Less Is Lost

Greer’s novel celebrates America’s diversity while pointing out the ways in which living in the U.S. has become a culturally isolated experience. Arthur Less is an American but is out of place everywhere except his shack in San Francisco. This is indicative of the ethos in which Americans identify with their city or state rather than embrace an identity of a shared America. Arthur has many preconceived notions of what the rest of America has in store for him, which parallels the divisions in American culture.

Greer attempts to balance the publishing world’s elitist New York City setting with the beauty and complexity of other regions in the U.S. As Arthur discovers the country, the reader is invited on their own tour of the cultural colloquialisms of the Southwest, Southeast, and the North. Arthur fears that, as a gay man, he will be unwelcome in many Southern states. He is surprised to find that, though people do ask veiled questions about his sexuality, he is viewed with welcome or indifference.

Greer’s novel explores the beauty of the American landscape. The desert is sparse but filled with