In Middle Age: A Romance, Joyce Carole Oates uses one man's death to shatter the social conventions of a seemingly perfect community. In Salthill-on-Hudson, a community mostly populated by the wealthy, style and social conventions take precedence over individuality. In many ways, Oates' book is a social commentary about the danger of losing your individuality. By the end of the book, those who have strayed farthest from the social norm are the ones who are the happiest.

Sculptor Adam Berendt is a man with a mysterious past, considered eccentric by the rest of the community. His death deeply affects all of his friends, and each of them is forced to reexamine their lives. With each chapter focused on a different member of the community, the book follows each of the characters as they realize they are not happy with their ordinary lives. One woman moves away to rediscover who she is. Another finds herself when her husband suddenly leaves her for another woman. .

Lionel Hoffman may be the personification of the community's social values. Lionel prefers logic over emotion and criticizes his wife when she shows grief publicly for Adam's death. In another instance, he is angry when his wife finds a benign cyst in her breast, because he is afraid the community will talk about them.

Salthill-on-Hudson is an extreme example of a community's obsession with maintaining the status quo. Those who do not behave as expected are considered eccentric. In some cases, they are pitied. However, they may be the only truly happy people in the community. Oates' fictional community seems outwardly perfect. But, as Oates shows, outward perfection does not always equal happiness. It also doesn't mean that maintaining the status quo is morally right. Through her portrayal of Salthill-on-Hudson, Oates reminds us to never lose our individuality.

Ecco Press; ISBN: 0066209463