Universität Duisburg-Essen
Campus Essen

Magisterarbeit

Facets of the American Dream and American Nightmare in Film

Jessica Narloch
Magister Anglistik (Schwerpunkt USA)
11. Fachsemester

Table of Contents

1. Introduction 3
2. The American Dream ­ Historical Background 6
3. The American Dream today 12
4. Gabriele Muccino′s The Pursuit of Happyness (2006) ­ The American Dream14
4.1 Story 14
4.2 Chris Gardner and Symbolism 17
4.3 Images of the American Dream 24
4.4 Realization of the American Dream 27
5. Sam Mendes′ American Beauty (1999) ­ The American Nightmare 29
5.1 Story 29
5.2 Suburban Life 32
5.3 Suburbs related to the American Dream 44
5.4 Failure of the American Dream 49
6. Andrew Bergman′s It Could Happen to You (1994) ­ The American Dream over Night 50
6.1 Story 50
6.2 New York Living and Dreaming 54
6.3 Gambling in the USA related to the American Dream 56
6.4 Gambling as a Way to Happiness? 62
7. Oliver Stone′s U Turn (1997) ­ The American Bad Dream 65
7.1 Story 65
7.2 Dreams and Desires 68
7.3 The other Side of the Dream 73
7.4 American Nightmares 76
8. Realization of the American Dream ­ Positive Examples 78
9. Failure of the American Dream ­ Negative Examples 81
10. Conclusion 84
11. Bibliography 88
12. Appendix 93
12.1 Gambling in the United States 93
12.2 Poverty Rate in the U.S. 2002 by Race and Hispanic Origin 94
12.3 Prisoners and jail inmates in the U.S 94
12.4 Superior 96

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1. Introduction

"Predictively, any attempt at abstracting from the plethora of relevant publications something even faintly resembling a definition of the `Dream′ is doomed to failure."1
Peter Freese

As Peter Freese precisely points out, defining the American Dream is a difficult if not irresolvable task. The reason for this is that "beyond an abstract belief in possibility, there is no one American Dream."2 Nevertheless, it is easy to find short definitions in various encyclopedias. In The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language it is defined as
"[a]n American ideal of a happy and successful life to which all may aspire: "In the deepening gloom of the Depression, the American Dream represented a reaffirmation of traditional American hopes."′3
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy offers a different definition:
"[a] phrase connoting hope for prosperity and happiness, symbolized particularly by having a house of one′s own. Possibly applied at first to the hopes of immigrants, the phrase now applies to all except the very rich and suggests a confident hope that one′s children′s economic and social condition will be better than one′s own."4
A rather short and simple explanation of the term American Dream can be found in the dictionary WordNet by the Princeton University which says that it is
"the widespread aspiration of Americans to live better than their parents did."5
All of these definitions describe various facets of the dream, but none of them gets to the point.
In order to get an idea of what the dream really is or what it is assumed to be and how the idea of it came up, it is necessary to have a look at American history. The recapitulation in

^{1 Peter Freese (1994), American Dream and American Nightmare, p. 94
2 Jim Cullen (2003), The American Dream, p. 7
3 Anthony Brandt ­ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (January 2008)
4 Houghton Mifflin Company - The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy (January 2008)
5 Princeton University ­ WordNet (January 2008)}

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this work will make an attempt to reveal why it is the American dream and how it is related to American national identity. It will give a brief overview of the most important concepts in the history of the country, starting back in 1585 when the first colonists arrived. It will deal with important topics which, besides colonialization and the connected reasons for leaving Europe, are the establishment of the Declaration of Independence, the Frontier and the westward movement, Manifest Destiny all the way up to the Civil Rights Movement and the struggle for equality. Besides, it is supposed to not only show the bright side of the dream but its shady sides as well in order to give full testimony of the idea of the American Dream. Among these are the struggle of the first colonists and the people moving westwards, the displacement of the Native Americans as well as slavery and the pursuit of equality. During this work, more prevailing topics such as gambling and homeownership with its advantages and disadvantages will be discussed as well. But is the American Dream still a topic discussed in every-day life? Some examples such as political speeches will show that the enchantment and the topicality of this concept are unbroken.

The brief overview on American history will make clear that the concept of the American Dream has positive as well as negative sides. But since this topic is rather complex and not easily definable, there is more than just the good and the bad side of the coin. Thus, the dream varies and has many facets.

Ever since, authors and writers wrote about the dream, and people still talk about it. Authors of the 20th Century such as Langston Hughes, Kurt Vonnegut and F. Scott Fitzgerald write books on it6 and newspapers of the 21st Century such as the Newsweek7 and the New York Times8 publish articles discussing the existence or non-existence of the dream.

Above all, another medium has joined the discussion ­ the film. Since Charlie Chaplin′s Gold Rush from 1925, which is one of the first movie adaptations about the American Dream, there have been more films closely related to this concept. Those movies are, for example, Orson Welles′ Citizen Kane (1941), Garry Marshall′s Pretty Woman (1990) and Robert Zemeckis′ Forest Gump (1994).

