The American Dream
English 1302
10 March 2011
The Tainted American Dream
The American Dream, by Edward Albee, demonstrates that through generations the idea of the American dream has changed over time. Its center is not around family, but rather image and material objects. Although everyone has his or her own vision of the dream, it seems that money plays an important role in everyone’s dream. It seems that money has changed the dream and become the driving force behind the materialism and social status that many Americans strive for. The mommy in the play shows how the dream has become more self- centered and discusses how she just married daddy for his money. On the other hand, the grandmother exemplifies the older version of the dream when family was the primary focus. As modeled in the play, the American Dream, mommy portrays how the dream has changed over time and has become materialistic, indicating that American culture has become more superficial thus leading people to be more selfish. Michael Schudson’s article, American Dreams, defines the American dream in a similar light as exemplified by the characters in Albee’s play. Schudson discusses how the dream has become materialized and strayed away from more important values such as family. He discusses how the dream is singular in its title but in reality we are a nation of American “dreams.” While Schudson argues there are many versions of the American dream, he states “each of the dreams is somehow about freedom and equally about the idea that individuals have control over the course of their lives “(Schudson, 567). Generally, the dream seems to have become materialistic and selfish because as a result people will have more freedom. In Albee’s play, Mommy is not satisfied with her child and decides that she wants a different one that will be more perfect. In this case, her child seems to be the material object that allows her to have control over the coarse of her life. The mommy does not care about the
10 March 2011
The Tainted American Dream
The American Dream, by Edward Albee, demonstrates that through generations the idea of the American dream has changed over time. Its center is not around family, but rather image and material objects. Although everyone has his or her own vision of the dream, it seems that money plays an important role in everyone’s dream. It seems that money has changed the dream and become the driving force behind the materialism and social status that many Americans strive for. The mommy in the play shows how the dream has become more self- centered and discusses how she just married daddy for his money. On the other hand, the grandmother exemplifies the older version of the dream when family was the primary focus. As modeled in the play, the American Dream, mommy portrays how the dream has changed over time and has become materialistic, indicating that American culture has become more superficial thus leading people to be more selfish. Michael Schudson’s article, American Dreams, defines the American dream in a similar light as exemplified by the characters in Albee’s play. Schudson discusses how the dream has become materialized and strayed away from more important values such as family. He discusses how the dream is singular in its title but in reality we are a nation of American “dreams.” While Schudson argues there are many versions of the American dream, he states “each of the dreams is somehow about freedom and equally about the idea that individuals have control over the course of their lives “(Schudson, 567). Generally, the dream seems to have become materialistic and selfish because as a result people will have more freedom. In Albee’s play, Mommy is not satisfied with her child and decides that she wants a different one that will be more perfect. In this case, her child seems to be the material object that allows her to have control over the coarse of her life. The mommy does not care about the
Cited: Albee, Edward. The American Dream and the Zoo Story: Two Plays by Edward Albee. New York: Penguin Books, 1997. Print. Schudson, Michael. American Dreams. American literary history 16.3 01 Oct 2004: 566-573. Oxford University Press. 22 Mar 2011. Youngberg, Quentin. Mommy 's American Dream in Edward Albee 's The American Dream. The Explicator 67.2 01 Jan 2009: 108-110. Heldref Publications, etc. 22 Mar 2011.