Outside the Gates of Eden (referring to a song by Bob Dylan) tells the story of how the United States has struggled over our sense of self, as individuals and as a nation and culture, ever since becoming a global power in WWII. The book explores an interwoven set of themes: the recurrent nightmare of atomic and environmental holocaust, the changing positions of women, men and children in the home and in the culture, the creative tensions between subculture and corporate-dominated culture, the secret languages of American life, and the interpenetration of the physical, imaginative and virtual worlds in a new American geography driven by media and entertainment. Overarching these narratives is a larger story: the continuing attempt of Americans?individuals, families, social and cultural groups, and the biggest corporate and governmental institutions?to define and control the master narrative of American life and its larger meaning by occupying its spaces, real and mythic.
