Themes

**//“The play is an examination of the American Scene, an attack on the substitution of artificial for real values in our society, a condemnation of complacency, cruelty, emasculation and vacuity.” //**

__ **American Dream** __

Albee examines the replacement of real values for artificial values, through the replacement of Grandma with Young Man.

· Grandma is constantly ignored and shut down. She is also threatened to be taken away, mostly by Mommy.

· There's always a complaint of no satisfaction, this can also be inferred to refer to the old values.

· Young Man represents money, power and looks. // “It’s that I have no talents at all, except what you see…my person; my body, my face. In every other way I am incomplete, and I must therefore…compensate.” //

__ **Compliant** __ The play touches on how Americans have become compliant with what they have.

· They complain about not being satisfied, they will be satisfied when they receive a new child.

· Grandma knows here course had run out.

· No emotion

__ **Cruelty** __ Briefly the play touches of the cruelty of Americans taking any measures to make something fit their ideals. · Cutting off the baby’s “you-know-what”, cut his hands off and gouged his eyes out.

__ **Emasculation** __ Through out the play Daddy seeks reassurance from Mommy about being a man.

· This demonstrates once again the short comings of the American Dream.

· Society

__**Vacuity**__

The American Dream shows the emptiness and lack of substance that has been embedded into American society.

· No satisfaction

· Young Man who represents the new values · Lack of emotion