Up in the Air

Katie D. Johnson

Professor Laura Cline

English 102

April 22 2012                                    

The Deterioration of Airworld

Walter Kim’s Up in the Air chronicles the experiences of Ryan Bingham, a middle class businessman who travels the country working as a career transition counselor.  This book, published in July 2001, focuses on the experience of the common businessman trying to succeed in the rat race of the corporate world.  In 2009, Up in the Air was released as a movie, but with some minor alterations that reflect the changes in American business during that time period.  After the book was published in 2001, America was plunged into a time of war and economic downturn.  In order to survive the economic struggle of the times, the focus of every company became to increase efficiency and cut costs.  From coast to coast, countless men and women faced the foreboding feeling of corporate downsizing, foreign outsourcing and technological advances that would lead them to the unemployment line. While the book focuses primarily on Ryan Bingham’s experience as an individual, the movie focuses on the drive of the business world at large to continually improve the bottom line.

The main focus of the novel is Ryan’s way of life: his occupation and how he uses his business resources to support his ideal unorthodox lifestyle.  Ryan’s job is to diffuse tense situations and prevent potential lawsuits.  His presence and complimentary services are meant to give the impression that despite the fact that a company is willing to put its loyal employees out on the streets, it still has a heart and is looking out for their best interests. Ryan takes his merciless job in stride.  It is a man eat man world out there and he does what he has to survive in the rat race, “Our role is to make limbo tolerable, to ferry wounded across the river of dread and humiliation and self-doubt to the point at which hope’s bright shore is dimly visible, and then stop the boat and make them swim while we row back to the palace of their banishment to present the nobles with our bills.”(242-243 Kirn). Ryan’s career requires him to travel all across the country from company to company.  He has grown accustomed to his nomadic lifestyle and prefers it to time at home. “Last year I spent 322 days on the road, which means I had to spend 43 miserable days at home.”(Film). All of his time spent in what he refers to as “airworld” has given birth to an ambition that has become a personal obsession: to accumulate one million frequent flyer miles. The travel required by his career is the method to accomplish this feat which seems to be enough motivation to ease his conscience. He enjoys his time on the road, his hotel stays, and the courteous service he receives from his accommodations.    To him, a day off at home is depressing.  He avoids the close personal relationships that most people enjoy.  For Ryan, the good life is a life of solitude spent on the road in pursuit of the next destination.  The only other aspiration Ryan seems to entertain is an elusive job with a mysterious elite company called Mythtech.

The movie version of Up in the Air was released in 2009, eight years after the books was published.  During this time, the United States entered into a time of war and Wall Street was hit hard.  Statistics show that the nation’s unemployment percentage had climbed from 4.2 percent in January 2001 to 10.0 percent by October to 2009.  (US Labor)  The movie version is highly influenced by the drastic change in the economic climate.  America’s unemployment rate skyrocketed as corporations looked to downsizing, outsourcing, and technological advances to minimize labor costs. Even the company Ryan works for in the movie is focused on optimizing its efficiency and cutting costs. In the film, Ryan’s employer intends to overhaul its business model to reduce travel expenses.  Rather than laying off employees in person, Ryan is now expected to handle these delicate conversations via online chat. The company whose sole purpose is to increase other company’s profitability by decreasing costs is looking for its own ways to trim the fat at home.  In the book, Ryan was merely the instrument that brought devastation to the individuals he fired, but in the movie Ryan himself turns victim to the economic times.  

Ryan’s transitioning company is ruining his way of life. He prides himself on living without the normal things that weigh you down like a house, a car, and relationships with others.  These are the things in life that most people find value in, but Ryan sees only the limitations of an average life.  In the movie, Ryan says, “Moving is living.” When Ryan’s boss calls him back to the office for a meeting that will prove to be a real “game changer” Ryan says, “State of business needs me everywhere”, meaning that his place is on the road because everyone is in need of his services.  When he returns to the office for this important meeting, Ryan discovers that the economic downturn has finally hit home in an unexpected way.  Ryan’s boss emphasizes, “This is one of the worst times on record for America, this is our moment.” Ryan finds himself grounded, his way of life brought to a halt and he is outraged.  This transition is being led by his new co-worker, Natalie.  Ryan wastes no time confronting the source of his frustration, “Before you try revolutionizing my business, I’d like to know that you know my business”, for him it is very personal. When Ryan turns his outrage on his boss he is told, “Don’t blame me. Blame the high fuel cost, blame insurance premiums, and blame technology.”  This statement is very typical of the economy in 2009.  The excuses he had been taught to feed others became his main course.  Ryan was now faced with the same message that he had hand delivered to thousands throughout his career: the company has chosen to make changes which will directly affect your way of life and there is nothing you can do about it.   

This drive for ever-increasing efficiency can even be seen in Ryan’s habitual patterns while travelling.  The novel was published in 2001 prior to the September Eleventh attacks after which drastically heightened the security screenings required for all airline passengers.  The film highlights these added hassles and shows how Ryan has altered his patterns to gracefully and efficiently overcome all of these obstacles. In the film Ryan says, “Everything you probably hate about flying…. Are warm reminders I am home” (film). The practiced and systemized way Ryan unpacks his laptop and removes his shoes for the mandatory security screening could be likened to coming home and kicking back on the couch for any other businessman. Ryan notes common obstacles to avoid preventing any delays such as families, the elderly, and Middle Easterners who are more likely to be “randomly selected for additional screening.”  His advice is to always line up behind Asians because they pack efficiently and have an affinity for slip-on shoes.  This kind of racial profiling became very common in airports after 911.  He also insists that Natalie invest in a new carry-on to replace her large luggage while travelling with him in order to maintain efficiency, “Do you know how much time you lose by checking in?... Thirty-five minutes per flight.  I travel 270 days a year.  That’s 157 hours.  That makes 7 days.  Are you willing to throw away an entire week on that?”  By 2009, efficiency became the engrained motivator for every activity; efficiency had become the new heartbeat of every businessman. 

Corporate America evolved rapidly during this short time period.  The days previously spent on travel quickly became an unneeded expenditure as the business world collided head-on with the internet and other technological advances.  The cost of hotel rooms and rental cars was an unnecessary burden on the bottom line.  The World Wide Web replaced Airworld and our hero’s dominion was down-sized to a domain name.  The world of Ryan Bingham was forever changed, along with every other American businessman, in the interest of the corporate dollar.

Works Cited

Kirn, Walter. Up in the Air. New York: Anchor-Random, 2001. Print.

Up in the Air. Dir.Jason Reitman. Paramount. 2009. DVD

United States. Dept. of Labor. “Labor ForceStatistics." data.bls.gov. US Dept. of Labor. April,        2012. Web. 21 April2012