The main action of The Corrections is set during the turn of the millennium. This is a time of great financial prosperity—at least for many—in the United States. Materialism is rampant, and hucksterism and get-rich-quick schemes abound. All of the Lamberts must navigate this heady new climate, which is at odds with the more rooted and conservative climate of the American Midwest.

Alfred Lambert wants little to do with market fads or technical innovations; however, they intrude in his life in the form of Axon Corporation, which wants to buy his patent. As Gary discovers, this patent is a key ingredient in a new neurological treatment that claims to be a quick-fix cure for everything from depression to Alzheimer’s, making it doubly relevant to Alfred. While it is still being approved, the treatment attracts the attention of many high-profile investors; Chip hears about the treatment from a financier acquaintance at an upscale New York City deli, unaware of the treatment’s connection to his family: “‘The idea,’ Doug said, ‘is your basic gut cerebral rehab. Leave the shell and roof, replace the walls and plumbing. Design away that useless dining nook. Put a modern circuit breaker in’” (96).

Doug’s description seems like a callous and frightening one, implicitly comparing a person to a broken-down house.