Middle-aged and recently dismissed from his university position, Professor Reeve finds his carefully constructed life unraveling. Once a respected academic, he now drifts through Washington, D.C., grappling with the loss of his career, the lingering effects of illness, and the quiet isolation that has come to define his days. His thoughts circle back to his past—particularly his years as a young man in the 1960s, when intellectual ambition and personal desire first began to collide.

As Reeve reflects on his earlier life, memories of a formative relationship with a charismatic student resurface, bringing with them questions of power, intimacy, and the blurred lines between mentorship and exploitation. These recollections intertwine with the present, where Reeve navigates a world that feels increasingly distant from the one he once knew. His academic training—rooted in the study of history and culture—becomes both a lens and a shield, shaping how he interprets his own experiences.

Moving between past and present, American Studies builds a layered portrait of a man confronting the consequences of his choices. The novel explores themes of memory, identity, and moral ambiguity, offering a reflective and often unsettling look at how personal history is constructed—and how it can never be fully separated from the present.