced their concerns and learned to live freely amongst both those around them and their own psychologies.

But what does this all mean for those of us non-fictional characters? For one, traditional freedom isn't all it's cracked up to be. Freedom in the commonly thought of sense--escape from all restraints and roadblocks--isn't what we really want. Otherwise we would all become homeless alcoholics with no responsibilities, free to roam as we see please. Instead, what we are really after is the sort of freedom found in the end of Freedom: a freedom from our own self-deprecation and struggle after a freedom that doesn't exist. We need to stop thinking we can be free if we resist the pressure from our jobs, our families, and our morals. Instead, we need to look inside, become comfortable with ourselves, and find the freedom that comes from living up to no one's expectations but our own.