The Semplica Girl Diaries Analysis

In “The Semplica-Girl Diaries”, George Saunders makes an important statement about the role of materialism in the American Dream, and how this materialism may not be the key to happiness many believe it to be. Saunders tells of a middle class family that strives to meet the standards of their peers and find a happier life. The father, who acts as the narrator, believes that acquiring and spending money on material objects, specifically the Semplica Girls, will improve the family’s life by improving how the family’s financial situation appears to others. The father’s primary values are that wealth and social standing are crucial to attaining the good life, and he believes the purchase of the Semplica Girls will fulfill these values. However, it is clear from the family’s ultimate situation and the disapproval of the mother’s successful father, that the narrator’s beliefs are misguided and potentially damaging to the family.

In his short story, “The Semplica-Girl Diaries”, the author George Saunders crafts an all too human tale as he shows the journal entries of the narrator, a husband and father of three who faces financial insecurity, and displays the effect money, whether in lack or excess, has on our actions and thoughts. The social setting of the story is almost identical to our current society, however there is a distinct divergence in the Semplica Girls, which are girls from impoverished backgrounds that hang from a wire in their heads as an odd, inhumane, and yet expensive, lawn ornament. In the pursuit of the “good life” for both his family and himself, the father places great importance on wealth in order to secure happiness, joy, and status through

It is the natural inclination of all men and women to dream. In John Steinbeck’s novel “Of Mice and Men,” the American dream is sought after by many different characters. However, the main theme in the story is how these dreams are unattainable, and how because of the Great Depression, all American dreams were dead. But what is the American dream? A unitary definition does not exist, however, the meaning of living the American dream is something that differs for everyone. For some people, the American dream might be acceptance and equality. On the other hand, for others, it might mean fame and fortune. In the short story called “Of Mice and Men” the American dream seems unreachable for a number of characters, such as George, Lennie,

Have you ever wondered what life is like for people in specific social classes and all the baggage that comes with being wealthy? In the article “Amber Waves of Green”, author Jon Ronson has sit downs with hard working americans making a income of $200 a week all the way up to $625,000 a week. In another writing titled “The Mansion”, written by Michael Lewis, allows the reader to get insight on what life is like as a middle class individual taking on a higher style of living. Within the two articles the reader can point out that both Jon Ronson and Michael Lewis disagree on living styles, what wealth can do for you, and how it can affect the people around you.

The American Dream is often one of the most well-known benefits of living in America. It is the push factor that has driven millions of foreigners to flock to the so-called land of opportunity. Originally, the American Dream was established by a clause in the Declaration of Independence. It reads, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness” (Declaration of Independence par. 2). The original American Dream, as laid out by the founding fathers, was freedom from religious persecution and the right to live a happy life. That simple idea has undergone a significant metamorphosis and now the American Dream is much more complex. It has turned into a deep avaricious dream. This transformation has been noted in contemporary literature, especially in the novels Reservation Blues by Sherman Alexie and The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. These pieces of literature can be read as a larger commentary on the mutation of the American Dream and how it is now more of a negative desire for greed and material. Both Fitzgerald and Alexie surmise that the American Dream has been twisted and corrupted into an uncontrolled desire that has become unattainable for many and that the pursuit of the dream has become dangerous.

Of Mice and Men, a 1937 novella by John Steinbeck and American Beauty, a 1999 film directed by Sam Mendes, offer various insights into the American Dream and are both contextually driven. Both texts present the possibility of different pursuits of the American Dream and portray a multiplicity of challenges imposed by the societies of their contexts. In Of Mice and Men (OMM), through literary techniques, Steinbeck conveys the importance of the Dream of land ownership and companionship during the difficult times of

Working hard is the key to success. This struggle for success is most commonly called the “American Dream.” The aspect of the American Dream has been around forever and is often the underlying theme in many pieces of American literature. The theme of the American is especially presented in Of Mice and Men written by John Steinbeck, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Two Kinds writer by Amy Tan, and in “Sophistication” by Sherwood Anderson.

