Peyton Place Study Guide & Notes

Peyton Place Plot Summary

Preview of Peyton Place Summary:

This controversial novel was originally published in America in the late 1950s, a time of pervasive artistic and moral conservatism. The book's frank and unapologetic look at abortion, sexuality and small town (im)morality was considered shocking, scandalous, and ultimately notorious, although today its language and subject matter would probably be considered relatively tame. As a large cast of vividly defined characters plays out a complex network of stories, the novel takes an unflinching, if sometimes overwhelming, look at themes relating to the relationship between truth and illusion, femaleness, frank sexuality, and religious conflict.

Peyton Place is divided into three books. The first is set in 1937, just as the Depression is ending in America. The narrative focuses on the lives and relationships of two unlikely friends, the middle class Allison Mackenzie and the lower class Selena Cross. Both girls are outcasts from the...
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