November Open Prompts

1973. An effective literary work does not merely stop or cease; it concludes. In the view of some critics, a work that does not provide the pleasure of significant closure has terminated with an artistic fault. A satisfactory ending is not, however, always conclusive in every sense; significant closure may require the reader to abide with or adjust to ambiguity and uncertainty. In an essay, discuss the ending of a novel or play of acknowledged literary merit. Explain precisely how and why the ending appropriately or inappropriately concludes the work. Do not merely summarize the plot.

            No matter how well-written a piece of literature is, or how absorbed readers are in the text, there is always one thing looming in the back of the readers’ minds: the end. The end of a work is crucial in that it leaves the reader with final thoughts to ponder, or something conclusive that ties up the work. In Albee’s “The American Dream”, he uses a somewhat ambiguous and inconclusive ending in order to affect the meaning of his play. In “The American Dream” by Edward Albee, an inconclusive ending is used in order to appropriately end the work and contribute to the meaning of the play.

            The end of Albee’s play concludes in a seemingly odd place that does not leave readers with a resolution but instead some ideas to think about. The play ends with Mommy, Daddy, the Young Man, and Grandma- although now invisible to all except the audience. The play ends in an odd place because the Young Man has just been introduced as a very deep and troubled character. In the Young Man’s long monologue towards the end, he explains that he “can feel nothing” and he is only what you see and “will always be thus.”  Through this character, Albee is making a statement about the new “American Dream” and how it is shallow and superficial. Although the Young Man’s character answers some questions about the mutilated child of Mommy and Daddy, it also poses new questions that are not answered. Will Mommy and Daddy find imperfections in the Young Man and treat him as they did his twin? Have Mommy and Daddy finally achieved the satisfaction they were constantly pursuing? Grandma concludes the work by saying “Let’s leave things as they are right now...while everybody’s got what he wants…or everybody’s got what he thinks he wants.” This explains that the play will be ended at this point where it appears that everyone is happy and makes the reader wonder how long this happiness will last and what will become of the strange family.

            The inconclusive ending of Albee’s play is appropriate because it contributes to the meaning of the play. A motif throughout the work is Mommy and Daddy’s constant pursuit of satisfaction. The two often state that they just “can’t get satisfaction” these days, although are temporarily subdued by consumer purchases such as Mommy’s beige or wheat hat debacle. The syntax Albee uses in the repetition of “satisfaction” shows its importance to the meaning of the work; American society is constantly pursuing material satisfaction but can never be truly satisfied because it is so superficial. The ending of the play therefore contributes to the meaning. While Mommy and Daddy are satisfied at the moment because they’ve got something new and shiny to obsess over, Grandma’s lines make the readers think that this is only temporary and the Young Man will be replaced just like everything else. This also makes readers wonder about society and whether Americans will ever be able to find satisfaction or if they will constantly be in pursuit of such and never truly be satisfied.

            By ending the play in such a way that poses more questions to the readers than are actually answered, Albee effectively ends his play and enforces the meaning of the work. Readers are left to wonder about the family as well as their own values and the values of the American society they live in.