American Dream Summary/Analysis

Author

Born March 12, 1928, Edward Albee grew up in Larchmont, New York with his adoptive parents where he spent a good portion of his adolescence getting kicked out of various schools. Albee moved to Greenwich Village, NY in his late teens and wrote his first play Zoo Story in 1958. Some of his works include: Who’s Afraid of Virgina Wolf? (Which received a Tony for Best Play in 1962), The Sandbox (1959), and The Goat: of Who is Sylvia? (2002).

Setting

The setting is left pretty ambiguous. The play takes place in an apartment in an unnamed city, during an unknown time. It is an expensive apartment with a standard living room consisting of two armchairs, a sofa, and an archway. The lack of detail given to the plays setting provides more room for the characters’ qualities to stand out. Another aspect of not putting the play in a defined time is the characters and story itself, are timeless.

Plot

The play begins with Mommy and Daddy sitting on opposite sides of the living room in their armchairs. The couple is complaining about how people can get away with anything these days and are waiting for a guest who is running late. To pass the time, Mommy entertains Daddy by telling him how she purchased a beige colored hat the other day--which she was happy with until she ran into the chairman of the women’s club. The chairman insisted the hat was wheat-colored and Mommy immediately returned the hat for a new one and “got satisfaction.” Grandma enters the room with several neatly wrapped boxes and rambles on about how everyone talks down to old people. Grandma says the reason old people go deaf is so they don’t have to listen to people condescending them. Mommy sheds some history on Grandma’s wrapped boxes and shares with Daddy how Grandma used to nicely wrap her lunchbox for her--always filled it with leftovers. Mommy used to show off her ornate lunch box to the other kids at lunch, however, she ate their lunches and brought the untouched lunch home for Grandma. Grandma and Mommy get in an argument afterward and Grandma calls Mommy a tramp because she lives off Daddy’s money in exchange for allowing him to get ontop of her and “ bump uglies.” Finally, the doorbell rings and Mrs. Barker enters the apartment, although no one remembers why they asked her to come. Mrs. Barker is a self-proclaimed “professional woman”, and Mommy and her compete for matriarchal dominance for the remainder of the play. Mrs. Barker , Mommy, and Daddy talk about Mr. Barker, Daddy’s surgery, and occupations. Mommy and Daddy exit the living room, leaving Grandma alone with Mrs. Barker. Grandma tells her guest a story, alluding to Mommy and Daddy, to indirectly remind Mrs. Barker she is there to sell another child (or as they say, “bumble of joy”) to Mommy and Daddy for adoption. After realizing why she had come in the first place, Mrs. Barker exits and a young man rings the doorbell. Grandma opens the door to find a young man described as a “Clean-cut, midwest farm boy type” and announces to the house that the “American Dream” has arrived. The young man/ American Dream reveals he is void of emotion and will do anything for money. His arrival is a signal for Grandma to pack up her bags and leave town and he is the solution to Mommy’s unsatisfaction.

Significant Characters

Mommy: Wife to Daddy and  prime example  of the superficial consumers that make up the middle-to-upper class America. Mommy is sadistic, egotistical, and needs to always be the single controller of her household.  

Grandma: Mother of  Mommy and the voice of reason in the play. Grandma’s appearance suggests she is fragile and decrepit but, she is the only character that is closest to being a functioning human. She provides frank, and sometimes vulgar, commentary on old people, other characters, and the pretentious society she lives in.

Daddy: His only function is to provide for Mommy’s lifestyle (money, apartment, husband-figure) but, when he is not able to give Mommy children, due to his emasculation, he is rendered useless. Daddy feeds off the approval of his wife and lacks any sense of authority or decisiveness.

Mrs. Barker: A professional woman, chairman of the woman’s club, and volunteer at Bye-Bye Adoption center. Mrs. Barker holds a high status within the feminine community and gives Mommy and Daddy their first, and second, adopted sons. She remains pretty oblivious to her surroundings and her purpose is to provide Mommy and Daddy with the satisfaction they have been looking for.

