American Beauty And The Crucible

Paired Text Study: American Beauty and The Crucible

"American Beauty and The Crucible are both powerful critiques of American society at different periods in history." In what ways are the representations of the characters and the worlds of the text a product of the composers' socio-cultural and historical contexts and what, if any, parallels can be drawn between them?

Both American Beauty and The Crucible are texts written to emphasize flaws within the American society at different periods in history. American Beauty, which was created at the end of the 20th century when there was an increasing dissatisfaction with the American Dream, depicts Alan Ball and Sam Mendes', the composers, contemporary opinions of Western society and is an illustration of how the American Dream is often a faÐ*ade for dysfunctional relationships. The Crucible, which is set in 1692, during the instable times of the Salem Witch trials was written as an allegory by Arthur Miller, and demonstrates the similarities between the situation in Salem and McCarthyism in the 1950's.

American Beauty was produced at a time when people were beginning to realize that the American Dream is full of unfulfilled desires, repressed dreams and shattered hopes. Alan Ball and Sam Mendes highlight the flaws of this vision through characters in the text. Lester Burnham, the main protagonist of the text, is not content with his suburban life. "Look at me, jerking off in the shower -- this will be the high point of my day. It's all downhill from here." He has a respectable occupation as a magazine executive and a family he once enjoyed the company of however he feels that his he lives a meaningless existence, "in a way, I am dead already." His only daughter Jane has issues with her body image and wishes her father would take interest in her life. "I need a father who's a role model, not some horny geek-boy who's gonna spray his shorts every time I bring a girlfriend home from school." And his wife is stuck in a loveless marriage and doesn't allow her husband to touch her. "Our marriage is just for show. A commercial for how normal we are when we're anything but." The Burnham's are an example of the American Dream failing to satisfy people's true needs.

The producers of the text want us to see that true beauty lies in the ordinary aspects of life and often goes unrecognised. Angela Hays is obsessed with her image and thrives of the fact people think she is beautiful. "I don't think that there's anything worse than being ordinary. The makers want us to recognize this as Angela's major character flaw and understand that there is nothing wrong with being ordinary. Through Angela the producers illuminate the theme of beauty being in the ordinary and they encourage us to look closer at the modest things in life. Jane Burnham has a low sense of self-worth, "We'll always be freaks and we'll never be like other people." and believes that having a breast enhancement will make her a more attractive and agreeable human being. Jane's character allows us to appreciate that beauty is not about looks but about how you view yourself and how having somebody believe in you can give you the power to believe in yourself. Carolyn Burnham feels pressured by society to "maintain an image of success at all times." She feels that if she makes a mistake she is a failure. When Carolyn does not succeed in selling a house, she cries and then slaps herself for being emotional. Carolyn allows us to see that emotion is a beautiful part of life in all its forms. The producers exaggerate the aspects of the characters personalities that they see as flaws in American society in order to show us that true beauty is not the archetypical beauty seen in a young blond model but the exact opposite of that found in the simple treasures of ordinary life. The text allows us to understand that the American Dream is meaningless if you are not happy within yourself and to be happy we must see the beauty in the everyday.

The feminist revolution took place not long before American Beauty was composed and has had a major impact on how people view the text. During the post-feminist period a great deal of men were seen to have feelings of emasculation. The film demonstrates how feminism may provide women with greater opportunity to excel but can leave men feeling powerless and unneeded. When Lester attempts to regain control over his family he says, "I am sick and tired of being treated like I don't exist. You two do whatever you want, whenever you want to do it, and I don't complain." Lester wants respect from his family, "Both my wife and daughter think I'm this gigantic loser." The makers of the text are shedding light on the truth that in order for equal rights to be successful, men have to be willing to help domestically. Carolyn feels pressured by society to be successful in her career, her relationships and her house keeping while maintaining a perfectly happy faÐ*ade. "I want to thank you for putting me under the added pressure of being the sole breadwinner now." When Lester quits his job Carolyn feels she is expected to take over even more responsibility for her family. The film is showing us how feminism within the American Dream often leads to unbalanced relationships rather than equal responsibilities. Many feminist critiques of American Beauty have decided the film sheds negative light on the majority of female character in the film. "Both Angela and Jane reveal their breast in an unnecessary manner during the film."â„- In a divisive film like American Beauty people are eager to criticize the view of women in the text and the roles they occupy.

The Crucible, another influential critique of Americans history, was composed during the time of McCarthyism when America was going through a hostile period of political turmoil. During this time many thousands of Americans were accused of being Communists or Communist sympathizers and became the subject of aggressive investigations and questioning under Senator McCarthy's government. Arthur miller used the analogy of the Salem Witch Trials to demonstrate that the present government system was dysfunctional and it allowed innocent people to be victimised and convicted unjustly. Through The Crucible he describes the paranoia that swept across America during these parallel periods and the injustice that affected many innocent peopled lives.

The parallelism of the two historical times makes one aware of the cycle of history that human's experience. Arthur Miller made a conscious attempt to link the two ideas; the Salem witch trials, 1692, and McCarthyism of the 1950's, to make