American Identity and Expatriation

Where it surfaces

• Dodsworth

  Sam and Fran's journey to Europe highlights the tension between American pragmatism and European sophistication.

• V

  Fran and Lockert debate American and English snobbery, with Fran expressing disdain for typical American tourists while Lockert critiques both nations.

• VI

  Sam's emotional reaction to seeing England as 'Mother England' and his sense of belonging to a land of literary and ancestral heritage.

• VII

  Sam feels alienated in London, struggling with language, customs, and a sense of belonging.

• VIII

  Sam grapples with his American identity in London, feeling alienated and questioning the value of adapting to European ways.

• IX

  Sam feels like an outsider in the English setting, reflecting on how he is perceived as possibly English and grappling with his own sense of belonging.

• Chapter X

  Sam feels like an outsider among the British aristocracy, struggling with cultural differences and his own American identity.

• XI

  Sam and Fran confront anti-American sentiment at the Ouston dinner, with Sam defending his nationality and Fran rejecting the idea of becoming an expatriate.

• XIII

  Sam grapples with his provincial American identity while living in Paris, questioning his assumptions about Europe and feeling out of place.

• XIV

  The chapter explores the contrast between American expatriates in Paris, like Jerry Watts and Endicott Atkins, and Sam's sense of being an outsider. Sam feels disconnected from both the French street life and the American colony.

• Chapter XV

  Sam's longing for 'wholesome lowness'—poker, shirtsleeves, sauerkraut, and Zenith politics—contrasts with Fran's immersion in European high society, highlighting the tension between American roots and expatriate life.

• XVI

  Sam and Ross debate American vs. European values, with Ross fiercely defending America while Sam feels alienated upon return.

• XVII

  Sam grapples with his American identity after experiencing Europe, feeling unsettled by the contrast between American hustle and European leisure.

• XVIII

  Sam struggles to reconcile his European experiences with his American roots, feeling out of place in both worlds.

• XIX

  Sam feels alienated from his old Zenith friends and finds their provincialism stifling, contrasting it with the stimulating conversations he had in Europe.

• XXI

  The chapter contrasts American tourists with European locals, and Sam observes the range of American types abroad, from the Meeces to the Noisy Pair.

• Chapter XXIII

  Sam defends American culture and potential for aristocratic tradition, while Fran champions European ideals, highlighting the tension between American and European identities.

• XXIV

  Sam's loss of his industrialist identity in Berlin and his struggle to be seen as more than Fran's husband reflect the expatriate's dislocation.

• Chapter XXVI

  Tub's behavior and expectations in Paris reflect a clash between American provincialism and European culture, while Sam navigates his own sense of belonging.

• XXXI

  Edith Cortright discusses the expatriate's desire for anonymity and privacy in Europe, contrasting it with the pressure to be 'Doing Something Important' in America; Sam reflects on the disorienting effect of Europe on an American businessman.

• XXXIII

  Fran claims to understand Europeans and be European herself, while Sam contrasts American pioneer tradition with European 'thickness of life.'