DeLillo centers White Noise around the Gladney family. The Gladney family is a complex mix of intelligent, stubborn, and peculiar characters. However, DeLillo has attempted to make the Gladney family appear as a normal American family. DeLillo characterizes the Gladney family as a typical American family by depicting the interactions between Babette, Jack, and their children while also explaining the daily activities and responsibilities of the family.
DeLillo is able to characterize the Gladney family as a typical American family by illustrating how Babette, Jack, and their children interact and act toward each other. During an argument between Babette and her two daughters, DeLillo explains, “Denise was eleven, a hard-nosed kid. She …show more content…
The roles of Babette and Jack are similar to those that are commonplace in the United States. DeLillo depicts Babette as a common wife and mother for “she gathers and tends the children, teaches a course in an adult education program, belongs to a group of volunteers who read to the blind” (DeLillo 5). In America, the woman is usually responsible for taking care of the children and household duties while also either working or volunteering (Rampell). Babette is solely responsible for raising her children while Jack is working at the College-on-the-Hill. Women, as we see in most custody wars or disputes, are consistently given the job as caregiver and guardian. Therefore, the fact that Babette cares for the children is a classic example of a typical family in America. Jack also plays as the normal husband by working as “the chairman of the department of Hitler studies at the College-on-the Hill” (DeLillo 4). While chairman of the Hitler studies department is not an average job, the fact that Jack is working and earning income for his family is ordinary. Today, nearly eighty-eight percent of married fathers are employed while forty-three percent of married mothers are working (Thompson). Therefore, Jack’s employment is expected in today’s typical American family due to the fact that he is married and has children. The children of the Gladney family also have typical American responsibilities such as attending school. DeLillo writes, “Denise and Steffie came downstairs and we talked about the school supplies they would need” (DeLillo 6). The children attend school just as most children in the United States today. If White Noise was set in an earlier time in America or a different country, the children may not be attending school. Therefore, the fact that the children are attending an actual school helps the idea of a traditional
DeLillo is able to characterize the Gladney family as a typical American family by illustrating how Babette, Jack, and their children interact and act toward each other. During an argument between Babette and her two daughters, DeLillo explains, “Denise was eleven, a hard-nosed kid. She …show more content…
The roles of Babette and Jack are similar to those that are commonplace in the United States. DeLillo depicts Babette as a common wife and mother for “she gathers and tends the children, teaches a course in an adult education program, belongs to a group of volunteers who read to the blind” (DeLillo 5). In America, the woman is usually responsible for taking care of the children and household duties while also either working or volunteering (Rampell). Babette is solely responsible for raising her children while Jack is working at the College-on-the-Hill. Women, as we see in most custody wars or disputes, are consistently given the job as caregiver and guardian. Therefore, the fact that Babette cares for the children is a classic example of a typical family in America. Jack also plays as the normal husband by working as “the chairman of the department of Hitler studies at the College-on-the Hill” (DeLillo 4). While chairman of the Hitler studies department is not an average job, the fact that Jack is working and earning income for his family is ordinary. Today, nearly eighty-eight percent of married fathers are employed while forty-three percent of married mothers are working (Thompson). Therefore, Jack’s employment is expected in today’s typical American family due to the fact that he is married and has children. The children of the Gladney family also have typical American responsibilities such as attending school. DeLillo writes, “Denise and Steffie came downstairs and we talked about the school supplies they would need” (DeLillo 6). The children attend school just as most children in the United States today. If White Noise was set in an earlier time in America or a different country, the children may not be attending school. Therefore, the fact that the children are attending an actual school helps the idea of a traditional