Police Blotter: The B&S Reports a Shocking Crime

Many columnists and pundits have pondered the state of the American Dream, but it took the sharp journalists of The B&S to discover its true fate. The B&S is a student-produced satirical magazine of Grinnell College in central Iowa. This article first appeared in the fall of 2011.

Read it here: The B&S, “American Dream Found Dead, Foul Play Suspected”

 

1. It’s not too unusual nowadays to hear about the supposed death or demise of the American Dream, but the article from The B&S goes a step further and calls it homicide. What are the implications of such a description?
2. The article mentions American Dream’s sibling, Greed, and its spouse, America’s Innocence. Who else might be a member of this family? Think of three other relatives and describe their positions in the family.
3. American Dream’s neighbor is Willy Loman; does that name ring a bell? Do a little research and discuss Loman’s significance to the article’s argument.
4. Are you amused by the satire of the article? Why or why not? Write an essay in which you take the article as your “they say,” and respond seriously to the implied charges it makes about the current state of the nation and its (your) future.

Comments

[Krista]

I disagree. I do not think the American Dream is dead. It is still very much alive. The average American still believes in liberty, justice, and happiness. The "white collars" are obviously not the majority or the American population. The American people do not always agree with their polititans, whom I am assuming are the "white collars". Those who try to take away the American dream are not the majority of citizens. It is rediculous to even suggest that. It is not fair to take the actions and ideas of group of people, and project it onto an entire country of billions of people.

[Lisa P.]

1) This article paints the American dream as unredeemable and corruptive in comparison to its former self. It can lead readers into questioning their lifestyles and desires in life. The article describes the American dream as a person who is murdered by greed along with other factors. In reality, the American dream has been changed in standard. It’s not just the greed within the American dream but the article also includes “white collars” that are depicted as bystanders or instigators during the crime scene in which the homicide occurred. The authors partially blame the death of the American dream to people with higher power and influence who only care for their own well-being. Overall, the article exemplifies the problems that are currently happening in the US.

2) The other family members that I have created are Hope, Ignorance and Determination. Hope is the baby of the American Dream and America’s Innocence. When a baby is born, it marks the beginning of a new life. Pursuing a new and enhanced life is something many people strive to achieve. Then there is Ignorance, the grandfather. As people get older, the world changes and it can be hard to adjust to new values and ideas which are the reasons why the grandfather signifies ignorance. It’s the unwillingness to change which pulls us back from our potential. Lastly, I chose Determination for the son. In typical families, the son may endeavor to be like the father. Since the American dream is the standard, the son feels the need to meet that standard.

3) Willy Loman is the reflection of the American Dream because both characters were corrupt and broken. I think the reason why Loman was added in the article is to give more emphasis on the American Dream's background. There are several people who can relate to Loman’s struggle to pursue the American Dream or even end up in his position.

4) I found this article entertaining because it was relevant to modern day life. The American dream has shifted as the world around us evolves. The standard of living and the desires of people have augmented. Greed represents the trait within the dreamer and the people who can affect them like the “white collars” who were involved in the homicide case. The people working towards the American dream are usually those who overwork themselves and take care of their responsibility at the same time. In the end, these people who struggle to pursue a better life can be crushed by the negativity in their lives.

[Matt Johnson]

1. The article “The B&S” portrays the demise and death of The American Dream in several ways. The first implication is the white collar shirts that enter the victim’s house around the time of death. This indicates the higher status citizens who play a role in the destruction of The American Dream within the middle class. Another implication would be that the neighborhood was shocked that The American Dream had a target. This description shows the respect towards the American Dream and the crime would have been committed from someone from a higher class.
2. Along with Greed and Innocence, other members of the family would include American’s Dream’s father, Loyalty. Its position is to stay true to others and always provide a safe surrounding. American Dream’s mother, Humble, portrays a role of modesty and respect. One of the American Dream’s son, Optimism, shows the outlook on positivity and seeing things in a pure way.
3. Willy Loman’s significance in the article shows how he related to the American dream. In a way, Willy is the American Dream itself in the play Death of a Salesman. It shows the correlation between the two characters.
4. The article displays satire in a way that catches one’s attention. The symbolism behind the actual meaning is very current to the world today. It relates because of the diminishing middle class. The American Dream is described as endless opportunities for each individual. However, with the economy now, there are less possibilities and more competition involved. Drastic changes need to be made in order to create a better future and reviving the true meaning of The American Dream.

[Michael Castellanos]

I have to disagree with this article because I believe the American dream is still very much alive. But I must say, has the “American Dream” become a dream? I like to think not, but as I observe the status of our beautiful country, my conscious begins to convince me that the American dream is in fact a dream. We spend the first 12 years of our lives going through elementary, middle, and high school. Then, off to college at a University to finish another 4 years of higher education with the hopes of being a productive member of society. Once done with school, the next step is to find a career that provides enough income, and then the American dream becomes attainable, but only after you sign a mortgage for your dream home that will take you the majority of your life to pay off. My point is that the American dream is in fact alive, but to obtain it, takes lots of money that most Americans do not have, and in turn are tricked into purchasing material possessions they could never afford. But the American dream cannot be achieves unless there are jobs available for hire, and unfortunately this seems to be the cause for the questioning if the American dream is dead, because of the current economic downturn the United States is going through. Although I enjoyed the satire of this article, with its homicidal premise that the American dream was murdered by greed and ignored by the white-collar police officers, the article portrays the unfortunate truths of what the United States has been going through the last couple of years with the economic recession (and the occupy wall street movement) that is chipping away at the American dream. I am optimistic that the United States will rebound after this recession to be better than ever. The American dream is not dead; it has just been bruised a little.

