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{{Short description|1931 novel by Edna Ferber}}
'''''American Beauty''''' is a [[1931]] novel by American author [[Edna Ferber]] and first published by [[Doubleday]]. Set in the [[Housatonic River|Housatonic]] region of [[Connecticut]], the story, covering the years 1700 to 1930, relates the steady decline of the Oakes family and their property, as well as their tense relations with [[Polish Americans|Polish immigrants]].▼
{{for|the 2006 novel by Zoey Dean|American Beauty (Dean novel)}}
{{infobox book | <!-- See [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Novels]] or [[Wikipedia:WikiProject Books]] -->
The title comes from a line within the book. According to the story, [[Christopher Wren]], who helped design the Oakes family mansion, said Connecticut has "a kind of American beauty," resembling [[Kent]] but possessing larger and higher landscapes.<ref>Ferber, Edna. ''American Beauty''. The Hearst Corporation, New York, 1967. 31.</ref>▼
| name = American Beauty
| title_orig =
| translator =
| image = File:AmericanBeautyFerber.jpg
| caption = First edition
| author = [[Edna Ferber]]
| illustrator =
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| country =
| language = English
| series =
| genre =
| publisher = [[Doubleday Doran]]
| release_date = 1931
| english_release_date =
| media_type = Print
| pages =
| preceded_by =
| followed_by =
}}
▲'''''American Beauty''''' is a
▲The title comes from a line within the book. According to the story, [[Christopher Wren]], who helped design the Oakes family mansion, said Connecticut has "a kind of American beauty," resembling [[Kent]] but possessing larger and higher landscapes.
== Plot ==
True Baldwin, a millionaire
The house and the land
▲True Baldwin, a millionaire, unnerved by the [[Wall Street Crash of 1929|stock market crash of 1929]] is advised to return to the Connecticut farm of his youth in order to buy land to till for his health. After discovering that the home of his childhood is currently owned by Polish immigrants, he and his daughter Candace, an architect, find what she calls "the most beautiful house in America." True says it is the home of the Oakes family, built by Captain Orrange Oakes in the early 1700s.
By the time True and Candace arrive, Orrange
▲The house and the land were passed along from generation to generation. Judith Oakes soon inherits the property. Through time, the mansion, the property and the family have degenerated. Following the death of her mother, Judith's niece Temmie arrives at the Oakes home. Temmie's wily personality and vigor resemble that of her namesake, Tamar Oakes, the daughter of Captain Oakes. Finding the house in a state of disarray, Temmie assumes the responsiblity of cleaning it; Judith seems incapable of helping her with household chores. Temmie eventually marries Ondi Olszak, a Polish immigrant who works the Oakes' [[tobacco]] farm.
▲By the time True and Candace arrive, Orrange Oakes, Temmie's son, operates what is left of the farm.
== Characters ==
* '''Judith Oakes''' is a bitter, unmarried woman
* '''Tamar "Temmie" Oakes''' is the niece of Judith Oakes. She grew up with her mother
▲* '''Tamar "Temmie" Oakes''' is the niece of Judith Oakes. She grew up with her mother and a traveling circus. After her mother's death, she moves in with Judith and eventually falls in love with Ondia Olszak.
* '''Jotham Oakes''', a dwarf and a simpleton, is Judith Oakes' brother. He is emotionally attached to his sister and, although usually jovial, is prone to periods of melancholy.
* '''Ondia "Ondi" Olszak''' is a Polish immigrant who works on the Oakes farm and hopes one day to purchase a portion of it.
* '''
* '''Stas Olszak''' is Ondi and Polcia Olszak's son. As he grows older, he becomes increasingly dissatisfied with life at the farm and later leaves to work in a hat factory.
* '''Rozia Olszak''' is the illegitimate daughter of Polcia Olszak and is legally adopted by Temmie and Ondi
* '''Big
* '''Orrange
* '''True Baldwin''' is a millionaire
* '''Candace Baldwin''', an architect, is the daughter of True Baldwin. At 26, she is chic, self-assured, and unmarried, looking for someone to "hit her over the head" before she does.
▲* '''Big Bertha''' is a descendant of the Champions, a family historically friendly with the Oakes. Judith Oakes tolerates her simply for their families' bond. She is an obese drunkard, who befriends Temmie.
▲* '''Orrange Oakes''' is the son of Temmie Oakes and Ondi Olszak. Although his name is legally "Orrange Olszak," Temmie does not accept this and refers to him as an Oakes. When he inherits the farm, he hopes to modernize it.
▲* '''True Baldwin''' is a millionaire, who knew the Oakes growing up. He was infatuated with Judith Oakes, but left Connecticut without telling her. He hopes to buy the Oakes farm from its current owner, Orrange Oakes.
* '''Captain Orrange Oakes''', having bought Connecticut land from local natives, organizes the construction of the Oakes family mansion.
* '''Tamar Oakes''' is the young daughter of Captain Orrange Oakes. She possesses a spritely spirit and is fascinated by the natives who frequently visit the Oakes mansion.
==References==
{{refbegin}}
* [http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/story.asp?sectioncode=26&storycode=404939&c=1 Grotesque Relations: Modernist Domestic Fiction and the US Welfare State January 8, 2009 ]
{{refend}}
{{reflist}}
{{Edna Ferber}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:American Beauty (Edna Ferber Novel)}}
[[Category:1931 American novels]]
[[Category:Modernist novels]]
[[Category:Novels set in Connecticut]]
[[Category:American historical novels]]
[[Category:Family saga novels]]
[[Category:Doubleday, Doran books]]
[[Category:Novels by Edna Ferber]]
[[Category:Works about Polish-American culture]]
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