The four movies chosen for this work are recent publications with the oldest one being from 1994 and the newest one from 2006. These films differ in concept and matter though

^{6 Peter Freese (1994), American Dream and American Nightmare, p. 174 f
7 Peter Freese (1994), American Dream and American Nightmare, p. 177
8 New York Times ­ The American Dream in Reverse (January 2008)}

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they are all related to the American Dream. The purpose of this work is to show that there is a variety of concepts and that these films are manifold in presenting the dream, its vision not only presenting black and white but many different facets. Thus, this work is not supposed to give a detailed analysis of each movie but an overview or in fact a width in order to see the various layers and different facets of it.

Hereby, it is important that all movies are related to the history of America in order to be relevant for the discussion.

Gabriele Muccino′s The Pursuit of Happyness (2006) is an example for the American Dream come true. It offers the typical image of the idea of becoming from rags to riches and thus serves as a positive example. The movie is also linked to important subjects of the American history such as the Declaration of Independence and the American Flag which will be discussed in matters of relevance.

Sam Mendes′ American Beauty (1999) is the counterpart to The Pursuit of Happyness, describing the shady sides or the underbelly of the dream ­ its failure, so to say. It is linked to the dream of homeownership and upward mobility and reflects its advantages as well as its disadvantages. The film reveals the negative sides of the image American Dream and shows that, instead of being beautiful, it might turn out to be a nightmare.

Andrew Bergman′s It Could Happen to You (1994) is related to the idea of becoming rich over night without much effort. It is the contrary to the idea of the Puritans who believed that hard work was the way to happiness. Because the protagonists win their money in the lottery, it is necessary to disclose the American history of gambling in order to understand how it is linked to the American Dream, which will be discussed in that chapter.

Oliver Stone′s U Turn (1997) is an example for the American Bad Dream, a dream that although it is most likely out of reach, still creates desire. It is the story about people desperately trying to fulfil their dreams regardless of the price they have to pay. That discussion questions the Americans′ will to aspire happiness or wealth under the aspect of America′s current situation concerning poverty and inequality, for example.

The questions this work is going to discuss are how manifold films about the American Dream and the American Nightmare really are and in how far they can be related to American history. It will consider if these films are relevant in order to define the dream

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and if it is as easy as to divide them into positive and negative examples or if there are different facets and, if that is the case, how these facets are being illustrated.

Each movie analysis follows the same approach. First, a short overview about the story of the film is given in order to understand its relevance for the topic. Afterwards, the main protagonists, their dreams and desires as well as their nightmares will be examined. These chapters will reveal some obvious facets of the American Dream, positive as well as negative ones. The following excursus will show in how far the topic is related to American history and sheds light on the connection between American Dream and the history of the country. Concluding, all aspects will be discussed to find out how the American Dream is being realized or why its realization failed.

2. The American Dream ­ Historical Background

"But there has been also the American dream, that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for every man, with opportunity for each according to his ability and achievement."
James Truslow Adams

In 1931, the American historian9 James Truslow Adams published his book The Epic of America which became famous as the study which shaped the term American Dream. Adams was the first person to use this expression and it became a phrase frequently used by people all over the world. Today, it is connected to the national identity of America and it is an inherent part of every American′s vocabulary. At that time, Adams defined the dream by saying that
"it is not a dream of motor cars and high wages merely, but a dream of a social order in which each man and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature of which they are innately capable, and be recognized by others for what they are, regardless of the fortuitous circumstances of birth or position."10

^{9 Peter Freese (2006), The American Dream. Humankind′s second Chance?, p.10f
10 James Truslow Adams (1954), The Epic of America, p.374}

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Today one would say that it is the dream or the opportunity to rise from rags to riches. But although Adams was the one who gave this idea a name, he was not the one who invented it.

Peter Freese, a scholar who is intensely engaged in questions about the American Dream, says that "long before America became a country, it was a continent, and long before it was known to exist as a continent, it was a vision and a dream"11. What he means by that is the struggle of mankind to find a place where everyone is free and has the opportunity to live a life of self-determination. He gives some examples which he accounts to be synonyms for a place like America, for instance, "a paradise on earth"12, a place where Europeans could be free from religious bondage; "Atlantis"13, Plato′s vision of an island that is fertile and paradise-like; "El Dorado"14, a country rich of gold and other treasures. In the course of history, other phrases concerning the newly explored continent, America, arose. Worth mentioning are the most famous phrases such as Brave New World, a term first used by Shakespeare in the 5th act of his drama Tempest and later adopted by Aldous Huxley15. Also the term land of milk and honey which can be found in the bible was later being related to America. In 1630, John Winthrop, who was one of the first settlers and governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, wrote in his essay A Model of Christian Charity that this new world "shall be as a city upon a hill"16 whereby he quotes the bible in which is written that

"ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick; and it giveth light unto all that are in the house." (Matthew 5.14-15)

This notion gives hope to many people and again creates a picture of a paradise-like place. But it was not only this idea of a fertile and untouched country which could be an escape from "a sinful and urbanized Europe"17, a chance for the people to start anew.

