George F. Babbitt as a middle-aged business man devoted to his job and social climbing. Babbitt has three children whom he encourages to try harder at school. He is professionally successful as a realtor. Much of his energy is spent on climbing the social ladder through booster functions, real estate sales, and making good with various dignitaries. After one unsuccessful dinner party, Babbitt and realizes his dissatisfaction with "The American Dream," and starts questioning his deeds and motives. Babbitt critiques the vacuity of middle-class life and the social pressure toward conformity. The controversy provoked by Babbitt was influential in the decision to award the Nobel Prize in literature to Sinclair Lewis. The word "Babbitt" entered the English language as a "person and especially a business or professional man who conforms unthinkingly to prevailing middle-class standards".

Sinclair Lewis (1885-1951) was an American writer and playwright. In 1930, he became the first writer from the United States to receive the Nobel Prize in Literature. He is best known for his novels Main Street, Babbitt, Arrowsmith, and It Can't Happen Here. His works are known for their critical views of American capitalism and materialism in the interwar period. He is also respected for his strong characterizations of modern working women.