Blog #10: Summary of "The American Dream"

The American Dream: Summary

Author: Edward Albee, absurdist author, however not completely

Setting: The living room of Mommy and Daddy's apartment, no specified time

Plot: Mommy and Daddy are expecting a visitor, however it is not clear who this is or why they are coming to the apartment. While waiting for this person to come, Grandma comes home with several wrapped boxes. But, once again, we are not sure of what is in these boxes or how they relate to the story. Finally, the visitor gets to the apartment, Mrs. Barker. She herself is not even sure why she is there. Throughout the exchanges between the characters it is still unclear as to why Mrs. Barker is here. Mommy and Grandma have several heated exchanges and this provides for majority of the context of the play. Once when Mommy and Daddy were both out of the living room we were given a glimpse of a possible reason as to why Mrs. Barker had come to the house. Grandma says that once Mommy and Daddy had adopted a baby from a woman that was like (or was) Mrs. Barker. Putting the pieces together, this is why Mrs. Barker was called to the apartment. There was a problem with the child, Mommy and Daddy tortured the child until it died and they now want satisfaction from another child (why M.B.) is here. Right as this is occurring, the door bell is rung and there is a young man at the door. Grandma invites him in and talks to him. We find out that this man had a twin but does not know where he is. There are striking resemblances between the young man and the child that Mommy and Daddy had. Grandma then devises a plan and tells Mrs. Barker. Mrs. Barker pretends that she brought the young man just for the purpose of having Mommy and Daddy adopting him. Once this decision is made, Grandma leaves and Mommy and Daddy find out about their new child.

Significant Characters:

--Mommy: demanding, materialistic, abrasive, commanding, fake, masculine, never wants to be the bad guy, only shows anger (no other emotions), takes her life for granted. Mommy is the antagonist of the play. Doesn't show respect for Grandma, threatens to ship her away with the van man. Only married Daddy for money. Mutilates her first child because it liked Daddy more. Competitive with Mrs. Barker (hats, sex appeal, overall life). Has a tendency to speak before she thinks about what she is saying. 

--Daddy: womanly, little backbone, few lines, inferior to Mommy, shows no emotion, does not share many of his own opinions. Typically only repeats what Mommy says, but occasionally sticks up for Grandma. Gets giggle-y when Mrs. Barker takes of dress, almost girl like.

--Grandma: voice of reason, mature, provides clarification, is the old American Dream, only character with real emotions. Has the longest lines that provide the only real emotion of the play. Tells Mrs. Barker why she could be here. Ends up leaving at the end of the play. 

--Mrs. Barker: overachiever, too much going on, does anything to please someone, bonds with Grandma but does not care we she leaves. Has no clue why she comes to Mommy and Daddy's but once she figures it out relies on Grandma to solve the problem.  

--Young Man: represents the new American Dream, "kicks" Grandma out of her place at home, has no feelings, depends on his looks. Most likely the twin of the baby that Mommy and Daddy had. Becomes the new child of Mommy and Daddy. Never is given a name. Will do anything for money. 

Narrative Voice: None, this is a play

Author's Style: Some techniques include very strong diction, some figurative language (similes), extensive use of details, parallelism, exaggeration, anaphora, malapropism, use of words three times in a row, repeated information. There is no point of view, as a play there is not narrator and therefore no point of view. Overall, the tone of this play is very fake and emotionless. An exception to this is Grandma, the only character that shows real emotion and has real "heartfelt" lines. Imagery is used to provide the reader with some background knowledge. And is especially prominent when Mommy is talking about her childhood lunches that Grandma packed and when describing what happened to the first child that Mommy and Daddy had. Symbolism is hard to distinguish in this play. But a few examples can be seen as in the boxes and Daddy's operation. Boxes represent the American Dream and how it is being packed away and soon gone from the lives of Mommy and Daddy. Daddy's operation represents Daddy's masculinity and how it is no longer there.

Quotes: 

--Quote 1: "I no longer have the capacity to feel anything. I have no emotions." When the Young Man says this he is essentially describing everyone in this play. Majority of the characters in the play have no emotion, except for Grandma. This idea is very important to the play because it explains how easily Grandma is replaced and how Mommy can treat the other characters the way in which she does.

--Quote 2: "WHAT a masculine Daddy! Isn't he a masculine Daddy?" This quote explores the issues of the relationship between Mommy and Daddy. Though Mommy is saying that Daddy is masculine, they way in which she says it is mocking and shows how she doesn't believe that Daddy is actually manly. In this line, you can also see how manly Mommy is, which is very important to the rest of the play. This describes the dynamic between Mommy and Daddy.

Theme: One theme used is the change in the American Dream throughout the growth of the United States.

Support of Theme: This theme is most commonly present in Grandma. Grandma and her boxes are the most prominent showing of the American Dream in this play. Grandma represents the old American Dream and all of its values and the boxes show how that idea is being packaged away and sent off. The New American Dream can be seen as the Young Man. He comes to the house and essentially boots out the old American Dream (Grandma). The setting has a very important role in the theme development. The living room is the set of the play and shows the old American Dream. And then at the end of the play the gang shifts into the kitchen and represents the new American Dream. The title itself The American Dream, represents the theme since they are the same. The narrative voice and tone don't seem to have a big effect on the theme. Though the tone of the play represents the feelings of the characters toward the old American Dream which is fake and undesirable.