부스 타킹턴의 미들랜드

영어로 읽는 고전 _ 부스 타킹턴의 미들랜드
부스 타킹턴의 "미들랜더"는 20세기 초에 쓰여진 소설입니다. 이 이야기는 대조적인 성격과 사회적 이상을 대표하는 올리펀트 형제, 할란과 댄의 삶을 부유한 성장 배경을 바탕으로 탐구합니다. 소설은 형제들이 그들의 관계와 당시의 사회적 압력을 헤쳐나가면서 계급, 정체성, 그리고 가족의 기대와의 협상이라는 주제를 깊이 파고듭니다.
소설의 시작에서, 우리는 올리펀트 형제와 그들이 거주하는 웅장한 가족 집을 소개받게 되는데, 이는 부와 사회적 지위의 중요성을 상징합니다. 할란은 세련되고 귀족적인 형으로 묘사되는 반면, 댄은 더 자유분방하고 사회적으로 모험적인 인물로 특징지어져, 그들 사이에 긴장과 경쟁을 야기합니다.
초기 장들은 그들의 친구 샘 콘에 관한 댄과 할란 사이의 갈등을 묘사하며, 편견과 계급 의식이라는 근본적인 주제를 강조합니다. 이야기가 전개됨에 따라, 더 깊은 관계 역학, 가족의 기대, 그리고 형제들의 자아 발견을 향한 개인적인 여정을 암시합니다.

Classics Read in English _ The Midlander by Booth Tarkington
In "The Midlander," published during the early 20th century, Booth Tarkington crafts a nuanced exploration of American identity through the lives of two brothers whose divergent personalities and choices reflect broader social tensions of their era. Set against the backdrop of a prosperous Midwestern family, the novel examines how wealth, tradition, and changing social dynamics shape individual destiny.
The narrative centers on Harlan and Dan Oliphant, brothers raised in the privileged environment of their family's imposing residence—a home that stands as both literal shelter and symbolic representation of their social position. From the opening pages, Tarkington establishes the fundamental contrast between the siblings: Harlan, the elder, embodies refinement and aristocratic sensibilities, carefully observing social boundaries and expectations. Dan, meanwhile, exhibits a more spontaneous nature and willingness to cross established social lines, foreshadowing the novel's exploration of class flexibility in American society.
This fraternal tension comes sharply into focus through their divergent attitudes toward Sam Kohn, a friend whose Jewish heritage becomes a point of contention between the brothers. Their disagreement reveals not merely personal differences but reflects broader societal prejudices and class consciousness of the period. Harlan's discomfort with the friendship exposes his attachment to exclusionary social hierarchies, while Dan's more accepting stance suggests a more democratic vision of American community.
As the initial chapters unfold, Tarkington skillfully layers the brothers' rivalry with deeper questions about identity formation, familial obligation, and individual autonomy. The Oliphant family home—substantial and rooted in tradition—stands in contrast to the rapidly changing world beyond its walls, creating tension between preservation and progress that mirrors the brothers' personal struggles.
Through this domestic drama, Tarkington begins to examine the quintessentially American question of how individuals navigate the competing demands of family legacy and personal aspiration—a theme that resonates through his exploration of the brothers' journeys toward self-discovery and definition in a society undergoing significant transformation.

Among the contents
PEOPLE used to say of the two Oliphant brothers that Harlan Oliphant looked as if he lived in the Oliphants’ house, but Dan didn’t. This was a poor sort of information to any one who had never seen the house, but of course the supposition was that everybody had seen it and was familiar with its significance. It stood in a great, fine yard, in that row of great, fine yards at the upper end of National Avenue, before the avenue swung off obliquely and changed its name to Amberson Boulevard. The houses in the long row were such houses as are built no more; bricklayers worked for a dollar a day and the workman’s day was ten hours long when National Avenue grew into its glory. Those houses were of a big-walled solidity to withstand time, fire, and tornado, but they found another assailant not to be resisted by anything: this conqueror, called Progress, being the growth of the city. Until the growth came they were indomitable and fit for the centuries.
Moreover, they were of a dignified spaciousness not now to be accomplished except by millionaires with wives content to spend their days getting new servants.

서평(Book Review)
부스 타킹턴의 "미들랜더"는 사회적 계급과 개인적 정체성의 충돌을 형제 관계를 통해 탐구하는 섬세한 작품입니다. 세련되고 관습적인 할란과 자유분방하고 진취적인 댄의 대조적인 성격은 20세기 초 미국 중서부 사회의 변화하는 가치관을 반영합니다. 그들의 유대인 친구 샘 콘을 둘러싼 갈등은 당시의 편견과 계급 의식을 드러내며, 가족의 기대와 개인적 열망 사이에서 균형을 찾으려는 형제들의 여정을 통해 타킹턴은 전통과 진보, 의무와 자유 사이의 미국적 딜레마를 생생하게 포착합니다.

Booth Tarkington's "The Midlander" is a nuanced work exploring the clash between social class and personal identity through a fraternal relationship. The contrasting personalities of refined, conventional Harlan and free-spirited, progressive Dan reflect the changing values of early 20th-century Midwestern America. Their conflict over their Jewish friend Sam Kohn reveals period prejudices and class consciousness, while through the brothers' journeys to balance family expectations with personal aspirations, Tarkington vividly captures the American dilemma between tradition and progress, duty and freedom.