The American Dream Summary and Analysis the Quick Kenzie Way

Summary and Analysis the Quick Kenzie Way:

The American Dream

Edward Albee

First performed 1961

Somewhat Existentialist, Theatre of the Absurd

Author: Edward Albee

Setting: Living room of Mommy and Daddy’s apartment.  One-Act play, room never left.  Supposedly the present, 1960s America.

Plot: Mommy and Daddy live in their apartment.  While never directly stated, we learn that they have killed an adopted son and are looking for a replacement.  Mrs. Barker is the lady who is supposed to help them get their “satisfaction” but is confused as to why she is there in the first place.  Grandma becomes sick of Mommy and Daddy, so when the Young Man enters looking for a job, she is quick to formulate a plan to have him be the new son (the old son was his twin).  Grandma leaves after this, and the play closes while “everybody’s got what he thinks he wants”.  Not much of a plot.

Significant Characters:

Mommy – Controller, very superficial, not very smart.

Daddy – Weak, copycat of Mommy, tries to prove his masculinity but fails.

Grandma – Talks much about her old age, witty, does not approve of Mommy and Daddy

Mrs. Barker – The lady from the Adoption Service, is involved in so many things, but nothing that actually matters.  Is often referred to as “they”, will sometimes call herself “we”.

Young Man – Beautiful in form, empty in soul.  Cannot love, suffered many loses without explanation, is the twin of Mommy and Daddy’s first son.

Narrative voice: No narrator

POV:  3^rd person, with no narrator.  Audience has no interaction with characters until the very end when Grandma leaves the stage and enters into the audience, speaking directly to them.

Tone: Very critical of society, shifts towards the positive when Grandma joins the audience, but mostly is critical throughout.

3 Significant Quotes and why:

1) Daddy: I do wish I weren’t surrounded by women; I’d like some men around here.

Mrs. Barker: You can say that again!

Grandma: I don’t hardly count as a woman, so can I say my piece?

This is a good quote because a) Daddy acts like a woman, so this is ironic.  B) Mrs. Barker agrees, though she happens to be very pro-feminist, could also relate to her husband being wheel chair-bound.  C) Grandma is as manly/strong as Daddy is feminine/weak, which provides good contrast.

2) Mommy: You can’t get satisfaction; just try.  I can get satisfaction, but you can’t.

Here Mommy goes again, asserting her dominance over Daddy.  This also brings up the idea of “satisfaction” which is referenced heavily throughout the play.  Satisfaction often comes to the characters though money, dominance, and sex.

3) Young Man: … In every other way I am incomplete, and I must therefore . . . compensate.  (LATER) . . . I can feel nothing.

This shows that the Young Man, while seemingly perfect, is empty and dead inside.  The New American Dream may also look appealing, but unlike the old, has nothing in its core.

4) Mommy: Would you like a cigarette, and a drink, and would you like to cross your legs?

This could be a good quote to use because it can be interpreted many different ways.  For example, Mommy is bossy.  She is telling Mrs. Barker what to do.  Or, this is just furthering the point that Mrs. Barker is a prostitute.  Or, this is another technique Albee used to show to the audience the absurdness of the entire situation and relationships between the characters.  

Theme: The idea of what Americans value (their “American Dream”) is exaggerated, highlighted, and then attacked to show the readers Albee’s view on the declining state of our society.

Elements which Support this Theme:

n      Setting – Characters presumably in America in the present-day.

n      Plot – No traditionally-styled plot, which highlights the meaninglessness of life.  The reader is to favor Grandma, and so her ideals are pushed, and dislike Mommy and Daddy/

n      Title – “The American Dream” works well as a title because it forces the reader to think of the American Dream and what that means.  (And it’s more than just what Grandma calls the Young Man!)

n      Narrative Voice – Grandma becomes the Narrator when she enters the audience in the very last moments of the play and addresses them directly.  This shows her importance and connection to the audience.

n      Author’s style – Very commonplace language used, characters are somewhat relatable, causing reader/audience to wonder how they fit in to this American Dream, if they support Grandma or relate to Mommy’s ignorant superficialness.)

n      Tone – Critical of society and modern values.

n      Imagery – Language is used to create disturbing scenes (like the disfiguring and murder of the first son) which show the wrongness of today’s world.

n      Symbolism – Grandma is a symbol for the Old American Dream, and the Young Man for the New American Dream.  Where Grandma is old, filled, and has a life of experience, the Young Man is young, physically attractive, but empty inside.