The Job: An American Novel

"The Job: An American Novel" by Sinclair Lewis is a novel written in the early 20th century. The story centers around Captain Lew Golden, a small-town lawyer in Panama, Pennsylvania, and his family, exploring themes of ambition, societal expectations, and gender roles. The novel offers a candid look at the struggles of women, particularly Lew's daughter Una, as she seeks independence and a career in a society that discourages female agency. The opening of the novel introduces Captain Lew Golden as a representative of the small-town middle-class lawyer whose life is defined by his mundane daily routines and limited aspirations. His wife, Mrs. Golden, embodies the discontent of women in their era, longing for romance and imagination that her life with Lew does not provide. The narrative then shifts focus to their daughter, Una, who grapples with societal expectations placed upon women. After her father's death, Una takes charge of her family's finances and yearns for a life beyond the confines of small-town respectability, leading her to consider a new life in New York where she hopes to become a businesswoman. The text lays the groundwork for a deeper exploration of Una's evolving identity and the pitfalls and possibilities she faces. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Harry Sinclair Lewis was an American novelist, short-story writer, and playwright. In 1930, he became the first author from the United States to receive the Nobel Prize in Literature, which was awarded "for his vigorous and graphic art of description and his ability to create, with wit and humor, new types of characters." Lewis wrote six popular novels: Main Street (1920), Babbitt (1922), Arrowsmith (1925), Elmer Gantry (1927), Dodsworth (1929), and It Can't Happen Here (1935).