American critical realist literature is indeed unique, and writers can be found in each era. For example, Mark Twain in the Gilded Age, O Henry in the Progressive Era, Dreiser in the 19th and 20th centuries, Fitzgerald and Sinclair Lewis in the 1920s, Arthur Miller in the 1940s, and then John Updike, Saul Bellow, Philip Ross, and so on.
But today I want to talk about Fitzgerald, Sinclair Lewis, and Arthur Miller, because their three works represent the three processes of industrialization, urbanization, and modernization in the United States.
These three works are Fitzgerald's "The Great Gatsby", Sinclair Lewis's "Babbitt" and Arthur Miller's "Death of the Salesman", which represent the three stages of the process of industrialization, urbanization, and modernization in the United States.
Gatsby in The Marvelous Gatsby is at the turn of the century, Babbitt in Babbitt is from the 1920s, and Willie Lohman in Death of a Salesman is from the 1940s. From The Great Gatsby, to Babbitt, to Death of a Salesman, or from Gatsby, to Babbitt, to Willie Lohman, have you found a single fact?
The fact is this: a deteriorating America.
At the time of Gatsby, the industrialization, urbanization, and modernization of the United States were nearing the end, and the American economy was already the first in the world, with 70% urbanization. But even as it draws to a close, personal struggles can still be realized, the "American Dream" can still be realized, and although Gatsby has played some tricks, through these means, he has at least created amazing wealth, achieved economic success, and achieved material freedom.
By the time of Babbitt, the U.S. economy had entered a stable state, the economy tended to stabilize, growth began to slow down, resources began to concentrate, social competition became fierce, the channels for climbing upwards began to narrow, and the path to the upper class was already very difficult. Even so, Babbitt was able to realize the middle-class "American Dream." Becoming the middle class is also a worry-free food and clothing.
By the time of Willie Lohmann, the world was at war and through the Great Depression, whose effects on the United States were still there. At this time, the US economy is declining, once the economic downturn brings a chain reaction, social resources are very tight, there are not many jobs at all, a large number of layoffs in enterprises, and many people are even difficult to find a subsistence job. On the one hand, incomes are falling, on the other hand, prices are rising, and ordinary people are struggling to survive.
So Willie Lohmann didn't even realize the middle-class American dream, let alone the dream of getting rich. He worked as a salesman for 36 years, and at the age of 63 he faced the challenge of unemployment, reaching the point where he had to borrow money to repay his loans. And the two sons he expected, by the time they were in their 30s, had achieved nothing, the eldest son was a farm worker, and the younger son was a small company employee.
In the stage of large-scale industrialization, urbanization and modernization, many industries and jobs are still blank, and there are no head enterprises. At this time, as long as you seize the opportunity and work hard, no matter what your origin is, you can still achieve material success and mix a piece of the sky.
To the economic development into a steady stage, although the economy declined, but not to be depressed, still in the growth stage, this time as long as you have superior skills, more diligent than the average person, hard work, you can also achieve the middle class dream, among the middle class. Isn't Babbitt?
He is a salesman who sells second-hand houses, there is nothing outstanding, the only skill is to "sell the house at a higher price than people can afford", and then earn a commission. Because of his excellent business, his income is very impressive, he has become a member of the millions of American middle class, and he has lived a decent life.
In the stage of economic downturn, even if you have strong ideals and hard work, it is difficult to realize Babbitt's "middle-class dream" and Gatsby's "American dream". Because at this time, social resources are tight, interest groups begin to form, head enterprises form, rich people because they have resources, so when resources are tight, the more they can rely on resources to master more resources, so the growth of wealth.
At the bottom, people without money have no resources, and when resources are tight, they will only become more difficult to obtain resources, and they will only become poorer and poorer.
That's why the more the economy is depressed, the richer people get richer and richer, and the poor get poorer. At this time, the resources are originally released to the bottom of the less, people at the bottom in order to keep their own vested interests, everyone will desperately go to grab, you do not rob others will rob, robbed you will be gone, your life will be worse and worse. In order to grab resources, everyone will work harder and harder, get up earlier, learn earlier, and want to grab resources at the first time, so the whole society enters a stage of involution.
The United States of the 1940s, where Willy Lohman lived, was an era of involution. In the era of involution, social resources are limited and competition is extremely cruel, and the values of American utilitarianism, pragmatism, and survival of the fittest have exacerbated this fierce competition.
The law of the jungle, the free competition in the market economy, the brutal struggle of people for survival, and the fierce social competition make people crazy. At the same time, interpersonal relationships have become very tense, there is a lack of trust between people, a lack of positive energy, and human feelings have become quite indifferent.
The whole society is anxious from top to bottom, insecurity is increasing, and social trust is reduced to a minimum. All uncertainties and unfamiliarities can trigger anxiety and deep fear. Everyone wants to keep their vested interests and even want to live a better life, and the more economic downturn there is, the stronger people's desire to join the upper class. No one wants to go back into poverty, no one wants to be squeezed out of the class, they are afraid and afraid, once they are squeezed out, they will not know how to face it.
63-year-old Willie Lohman pursued all his life, but in the end he still achieved nothing, unemployed in his old age, his son was not a tool, and his income did not know where? Debt-ridden, competitive society, a dazed future, shattered dreams, etc., crushed his old body and mind, and in the end he chose to end his life.
At the last moment of his life, he also thought that his death would enable his family to receive an insurance payment. sigh! After reading it, people really don't know what to say.
Gatsby in Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, Bobbitt in Sinclair Lewis' Babbitt, and Willie Lohman in Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman, reveal a deteriorating America. From the late 19th century to the 1920s, to the 1940s, the United States went through a phase of industrialization, urbanization, and modernization to economic stability, slowing growth, and then to an economic downturn. In the context of the three stages, people's struggles and personal experiences are also different.
Fitzgerald, Sinclair Lewis, and Arthur Miller give us a different view of American society.