As The Adventures of Augie March moves quickly from place to place without a singular plot, the novel's thematic content can come off as more of glance than a gaze. Like the book's other themes, the topic of religion comes up again and again, but without much careful examination. This doesn't make for a shallow story, mind you, but we do have to do more work to uncover the big picture. The picture we get is of religion as a haunting presence in the American social consciousness. It's there, in the background, an influence on the behavior of the characters, even if they're neither devout nor pious. It lurks.
Questions About Religion
- What does Augie mean by "kitchen religion"?
- What traditional religion is most evident in the novel?
- What's Augie's take on atheism?
- Why does Augie call the image of the monkeys in his home a "lower trinity?"
Chew on This
Try on an opinion or two, start a debate, or play the devil’s advocate.
The novel presents America mostly as a religious country.
The novel presents America mostly as a secular country.