Exposing the Pain in the Huge Radio In John Cheever's short story, "The Huge Radio," Jim and Irene Westcott are presented as average, middle-class Americans with hopes and dreams just like everyone else. They are described as “the kind of people who seem to achieve that satisfactory average of income, effort, and respectability” (Cheever 817). Jim and Irene thought they were the emblem of the perfect American family, free from problems and worries. The only thing that differentiated them from their friends and neighbors was a deep passion for serious music. This passion, through the huge radio, brought to their attention the realization that they had as many problems as the family next door. Their reaction on the radio demonstrates the fact that they were not perfect and did not have a worry-free life. The first sign that the radio would cause a problem was its physical appearance. Irene hated the radio: “She was immediately struck by the physical ugliness of the large rubberwood piece of furniture” (Cheever 817). The radio stuck out like a sore thumb in Irene's perfectly organized living room. The radio's appearance resembled what it would eventually do: "bring a new ugliness into the perfectly arranged lives of the Westcotts" (Giordano 56). When the Westcotts first realize that they are in possession of a wiretapping machine, Irene becomes extremely paranoid about whether or not they are being listened to too, as if they have something to hide. Irene soon becomes obsessed with listening to other people's conversations, as Nathan Giordano points out "it was like tuning into a soap opera on television" (56). The Westcotts stayed up late at night listening to each other's conversations; some nights they went to bed "weak in spirit... middle of paper... in fact they have problems and turning a blind eye to their problems doesn't help solve them" (Smith 59). The huge radio was a reality check for Irene. It was a lesson that all he can do is be the best person he can be and that denial only represses guilt for a short time. It's unclear whether Irene understands this, but the reader finally realizes that even the "average American family" may have problems that need to be solved, not forgotten. Works Cited Cheever, John. "The huge radio." The Harper Fiction Anthology. Silvano Barnet. New York: HarperCollins, 1991. 817-824. Giordano, Nathan. "Illusions, delusions." Hymn to friendship and other essays. Ed. Connie Bellamy Virginia Beach, Virginia, 1996. 55-58. Smith, TaVeta. "The perfect facade." Hymn to friendship and other essays. Ed. Connie BellamyVirginia Beach, Virginia, 1996. 58-59.