“The Semplica-Girl Diaries” is a short story in which George Saunders, the author, presents unique ideas of the way people live their life and what each person does to be able to live. The dad, Saunders’ main character, writes in a diary and explains to the readers what he experiences almost every day with his family. He wants to be there for his family and provide for them the best that he can, but it is difficult when he has young children who have desires as any children do. The dad mentions status throughout the short story, and the children are aware that they do not have money like some other people who are around them. Not everyone in the world has the best job and life, because it is not always up to people to make the choices that need to be made for their family.

Fitzgerald depicts displays of wealth as more significant to people of the East Coast than in the Midwest. In the exposition, Nick Carraway expresses that his father told him,“‘whenever [he] feels like criticizing someone...just remember that all the people in this world haven’t had the advantages [he] had’”(Fitzgerald 1). The author characterizes Nick’s father, a native to the Midwest, as someone who understands that money should not be the defining factor to judge people, because not everyone has grown up with wealth like Nick and his family. In contrast, Fitzgerald describes the East Coast population as people who need to show off their money in order to exhibit their worthiness of attention to others. After Tom “left Chicago”, he goes “East in a fashion that rather took your breath away; for instance, he’d brought down a string of polo ponies from Lake Forest”(Fitzgerald 6). Fitzgerald exaggerates the extent of Tom’s need to show off his money by declaring that it would make others lose their breaths if they saw the amount of luxurious items, such as

The American Dream in simple terms is the essence of Americanism; it is the belief that social mobility, prosperity, and financial success are attainable by hard work regardless of social class and nationality. The American Dream exemplifies what every immigrant imagines as they walk through Ellis Island or cross the border from Mexico. It is the ethos of America, the defining image of the average upper-middle class family man. This idea of prosperity begins as far back as the founders of the United States. Benjamin Franklin, one of the most famous Framers in American history, built himself from the ground up. Franklin’s The Autobiography is both his personal regimen for prosperity, but also the

Class inequality was very prevalent in The Great Gatsby by Fitzgerald, and it prevented people from being able to achieve the impossible American Dream. George Wilson was a middle class worker who was mechanic in the Valley of Ashes region. James G. Sweeney in his piece Searching for Georege Wilson’s Garage describes how Wilson had to work “near this place of emptiness and profound sadness.”(Sweeney 311) Working in that type of environment, Wilson didn’t have a lot of money if any barely surviving to keep his wife and himself happy. When Tom Buchanan, a rich, upperclass fellow was going to sell his car to Wilson, to Tom it was just a small, petty business deal. He didn’t realize how much it meant to Wilson as that money would make his living and probably one of the biggest sources of cash he was gonna get ever. It meant the world to Wilson if he would obtain that car which was very expensive if it belonged to Tom before. It meant another step forward towards achieving the American Dream. Getting an expensive, fancy car is a symbol of wealth, therefore heading in the right direction. Tom kept procastiating about giving the car to Wilson, and it didn’t bother him at all since he had so much money, he could afford it. He didn’t see the despair in Wilson’s eyes, but only

For as long as society and mankind has existed, there has been an innate desire in human beings for something better than what they currently have. In George Saunders’s “The Semplica-Girl Diaries”, a father is telling the future generation about his life through a series of diary entries. His family is relatable: middle class, has debts, car troubles, but is overall a very loving family. Although this family seems rather unordinary, their lust for the finer things in life is over amplified, making “The Semplica-Girl Diaries” almost seem like a satire. The only characters in the story that seems to have an ounce of sense is Eva, the eight year old daughter and Farmer Rich, the elderly father-in-law. The people that are old enough to understand

As the story progresses the reader is told that George has to work the fields because he’s the oldest, while his younger brothers and sisters get to go to school and learn to read and write. George lives a life of working very hard and getting paid very little but his motto is:

Introduction In the film The Great Gatsby, plenty of audiences could be surprised and interested by the luxurious and modern things like dress, parties, gorgeous villa, cars and railway. However, there is no doubt that the luxury cars are the most attractive and take all the limelight. Therefore it is a good way to explore the American culture genes in this novel from a view of cars.

Since 1986, young girl’s have been inspired by American Girl. Through the years not only have they entertained young girls but also share inspiring tale from America’s past. From tale’s about slavery, war and racism, American Girl craves to draw the attention from young girls. It gives young girls a point of view of girls their age earlier in history. American Girl wants young girls to learn that unique is rememberable. American Girl wants to portray that you can be/do anything, even if that thing has never been done before.