"The Problem of Place in America" and "My Neighborhood": The Breakdown of WR 121 Paper #2 In Ray Oldenburg's "The Problem of Place in America" and Ishmael Reed's "My Neighborhood" the authors express thier dissatisfaction with the community. Oldenburg focuses on the lack of a "third place" and the effects of consumerism on the suburbs, while Reed recalls his experience with prejudice communities. Their aim is to identify problems in our society that they find to be a problem. Although neither of these authors offer solutions, the fact that the ....