Revolutionary Road

Revolutionary Road is not only the title of the novel and the actual road on which the Wheelers live, but the word “revolution” itself is an important idea in the novel. First, the word hearkens back to the revolutionary period of American history; the novel’s setting of western Connecticut was an important region during that period. As such, Revolutionary Road is truly the quintessential American suburban street, down to Helen Givings’ colonial home. However, the word goes beyond just its historical significance. The Wheelers’ plan to break from the conformist society of the suburbs surrounding them is itself a revolutionary idea in that it differs greatly from the views of those around them. Revolutionary Road provided a potential site for a revolution against conformity, one that ultimately fails.

A white house on a hill evokes several associations. First, it conjures images of power and prestige, like the American presidential residence (the White House). It also reminds one of the “city on a hill” from Jesus Christ’s Sermon on the Mount, which itself is used in American political rhetoric as a symbol of American exceptionalism and expansionism. Therefore, the fact that Frank and April live in a white house on a hill carries not only this