Reading the Classics discussion

This week we will be reading and discussing Part 2, Chapters 26-37.

Dreiser lets us live inside the heads of his characters. Sometimes, I enjoy this, as it helps to learn what makes people tick, instead of only judging by actions. For example, in the relatively brief encounter with the doctor, I appreciated his thought process. On the other hand, Clyde’s, and even Roberta’s mental vacillations make me want to ring their necks. Is this the same as the more contemporary style known as stream of consciousness?

Dreiser’s descriptions are sometimes very detailed, helping the reader to feel transported into the story, to observe firsthand. I wish he used language more like this, rather than making us live inside Clyde’s hopeless head.

I kind of appreciate the internal points of view here, and wasn't sure earlier that I would. AAT is concerned with psychology, in much the same way Crime & Punishment is, and I feel like getting to know the principal characters 'from the inside out' gets us more emotionally invested for the major traumas ahead.

I will say that from the very slow start, the novel has become much more interesting. I'm up to about B2C32, and it's fascinating to see the machinations of 1920s society and wealth. There are still significant class differences today (as we know all too well), but it's amazing to see how much more caste-like it was back then: wherever you were, that's where you were expected to stay, and that's it. No social mobility whatsoever.

The November read (The Portrait of Dorian Gray) is also concerned with psychology, so it's interesting to be reading them side by side.

I totally agree...the novel does pick up as the book and characters develop. Dreiser is definitely wordy, but does a great job laying the foundation for the plot and allowing the reader to develop a connection (good and bad) with the characters. The '20s definitely showed the gap between wealth and working class, leading up to the Depression. I'm sure it was largely based on pedigree/family wealth and position who also were educated

Serendipity strikes again! Along with The American Tragedy, I am currently reading Mistakes Were Made (But Not By Me) by Carol Tavris and Elliot Aronson, a study on the psychology of cognitive dissonance. The authors argue that all humans seek to justify themselves and their own actions even in the face of overwhelming evidence that they are wrong. Though Dreiser knew nothing of the term cognitive dissonance, he obviously understood the concept because we see it in all his characters, especially Clyde, who is a poster child of cognitive dissonance.

Alan wrote: "Serendipity strikes again! Along with The American Tragedy, I am currently reading Mistakes Were Made (But Not By Me) by Carol Tavris and Elliot Aronson, a study on the psychology of cognitive diss..."

It's partly to do with what's going on where I am in the book, but I think of Roberta as an innocent, the protagonist (which I suppose she is?), apart from the deeper flaws of the other characters, especially - as you say - Clyde.

So true, Alan..It's almost painful to watch these characters slip into cognitive dissonance behaviors.

At the end of B2C37, Clyde and Roberta are in quite a fix. And Clyde is proving both inept at helping her out of it, and unwilling to do what he should. His defining characteristics would seem to be ambition and selfishness. He has no sense of duty to anyone but himself.

I could almost feel the desperation that Roberta must have been feeling when she was speaking to the physician. The fact Clyde had her go alone infuriated me!

Erika wrote: "I could almost feel the desperation that Roberta must have been feeling when she was speaking to the physician. The fact Clyde had her go alone infuriated me!"

I agree with you! Clyde is pretty clearly despicable. He convinced her to violate her own principles with promises he couldn't possibly have thought through, and now we find that with his attention diverted, he has no intention of keeping them.

It's hard for us to imagine how much damage that would do to a woman of limited/no means in the early part of the 20th century. And Clyde is far more worried about disruption to his plans that anything to do with Roberta or the many and serious risks this situation poses for her.

I think his self-preservation concerns are what makes me the most angry. Several times I thought he was actually thinking of Roberta, but he was only thinking about how it affects him.

It is impossible to sympathize with Clyde. I would have expected that his sister’s experience would induce him to help Roberta. A selfish coward, he can’t seem to make sacrifices at all, such as most adults must. Adulting 101: F

Jerilyn wrote: "It is impossible to sympathize with Clyde. I would have expected that his sister’s experience would induce him to help Roberta. A selfish coward, he can’t seem to make sacrifices at all, such as mo..."

Not only does his sister's experience not serve to influence him to HELP Roberta... but a little beyond last week's reading, Clyde actually rationalizes his decision to NOT marry her by thinking about how his sister was 'just fine', despite that the father of her child skipped out on her. There's nothing Clyde will not sacrifice to preserve his ambitions.

It is painful to see Clyde's self-serving and destructive behavior. I find myself wanting to grab him by the collar and shake him...what a pathetic figure.