Independence Day Chapter Summary & Analysis | Chapter 1

Chapter 1 Summary

It is summer in Haddam, New Jersey. In the peaceful hours of the early morning, realtor Frank Bascombe enjoys the quiet of Cleveland Street while imagining the other areas of town, which he knows so well, waking up in livelier fashion. The marriage enrichment class will be letting out about now, and the high school band is on the field practicing for the coming Fourth of July holiday.

Real estate is never far from Frank's mind, and this morning he muses over the falling property values. He sees the property values as an index of a town's happiness, the health of its spirit, and considers the recent encroachment of danger into peaceful Haddam. Only a few months ago, a group of kids passing on mini-bikes had hit Frank on the head with a Pepsi bottle. A couple of burglaries had plagued the town in early May, and worst of all,...
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