What is the American Dream?

The term was first used by James Truslow Adams in his book The Epic of
America which was written in 1931. He states:

"The American Dream is "that dream of a land in which life should be better
and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to
ability or achievement. It is not a dream of motor cars and high wages, but
a dream of social order in which each man and each woman shall be able to
achieve the fullest stature of which they are capable of, and be recognized
by others for what they are, regardless of the circumstances of birth or
position."

These are wonderful sentiments, but as is suggested by the title of the book,
a fragment of a longer quote from a poem by robert burns:

'the best laid plans of mice and men oft go awry'.........these dreams are
destined to fail.

The book 'Of Mice and Men' was written in 1936, at the height of the great
depression, when hardship and isolation had made the lives of itenerant
workers in mid-America harsh and emotionally crippled. You only have to look
at the last page to understand how seperated these men have become from
what we would consider to be normal human compassion. When Curly and
Carlson find George sitting traumatized near Lennie's dead body, Carlson
asks -

'Now what the hell ya suppose is eatin' them two guys?'

Under these circumstances it is amazing that the ideals of The American

Dream lived on at all, but George and Lennie's dream of havin 'a little house'
and living 'off the fatta the lan' is a perfect example of the american dream,
even though that goal is practically unattaniable in the climate that they lived
in. In fact the dream seems to be alive within most of the characters in the
book.

George and Lennie's dream is shared by Candy and Crooks. Candy is an old
man who has lived his whole life with little possesions and no home of his
own. He sees george and Lennie 's Plan as a last attempt to escape the
hardship of his life, and is even prepared to give his life savings to become a
part of it. Crooks, on the other hand, is more doubtful. A life of hardship and
casual racial abuse has left him cynical and bitter,

"you guys is just kiddin' yourself. You'll talk about it a hell of alot but you
wont get no land. You'll be a swamper here till they take you out in a box.
Hell, I seen too many guys.", but in the end the lure of freedom is too strong
to resist and he buys into the idea of a farm.

Curley's wife, the only woman in the story, has a different dream altogether.
She believed that one day she would be a hollywood actress, living the high
life. Her naivety and ignorence lead her instead to a marriage that is
unfullfilling and stulted.

All the characters in 'Of Mice and Men', play out the illusion that is the
american dream in their own way, but in the end the reality of life shows up
the fantasy of it. Although someone, somewhere may actually strike it lucky,
for most, and certainly for the people in 'Of Mice and Men' it is what it says it
is, a dream.