Throughout the years of American history, there has been a numerous amount of great American authors who published their various types of works, such as poems or novels. When an American author publishes their work, they could have a great impact on the entirety of American Literature. Their works can really have a great impact or representation on the society in America. John Updike is an example of one of these authors. Updike’s works have impacted the American society very greatly through the genre of fiction. John Updike was born in Reading, Pennsylvania on March 18th, 1932 (Lehmann-Haupt). His father was a science teacher and his mother was an aspiring writer (“John Updike Biography”). Because his mother was an aspiring writer, Updike was encouraged to write at a relatively young age. “His mother, herself an aspiring writer, encouraged him to write and draw” (“John Updike Biography”). As Updike grew up, he became rather successful as a student. “He excelled in school and served as…show more content… However, there have been a few accounts in which he added real life aspects into his works. For example, in an interview, Updike is asked if the people around him get upset when they’ve claimed that they found themselves in his works. Updike replies with: “I would say not. I count on people to know the difference between flesh and paper, and generally they do” (Updike). Also, in an addition to that, Updike has even based a novel off of his life. In 1963, John Updike published a novel called The Centaur, which won a National Book Reward (“John Updike Biography”). In The Centaur, John Updike uses the tale from the Greek myth of Chiron to interpret his story (Lehmann-Haupt). The novel is inspired by his life growing up in Pennsylvania (“John Updike Biography”). In addition to The Centaur, there are also many more works of his that have aspects of his life in them, even though his works are mainly