Analysis of An American Tragedy and What Makes it a Classic :: An American Tragedy Theodore Dreiser Essays

Analysis of An American Tragedy and What Makes it a Classic An American Tragedy is an intriguing, frighteningly real journey into the mind of a murderer. It is a biography of its era. And, it is also historical fiction. But what makes this novel a classic? mend society has changed dramatically since 1925, Dreisers novel, which shows the futility of The American Dream and the tragedies that trying to live it can cause, accurately summarizes social mores of this and any time period.Before Theodore Dreiser was born, his father, a devout German immigrant, lost everything when his large woolen mill burned down (kirjasto.sci.fi 1). After a beam hit his head, Dreisers father was subject to dramatic mood swings this brain damage caused him to became an evangelist (Survey of American Literature 571). Theodore Dreiser, the twelfth of 13 children, was born in Terre Haute, Indiana, in 1871. By this time, his parents were poor, nomadic preachers. Their nomadic lifestyle meant that Dreiser did not have any companions outside his family. While travelling, his mother taught him to avoid degrading and destructive experiences (Hart 236). Certain that his parents were failures because of their strong morals and their constant preaching, he rebelled. Dreiser had no friends, money, social status, or sex life, which he craved. For about Americans, these were collectively The American Dream. For Dreiser and his most famous character, Clyde Griffiths, living the American Dream -- the evasive pinnacle of success -- became an obsession.That obsession led 13-year old Dreiser to Indiana University, which he flunked out of. Instead of preaching, he instantly abandoned his unsuccessful family for the promise of riches and women in industrial Chicago. After living in abject indigence for years (Parker 203), he worked as a journalist for both Chicago Globe and St. Louiss Globe-Democrat, which gave him a glimpse of high society. There, he married Sara White. Within months, the cardinal s eparated permanently, and Dreiser became a nomad. While wandering, he studied the writings of Balzac, Darwin, Freud, Hawthorne, Huxley (wwnorton.com 1), Poe, and Spenser, from which he created two philosophical theories social Darwinism governs society (Parker 203), and mans greatest appetite is sexual (kirjasto.sci.fi 1). Dreiser followed his philosophical system he typically had several affairs at once.In New York, Dreiser started Sister Carrie, a brilliant naturalistic piece. The book was sold only viosterol copies it was so scandalous that its owned publishers censored its printing in 1900 (Bucco 5).