[Dani D.]

By calling the death of the american dream a homicide they are implying that for our country, the american dream didn't just go away or change. They are saying that it wasn't just a series of events that did away of it, but it was planned and intentional by those "white suits". Had they referred to is as a suicide it would have implied that the everyday american was responsible for killing our own dreams.

[Katie Taylor]

The murder of the American Dream is tragic indeed. However, is the American Dream truly dead or has it just evolved like the rest of us. It is painfully obvious that American Innocence has been absent for quite some time now and it will take almost a miracle to bring her back. The "white collar" folk referred to the middle class every day American who has gotten a little too friendly with American Dream's sibling, Greed. With Greed's influence, the white collar folk have essentially shed the idea of the old American Dream in hopes of finding a new one. American Dream is not an iPod that can be updated every few years. The original American Dream has been around for decades and has had no need to remodel his image. In fact, it is the middle class people who are unsatisfied with the notion of hard work and honest living. Is it really American Dream's fault that we are not content with just being satisfied?
I would love to revive American Dream to its full glory and I fully believe it can be done.

[Henry Hong]

I have to disagree with the satirical article regarding the death of the American dream. I am still young and have a lot to learn in life, however, my image of the American dream strictly revolves around happiness with family/friends, the ability to provide for them, and freedom. When my mom first came to America, my family was in pursuit of the American dream. We started poor and at the bottom but slowly worked our way up. We moved from a foreign country and slowly adapted to the American lifestyle. This image of the American dream is what attracted us to America. Therefore, I believe that the American dream is still not dead. There are still people in foreign countries that analyze the American culture and want to come here. In America we are fortunate enough to be privileged with laws and freedoms that others do not have. This dream, which is exactly that, a dream cannot be dead because it is the beacon of hope that we all strive on. It seems it is the goal of happiness and livelihood. I agree with a previous commenter about the habitual lifestyles we are brought up to follow. Go to school, get a degree, find a career, and have a family. These are the principles that seem to be applied throughout a majority of families. Even though these are the values passed on as the best steps to take, in America we are granted the opportunity of freedom. We do not have to take this route in order to achieve the American dream. I think that entrepreneurs are good and living examples of the American dream product. They are wealthy, self-made, have achieved personal success, happiness, and take the life they want. As long as there is freedom in America and there are countries or people that are without freedom then the American dream will stand. The American dream is not per say the final outcome of a scenario (Suburban lifestyle, fancy food, etc.), it is the endless opportunity that American has to offer and the people willing to do what it takes to gain their own form of abundance.

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[scott]

1. The implications of calling the death of the American dream a homicide is that someone was involved and it wasn’t an accident. This is also supported by the article stating they have a good idea of the criminals but can’t really do much about it due to their friends in high places.
2. The three family members I created would be perseverance, virtue and equality. Perseverance and virtue are the parents of greed and American dream since American dream is a mold between those two while greed only resembles perseverance. Equality is the adopted child of American dream and is still a child.
3. I think it’s funny and also somewhat significant to mention Willy Loman in this article about the American dream since he was once a decent salesman due to popularity and work and is easily relatable to by many Americans.
4. The article is easily enjoyable due to its playful nature but also brings up valid points on what is happening to the American dream. I think the american dream like the article implies is slowly becoming harder and harder to reach by lower class citizens, especially in today’s world. This is a serious issue for everyone since it will lower living standards of most Americans and can even play an emotional toll on people wanting to improve their living situation but not being able to. While college and education is helpful many of the benefits are diminishing while the cost of attendance is rising, making it even harder for people in poverty to improve their circumstances.

[Amanda Tirado]

I agree with this article because I think the American Dream is slowly losing its value to money, even more so than before. The typical image of the American Dream is the male figure being the bread winner, the wife as a homemaker and taking care of the children, if any. All of this is piled up in a beautiful home in the suburbs with a white picket fence. That dream seems to only have existed in the 50's and 60's. The American Dream seems to be more for people who are well off with money, in this case mostly Caucasians. Yet for other races, this dream has never quite existed, especially for minorities. In most low income households both parents work to provide. Most do not even own a home and the children are basically raised by the institutions or the streets if its bad. If someone is a minority, it can be even worse because they may live in the ghetto where gangs and other illicit activities are rampant, and they also have to deal with the everyday struggles of assimilation and discrimination. Jobs are being sent over seas to exploit workers in the third world. Most of all, minorities here, in particular Hispanics, get scapegoated for it because of the immigration issue. The over seas exploitation of people is a billion dollar industry that makes a lot of big business people more profit. Corporate greed, capitalism and consumerism in such cases are what have been killing the American Dream. In today's modern society it is an unfortunate reality we all have to face, especially with the rise of self absorbed greed that the media constantly keeps in existence. The American Dream only makes sense if some one is sleeping, it is just a cruel fantasy with no real validity.

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