Highly sought after, the American dream has captured our society’s attention since the Founding Fathers declared our independence in 1776. Our country has been inspired by the thought that if you work hard enough, you will find success, regardless of who you are. The media has glamorized it with the book “The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald. However, “The Street” by Ann Petry criticizes its false promises. Petry blends techniques of symbolism and comparison, using the character Lutie Johnson, to send the message that the American dream is wildly unattainable for marginalized groups. The author utilizes the symbol of the street that Lutie lives on to depict the social limitations of achieving the American dream. Over multiple times during …show more content…
These living conditions that Petry describes are clearly not suitable for success. The fact that there is a prominent smell of chemicals infiltrating the street indicates that the infrastructure is very poor and can cause major health problems, especially to the young children, like Bub. These health problems can lead to extensive healthcare, which costs money. This and the street in general symbolizes redlining, a systemic and discriminatory practice of denying access to vital financial services to neighborhoods, typically African American ones. In turn, these communities do not have access to credit and healthcare, which puts them at a disadvantage against privileged, white groups. This is a limitation to achieving the American dream because Lutie’s housing and location puts her at a disadvantage because she cannot afford the same benefits, like healthcare and credit, that white people do. Instead, she has to work extra hard to get onto the same level as them. This makes it more difficult to attain the American dream because it requires significantly more effort to be put in than your
Page 1 of 3 ZOOM In the beginning of The Street (1946), written by Ann Petry, the narrator describes the relationship between the setting and the numerous people involved. The main character, Lutie Johnson is seen struggling against nature. Petry shows this relationship between Johnson and the city setting through imagery, personification, specific detail, and figurative language. The author, Ann Petry uses imagery all throughout this excerpt to relate the relationship between the environment
In an excerpt of The Street, Ann Petry illustrates Lutie Johnson's determination against the formidable wind and offers a perspective that sheds light on its underestimated consequences. Through personification and selection of detail, the narrator effectively characterizes the wind and its unrelenting "fingers" as an unwelcoming and obtrusive force that is capable of uncovering society's filth. By initially introducing the November wind as a personified figure, the narrator sets up the cold gust
these adorn the pages of Ann Petry’s novel The Street. Through extensive personification and discordant diction, Petry unravels the antagonistic relationship between Lutie Johnson and the urban metropolis she finds herself in. Though Lutie is oppressed and battered by the biting winter environment, she fights back with just as much resolve, if not more, and is determined to prevail in finding a living space. And both parties in this relationship are equally combative:
The Street by Ann Petry was first published in 1948, and it gives an account of the lives of black women in the World War II era. Being a black woman herself, Petra gives a firsthand commentary about the social injustices that face the main character in the novel, Lutie Johnson. Lutie is a black single mother who faces social challenges such as sexism, racism, and classism in her chase for the American dream. In her chronicles of raising her son, Bub, she believes that if she works hard, and saves
In the story ‘Like a Winding Sheet’ written by Ann Petry in 1946, there are lots of things we can dig deep into such as the background of the characters, their behaviors as well as their motives. ‘Like a Winding Sheet’ is about a working day of Johnson, a factory worker with aching legs, and how he encounters racist events throughout his day. His conversation with Mrs. Scout, the factory forelady, and his unfair treatment at the restaurant have built up tension inside of him, which eventually turns