Babbitt And Mccarthyism

Babbitt is typified by a mixture of conceit and anxiety based on not belonging to the pack. His pack is made up of other middle-class people and his life before his rebellion (when he takes up adultery and flirts with the idea of a ‘bohemian’ lifestyle) depends on appearing to be the same as his neighbors and acquaintances. The expectations of those in his milieu are tied to material possessions and income. They defend the capitalist society and see his divergence from this way of thinking as a threat. This narrow view is heavily satirized throughout the novel. The fear of socialism is, for example, inherent in Babbitt’s social realm and pre-dates McCarthyism.
From the beginning, and before his rebellion, the narrative is always critical of