^{11 Peter Freese (1985), Anglistik und Englischunterricht, p. 8
12 ibid
13 ibid
14 Peter Freese (1985), Anglistik und Englischunterricht, p. 8
15 ibid
16 John Winthrop (1630), A Model of Christian Charity, p. 118
17 Peter Freese (1985), Anglistik und Englischunterricht, p. 9}

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Between 1585 and 1630, the first colonists established four colonies whereas the motives of the settlers were very different. In 1585, Walter Ralegh established a colony at Roanoke Island with the purpose to steal gold from the Spaniards18. This was not very effective. More successful was the foundation of Jamestown, Virginia, by Captain John Smith in 1607/0819. The purpose was to do business and trade and so "Virginia′s early residents were [...] preoccupied with a vain search for gold and a sea passage to Asia markets [...] until tobacco provided a profitable export."20 In 1620, Plymouth Plantation was founded by the Pilgrims, a group of religious refugees who could not live freely in their home country England and were seeking for a place where they would make their own decisions concerning religion. Unlike the people who came to Jamestown, these settlers did not leave England to work for it but they left because they wanted to escape it21. The last of the four colonies was the already mentioned Massachusetts Bay Colony, established by John Winthrop who wanted to find the New Jerusalem, a place provided by God for those who were "seeking an earthly paradise in which to perfect a reformation of the Church"22. All of these people had more or less one common dream, though their dreams varied ­ some were dreaming of wealth and others were dreaming of freedom ­ but in the end all were dreaming of new opportunities, an idea later known as the American Dream. But the history of colonialization was not always dream-like ­ sometimes and for some people it was also the history of nightmares. There were, on the one hand, the first settlers at Roanoke Island who did not survive this adventure because they could not cope with the conditions of the new continent23. People who came to America had to survive an exhausting and dangerous trip by boat and had to deal with diseases that killed many of them. When they arrived they had to fight hunger and cold and so it "must (and did) appear miraculous that the [first] colon[ies] survived."24 But the newly arrived inhabitants of the American continent were not the only unfortunates. There were, on the other hand, the Indians, who were fought and forced to leave their territories because they were considered to be "besotted, childish, cruel, degraded, dirty, diseased,

^{18 Hugh Brogan (1999), The Penguin History of the USA, p. 7
19 Hugh Brogan (1999), The Penguin History of the USA, p. 19 ff
20 David Mauk and John Oakland (2002), American Civilization, p. 47
21 Gert Raeithel (1987), Geschichte der Nordamerikanischen Kultur Band 1, p. 13
22 Peter Freese (1994), American Dream and American Nightmare, p. 100
23 Hugh Brogan (1999), The Penguin History of the USA, p. 7
24 Hugh Brogan (1999), The Penguin History of the USA, p. 21}

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drunken, faithless [...]; barbarians, demons, [...] savages."25 Also many Indians died because of diseases brought to them by the Europeans, pox, for instance.

Besides the destiny of the American Natives, the new inhabitants moved further westwards to cultivate and civilize the rest of the country. Especially the Puritans, as mentioned before, believed that they were destined to find the New Jerusalem. In 1845, the journalist John L. O′Sullivan coined the term Manifest Destiny which is related to the idea of being destined to explore and cross the Frontiers of America. He says that "the untransacted destiny of the American people is to subdue the continent ­ to rush over this vast field to the Pacific Ocean ­ to animate the many hundred millions of its people, and to cheer them upward [...]."26

To him, it is the destiny of these people to fulfil this "divine task [...] [and] immortal mission"27 whereby he means that it "was `manifest destiny′ that the United States would one day soon come to possess not only Texas but also California, Oregon and Canada."28 With this idea of westward expansion and the so-called mission to cultivate and civilize the rest of the country, the Frontier moved further and further towards the Pacific Ocean. The term Manifest Destiny was closely linked to values such as liberty and federated self-government since the idea of it arose at a time where Great Britain and the United States had an argument about the boundaries in Oregon29. It becomes obvious that it was not only a matter of belief in a specific destiny of America but a manifested idea which served as an argument and justification to enter and annex new territories. Although O′ Sullivan′s idea described a non-violent westward expansion, it was also misapplied to legitimate wars such as the Mexican-American War in 1846 and the displacement of the Native Americans30. Here again it can be seen that while the American Dream became a real chance and opportunity for the people who moved westwards, it became at the same time a nightmare to those who were forced into elopement and fighting.

For the purpose of cultivating the West it was important to convince the people that America was a better place, far better than the Old World, Europe and especially Great

^{25 Hugh Brogan (1999), The Penguin History of the USA, p. 55
26 William Gilpin (1874), Mission of the North American People, pp. 71, 130
27 ibid
28 Hugh Brogan (1999), The Penguin History of the USA, p. 297
29 ibid
30 ibid}

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