Young Man: Referred to by Grandma as the “American Dream”, his hollow being is a product of the murder of his identical-twin. The young man says he has suffered a “departure of innocence”, which is unaware as a result of his brother’s dismemberment, and confesses he will do just about anything for money. The handsome man mentions he did some modeling out West, however, he finds his next “job” is being Mommy’s new adopted son.

Voice

Critics will suggest that Albee uses Grandma as his puppet to infiltrate his pessimistic views on new American morals but, overall the dialogue follows the absurdist style. This is done through cyclical monologues, cliches, and the misuse of words.

Style

Albee’s The American Dream, in many ways, follows the pattern set by the Theatre of the Absurd.The play brings attention to societal issues by putting everyday characters in absurd situations “to convey their sense of bewilderment, anxiety, and wonder in the face of an inexplicable universe (Crabb).” What detaches Albee from the typical “Theatre of the Absurd” pattern is that the conclusion of the play does not end where the story began;  not making a cyclical story line.

Point of View

If you consider Albee’s background, you can make possible connections of how it influenced The American Dream. Albee spent his adolescence in and out of expensive prep schools, assumably to his adoptive parent’s wishes. This probably made young Albee unhappy with his parents forcing him to be a part of their efforts to attain a higher social status. Infact, he has often mentioned in interviews how disconnected he felt with his adoptive parents. Mommy represents stereotypical housewives competing with other women to be the most stereotypical housewife by creating a facade of success and total fulfillment. The men in this play are weak, which is a result of the emasculated American Dream that has swept over society. Grandma’s moral voice promotes the idea that with age comes wisdom. Grandma tells Mommy during one of their arguments “...you got the rhythm, but you don’t really have the quality. Besides, you’re middle-aged.” Grandma is making the comment that Mommy is not quite developed yet, and does not have the capacity to understand the world around her.

Tone

This play is a comedy which can be seen in Grandma’s bashing sarcasm, over-exaggeration of emotions or simple tasks (fetching water and hat story), and dark humor. Pointing out the flaws in the American Dream in a humorous light enables the audience to laugh but, also realize the foolishness in their society.

Imagery

Physical details are reserved for Grandma and the Young Man--none of the other character’s semblance is described. Grandma says she looks “just as much like an old man as I do like an old woman”, and her “sacks are empty, the fluid in my eyeballs is all caked on the inside edges, my spine is made of sugar candy,...” Because Grandma represents traditional American morals and goals, her unappealing appearance adds to her contrast with the handsome Young Man (New American Dream). There is also attention to detail when describing the violent mutilation of Mommy and Daddy’s first adopted son and , Daddy’s sexual reassignment surgery.

Symbolism

A symbol  for masculinity representing power is best represented in Daddy’s sex changed. Without his male-parts, he is powerless. Mommy wants nothing more from him than his money and he hold no authority in the household. Mommy views being decisive as masculine. The only time Daddy displays his “masculinity” is when Mommy coaches him to answer the door and praises him with “WHAT a masculine Daddy! Isn’t he a masculine Daddy?” In actuality, Mommy is the most decisive, meaning she is the most masculine and there is no doubt she holds the power in the household. The couple’s unhealthy dynamic represents the toxic threat the constant desire for domination puts on men and women.

Theme

There are several themes in The American Dream but, the all encompassing theme is superficial satisfaction. All of the characters, except Grandma, have the false idea that complete satisfaction is an achievable goal. The new American dream is devoid o f sincerity and appreciation for hard-work and therefore, people only recognize success in materialistic forms. Mommy and Daddy thought that by adopting their first child, they would attain satisfaction. However, when they got their “bumble”, Mommy unsatisfied , once again, and murdered the child in efforts to conform the child to meet her expectations. Grandma is arguably the only character in the play that has the potential to actually be content with her life. Because Mommy is so self-absorbed, it is inevitable that she will ruin her new adoptive son (Young Man) just like the other one. Grandma is leaving the apartment. Her idea of satisfaction was freedom. She does not expect that she will be satisfied with new life but, she has a greater chance than her daughter. The last lines of the play are those of Grandma interjecting and saying “let’s leave things as they are right now...while everybody’s got what he wants...or everybody’s got what he thinks he wants.”By having a vague ending like this, Albee suggests that under the new American Dream, no one can be satisfied because once they get what the think they want, they desire more.