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Corruption In Edward Albee's The American Dream

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Edward Albee is an important playwright who manages through hi way of writing to address the mind of audience. In his play The American Dream, Albee tries to remind people that they must refine their own version of the American Dream, or their society would be completely damaged. His intelligence is presented from his choice to the title of the play. He uses ironical title to refer to the corruption in the American society. The American Dream that people want is completely corrupted. In the play, Grandma identifies the Young Man as “The American Dream”(151). He represents the future, but in fact this man is completely corrupted by the cruelty of the society. Edward Albee is known by his efforts to popularize the theater of Absurd. Martin …show more content…

Albee gives little description of this room as it contains two armchairs and a sofa (83), but doesn’t give any information about the apartment or this apartment is. It is ambiguous apartment.

Moreover, characters, through the play, are free to enter and exist as they wish. Actually, Daddy interacts from the backstage when he is looking for Grandma’s room and fails to find it. “Daddy (offstage): the truth of the matter is, I cannot even find Grandma’s room” (145). This quotation represents how these characters are abnormal. They are not normal characters that playwright used to use in their plays. It refers to the characteristics of the Theater of Absurd. Furthermore, Albee does not use many remarks of stage directions, what he uses is too significant and is used for …show more content…

Mommy insults Grandma saying “you are such a liar!” (133). She appears as sadistic, cruel and authoritarian one who aims to weaken Daddy and takes control over the house. It shows when she forces Daddy to repeat her story as she thinks that he does not give her story much attention “What did I say? What did I just say? (95)”.
Michael E. Rutenberg writes that she is actually bad mother. She is sadistic, jealous, and greed (231). She initiates quarrel in the shop because of the colour of the hat. She admits to Daddy that she becomes angry and makes a scene in the shop; she has screamed as hard as she can, and throws the hat down (97).

Through the dialogues between Daddy and Mommy, the audience realizes the lack of respect, love, understanding and self-sacrifice between them. She announces that she has married his because of his money as he was very poor. His is chosen for being wealth, not for the sake of love as she says “I have a right to all your money when you die”

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