"CRITIQUING MODERN SOCIETY IN WOLFE'S YOU CAN'T GO HOME AGAIN"

Thomas Wolfe's You Can’t Go Home Again explores the modernist themes of alienation, introspection, and societal critique through the journey of its protagonist, George Webber. The novel examines the impossibility of returning to an idealized past while grappling with the fragmentation and uncertainties of modern life. By employing fragmented narrative structure, lyrical prose, and a critical lens on American materialism, Wolfe captures the disorientation of the 20th-century experience. This study analyzes how the novel embodies modernist ideals, positioning it as a timeless reflection on identity, memory, and the human condition.