Wednesday May 25th:

The American Dream certainly relates to America in aspect that it is a land or foundation for all of us and we are able to achieve anything that we want as long as we have the ability and mindset. The picture of Brittany Spears wearing “I am the American Dream” t-shirt is quite hideous. To me it seems as if it’s a joke because yes she has at the opportunity to live in a free country she has yet thrown her life down the drain. Brittany seems to be able to broadcast there is an American Dream but I personally do not think she should consider herself to be that dream. Spears has not faced the many hardships that most Americas has- besides not making number 1 on the charts for two weeks in a row but I don’t think that counts J I guess what I’m trying to get across is that the real America Dream is suppose interpreted to be in a way that you have been given the opportunity to achieve many things if you are able to and this is something you should value because there aren’t a lot of countries like this.

After watching the short clip from The Pursuit of Happiness it is evident that only can let someone keep you from doing something. One reason why it was so hard for the younger to accomplish their goal is because they were too worried about what other people would think. Walter showed this when he became obsessed with buying the liquor store and the first thing out of him mama was No! I will not have my name associated with liquor. Though Walter wasn’t going to mean any harm with the store he simply wanted it to better his family because he knew that it would bring lots of money in for his family.  I think that this hindered Walter some for continuing with the liquor store but then after he invested all the money they had into and his friend ran off with it Walter knew it was time to take action in what was going on and stop letting other people ruin it for him. Though he never actually go his liquor store I think that he learned more about himself and family by seeing the struggle that was created for them and when the issue arose about moving into the white neighborhood Walter knew that he had to do what was right for him and his family so they didn’t back down and moved in!

The poem “Harlem “uses unrealized dreams to create “A Raisin in the Sun”. I think that is poem was great to use to create this play. It simply tells us that the dreams or things that we would like to achieve are put on hold or we let something come in the middle of them, what are the dreams or things we would like to achieve suppose to do. In one sense that means if we have a thought to do something and decide not to because we are scared to take the step forward and initiate it or we are letting something hold us back then we are going to have to deal with that for the rest of our lives. A prime example of this is the last part of the play when Walter is faced with giving up hope and staying in his comfort zone being the apartment or taking a step forward and dealing with the things to come so that he and his family can have a fresh start in something that is theirs.

Throughout the story there is a constant battle between the families for the use of the life insurance that mama is getting from her husband. Mama wants to use the money to buy a house so that they can’t stop paying rent for something they could have owned 5 times already and she also wants to put some up for Bennies school. Walter worries himself to death because all he can think about is buying a liquor store so he can become rich- Mama does not approve of this because she does not want her name or her family’s name linked to a liquor store. I think that Ruth also wanted a house like mama but she never got caught up in the money because she knew it was mamas and she wanted mama to enjoy it.  You see at the end the theme going from just being about money that is supposedly going to make things better to sticking for what’s right and what you want rather than how much money they have at the end of the day.

The ending of the play ended quite differently then what I expected it to. I figured that Walter was going to give in to the white people and take the money sense he was trying to make up for the money he lost to his friend. I was very surprise to see Walter do as he told others and “keep his eye on what he wanted” I think that the ended does fit the story because through the story we get to witness the hardships that the family faces and when they are faced with another one and have control over it, they do the unexpected and in the end get what they want.  If a sequel were to be made of this move I think that Walter, Ruth, Travis and Mama (Lena) would all be living in the white community -406 Clybourne St. Clybourne Park Chicago- with their new baby! I think that Walter would eventually save enough money so that he could open his liquor store and have more money then he knew what to do with. Travis and the unborn child at the time would both be in a public school I’m sure with a bunch of white children and would probably feel discriminated upon but they would enjoy it and continue with their lives. Ruth would be a stay at home wife and do all the duties that is required of her and Mama-Lena would have the entire yard landscaped and have it full of her favorite flowers, since that was what she wanted most. Bennie would be in Africa with Joseph dancing in her famous dresses that Joseph gave her in her spare time from being a doctor.

I think that after reading this play all that is needed for one to achieve their American Dream is determination. You create the American Dream you want for yourself and the only way that you can achieve it is to push through anything that comes your way and succeed if you don’t do these things then you are setting yourself to fail in the things you want. I have let a few things do by that I wish I would have pursued and there is no getting that back so from now on when I make up my mind that I want to do something I need to complete it no matter the obstacles that I have to cross.

The connection that I made from this is when the first settlers came to America and push the Native Americans off their land. I don’t think that how the whites in the play acted were right because they didn’t want Negros as their neighbors because they were scared what would happen but it makes me wonder how the N.Americans felt when the settlers came and took over their land.

Questions: Do we sometime send the wrong impression of the American Dream to other people?

Can we ever get past the race issue and try and be a civil country?