The problem of realization of ‘The American Dream’ in “Sister

Carrie” by Theodore Dreiser

 Author’s biography

Theodore Dreiser, (born Aug. 27, 1871, Terre Haute, Ind., U.S.—died Dec. 28, 1945,

Hollywood, Calif.), novelist who was the outstanding American practitioner of naturalism.

He was the leading figure in a national literary movement that replaced the observance of

Victorian notions of propriety with the unflinching presentation of real-life subject matter.

Among other themes, his novels explore the new social problems that had arisen in a rapidly

industrializing America, from grinding poverty to upper-middle class comfort. [Hussman,

Lawrence E. “Theodore Dreiser.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 31

Jan. 2019, www.britannica.com/biography/Theodore-Dreiser. Accessed 28 May 2019]

Theodore Dreiser’s first novel came out in 1900. At first, it did not receive any warm

welcome with the public and the critics. “Sister Carrie” was rejected because went against social

norms of the time with its immoral behaviour because Dreiser presented his characters without

judging them, and also it was considered discrepant to traditional American values. In America it

was published in an edition of one thousand copies. In England, it was accepted more

favourably. After that, it was republished in the USA and enjoyed first local and then global

appreciation. Dreiser fought against censorship of “Sister Carrie”, the biggest issue being the

fact that the main character engaged in affairs and other sexual relationships without suffering

any consequences. [www.lithelper.com/category/theodore-dreiser] This new manner of

portraying a character was completely different in comparison to other previews works, in which

a character dominated by the absence of moral codes, who sins constantly and has a inadequate
behaviour must be punished one way or another throughout the story in order to learn his lesson.

In his novel, Dreiser, who was a journalist at the moment, approached an important issue

which was also typical in the late 19th century in the USA: the problem of realization of “The

American Dream”. The protagonist of the novel, Carrie Meeber, leaves her hometown at the age

of eighteen with a single purpose: to overcome her condition by having a better life and a job, to

gain personal affirmation. She aspires to an unnamable aim, a stat of grace but she is never

content with that she gets, so she wants more and more. [Oltean, Roxana. American Literature in

19th Century course]

 Main story of the novel

The main character, Carrie Meeber, leaves her country home, hoping to get out of poverty

and moves to Chicago with a vague but strong desire for a better life: food, money and social

position. Dreiser, son of German-speaking parents, was raised in a poor environment too, and

because of that he didn’t criticize her for this, nor did he criticize her relationship with men.

Her aspirations to a new life are due to the fact that environmental forces control events. Also the

unfavourable life circumstances, such as the hard work at a shoe factory, illness, absence of

warm clothes in the winter, play a big part in the development of the plot.

“When a girl leaves her home at eighteen, she does one of two things. Either she falls into saving

hands and becomes better, or she rapidly assumes the cosmopolitan standard of virtue and

becomes worse.” [Dreiser, Theodore. Sister Carrie, The Pennsylvania Edition]

Being imaginative, sensible, and seeking accomplishment and fulfillment in artistic

marketplace of metropolis, the girl worships everything beautiful and lives in the hope that

material things and personal affirmation will make her happy. “[…] she could not help thinking

what a delight this would be if it would endure; how perfect a state, if she could do well now, and
then some time get a place as a real actress. The thought had taken a mighty hold upon her. It

hummed in her ears as the melody of an old song.” [Dreiser, Theodore. Sister Carrie, The

Pennsylvania Edition]

Even though she wants to be an independent woman, she easily is charmed by the

travelling salesman Charles Drouet. Feeling forced to make a choice between returning to her

parents or remaining in Chicago for fulfilling her desires, she accepts without a second thought

her new status, the one of a lover. At first she expects Drouet to marry her, later she has the same

expectations regarding her relationship with Hurstwood. Wishing by all means to have a

luxurious life, she even accepts her church wedding to an already married man, Hurstwood, but

walks out on him as soon as he goes bankrupt and Carrie starts to gain money and fame because

of her theatrical appearances. The way in which Carrie moved from one relationship to another

was modern, she tried to be loyal to her lovers but it was impossible for her because she couldn’t

break free of desire for commodities. Almost by accident she makes fortune as an actress, she

has fame,even though she doesn’t have a strong personality. When Carrie finally lives the life

she desired for so long, she learns that not even success or money can fulfill her dream of having

a happy life. We can see that the beginning of the novel is similar with the ending, in the sense

that, if at first Carrie had nothing and thought that through money and personal affirmation she

would achieve a state of grace and personal fulfillment, in the end, when she finally had

everything she wanted, it was nothing but an illusion of moving forward, unfortunately ending

up right at the beginning. This correlation between the beginning and the end is given by the

rocking chair, a symbol for a rocking motion, which means the return to primordial self comfort

and to an unarticulated and still unfulfilled desire for more.

