The Nightmare of the American Dream

A detailed Summary of The Nightmare of the American Dream


Many people strive to pursue the American Dream for they believe that "through

hard work and effort, [everyone] can achieve success, can be rich, famous and happy"

(Willett 1). However, the pursuit of the American Dream will ultimately destroy every

individual. In Sister Carrie and The Pearl, both authors demonstrate the many obstacles

in this pursuit and show how the pursuit consumes those aspiring to attain the dream.

Specifically these obstacles can be shown through the difficulties of the protagonists and

their families, the protagonists changing personalities, and their loss of personal freedom.

The family lives of the characters in Sister Carrie and The Pearl are consumed by

pursuit of the American Dream. In Sister Carrie, the protagonist, Carrie Meeber, dreams

of wealth and fame. In order for Carrie to pursue the American Dream, she is

forced to leave her family and hometown in Columbia city. When Carrie leaves she is

"alone, away from home, rushing into a great sea of life and endeavor" (Dreiser 8).

Carrie moves to Chicago for she "saw the city offering more of loveliness than she had

ever known" (Dreiser 428). In Chicago, Carri


the pearl in his possession. When the trackers search for Kino's great pearl, Coyotito is

takes away all the freedom his family has ever had. After all of the heartache he has to

clenched fist and she fell among the boulders, and he kicked her in the side"(Steinbeck



Some common words found in the essay are:
American Dream, Carrie Pearl, Unfortunately Kino, Juana Kino, Coyotito Juana, Soon Carrie, Drouet Carrie, Carrie's Chicago, Hurstwood Hurstwood, Carrie Meeber, american dream, sister carrie, pearl kino, pursuit american, pursuit american dream, sister carrie pearl, carrie pearl, kino pearl, carrie moves, pursue american, personal freedom, freedom family, pursue american dream, search kino's pearl, trackers search kino's,

Approximate Word count = 1753
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English

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