the man in the gray flannel suit by sloan wilson

Indeed, much of Wilson’s background was woven into his books. Wilson said that he never thought about conformity, that he wrote about his own life and the things that afflict people like him - jobs, money, social climbing, divorce, alcoholism and nervous breakdowns. Generally, critics praised Wilson’s talent and ability to write highly readable books, but disparaged his characters and plots, oversimplification and the repetitive theme of conformity. The author also earned attention with his 1958 novel, “A Summer Place,” which became a 1959 film starring teen heartthrobs Sandra Dee and Troy Donahue and is best remembered for its theme song. Wilson’s own recognition of the book as his greatest triumph is evident in two others he wrote - “The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit II,” a 1984 sequel that fared poorly, and the better-received, autobiographical “What Shall We Wear to This Party: The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit Twenty Years Before and After.” The novel had its critics, particularly Time magazine, which called it an “upper-middle-class soap opera.” But its greatness may lie in that it can still spark meaningful discussions over quality of life versus monetary success almost half a century after it was written. The book’s title became a metaphor for the upper-middle class, an epithet for a corporate cipher adhering to dress and behavioral codes. The prescribed uniform of the day - the gray flannel suit - is only one connection hero Rath makes between the military hierarchy and corporate bureaucracy, along with demanding CEOs as generals and wealth as the ultimate victory. “The writing is vigorous, unvarnished, tartly observant its overhanging disquietude isn’t dated - if anything, it’s deepened.” “The novel captured and bottled a floating anxiety, a sour malaise, that belied the peppy froth of Patti Page records and TV jingles,” wrote James Wolcott in reviewing the latest edition of the book for The Times in 2002.

The man in the gray flannel suit by sloan wilson