  The influence of Naturalism

As the writer of the first masterpiece of American naturalism, Dreiser was influenced by Zola

and Charles Darwin. He reinforces the idea that only the fittest and smartest character survives in

a world dominated by money. He believes that the human instinct, desire and striving for

material things are the elements which control and affect human’s action. In this novel, whether

we are talking about Carrie’s rise or Hurstwood’s fall, they were all driven by their natural

instinct. While Carrie was controlled by her desire for material goods, Hurstwood was controlled

by his sexual desire. Another naturalist element presented in this novel is the author’s preference

for symbolic detail. In this way, the events of the simple story are described in detail,

contributing in making a very substantial world. The details are very important to the meaning

and, at the same time, play an important role in showing how Carrie moves from optimism to her

final despair and unfulfilled condition. The most important details of the novel are complexe

description of clothing, money, teather, hotels, restaurants. They also show that the

environmental forces control events, emphasize the absence of conventional moral codes and

describe the way in which a woman is portrayed: she is objectified, wanted by men only if she is

good-looking.

 The American Dream

This concept was previously used to describe a set of ideals, such as democracy, freedom,

equality between people, rights. The American Dream is determined by the Declaration of
Independence, which proclaims that “all men are created equal”, having the right to live, to be

free, and to be happy. [Kamp, David (April 2009). "Rethinking the American Dream". Vanity

Fair. Accessed 28 May 2019.] However, it has changed his meaning in the 20th century. All those

ideals and fights for equality and freedom transformed in the idea that every person should take

the opportunity to use his abilities to achieve wealth and to be above others regarding the social

status. Money was the key element in achieving such goals and made the difference between the

poor and the rich, the first ones being the slaves of hard work and physical labor. It was really

hard to dream for a better life when they were endlessly working just to have food, clothes and

shelter. Even though each of Dreiser’s characters in this novel search for their own type of

“American Dream”, I think that the best example is represented by Hurstwood, who has it all and

then loses it all. He has the woman, a home, a family, a good social position but he is not

satisfied and he wants more. The only problem was that he couldn’t adapt in that new

environment where everyone was hungry for money. When he gets bankrupt and Carrie leaves

him, he has nothing to search for anymore so he takes his own life. In comparison to Hurstwood,

Drouet doesn’t fall nor rise during the novel. He remains unchanged and is able to live the

American Dream to the fullest: he has a high social status, clothes to prove it, he frequents the

most important places in town and knows a lot of people with influence. Finally, Carrie pursues

her American Dream longing for the beauty of life, pretty clothes and a beautiful place to live.

She has no outstanding qualities, she doesn’t show compassion, kindness and she has no

authentic talent. Instead, she is a good actress just because she doesn’t have a strong personality,

she is practical and a bit selfish. Once arrived in Chicago, she imagines the elegant clothes she

will wear, the luxurious places in which she will go and the good and wealthy people she will

meet. When she finally gets what she desires, wealth, a good fortune, fame and clothes, it is
shown the fact that materialism is unfulfilling and she has not gained happiness nor has she

become a better person.

 Conclusion

Dreiser touches upon a large variety of themes in Sister Carrie, including economic success,

wealth, the path which should be followed and the compromises that should be made in

order to reach the top of the social pyramid. This novel presents the notion of The American

Dream completely different as it was in the past: the new, modern American experience captures

the struggles of thousands rural Americans which emigrate from their hometowns to big cities in

order to find the perfect job, a better life and a new identity. This new concept applies to Carrie

too, who is in a constant state of change. After receiving money and fame, she has no ideea what

to do next, she doesn’t trust men anymore , she is unsatisfied and feels lonely. In this way, in the

final lines of the novel she finds herself feeling as in the beginning: longing for an unnamable

aim, happiness, fulfillment. She still has her entire life in front of her, and she will probably

spend it in endless soul searching.

 Works cited

 Hussman, Lawrence E. “Theodore Dreiser.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia

Britannica, Inc., 31 Jan. 2019, www.britannica.com/biography/Theodore-Dreiser.
Accessed 28 May 2019.
 https://lithelper.com/category/theodore-dreiser/ Accessed 28 May 2019.
 Dreiser, Theodore. Sister Carrie, The Pennsylvania Edition
 Oltean, Roxana. American Literature in 19th Century course
 Kamp, David (April 2009). "Rethinking the American Dream". Vanity Fair. Accessed 28
May 2019.
 Course Hero. "Sister Carrie Study Guide." Course Hero. 7 Feb.
2017,www.coursehero.com/lit/Sister-Carrie. Accessed 28 May 2019.