In the stories “The Glass Menagerie,” “Death of a Salesman,” and “A Raisin in the Sun,” there are many things in common. The most common thing in all of them, I felt, was how all the families had “American” problems. In “The Glass Menagerie,” the “American” problem was a family dealing with an ill member.
It also dealt with a mother who was delusional and not the nicest person. In “Death of a Salesman,” the main “American” problem was alcohol. Alcoholism is something that affects most families. In this play, the family was also struggling to keep up with things, which is something most of us face in life. Adultery also took place in this play, which unfortunately occurs in some families in America.
“A Raisin in the Sun,” as old as it might be, dealt with the prejudice that is everywhere, even in today’s world. Americans are constantly dealing with criticism for being the wrong color, overweight, or even, in some cases, the wrong religion. The other “American” problems were the father drinking and the issue of abortion.
Abortion is something that has taken place more in society every day. All these families, despite their problems, had one genuine thing in common: they wanted their families to be better. In “The Glass Menagerie,” all the mother wanted was for her daughter to have someone to take care of her, which was important to her.
In “Death of a Salesman,” Willy only wanted the best for his family. He struggled in his job and was always upset when he couldn’t reach his goal of buying something for his family. He wanted to better his career for his family. In “A Raisin in the Sun,” the main character Beneatha, head of the house, wanted to fulfill his dreams to create a better life for his family. He was frustrated when he realized that he might not even be able to put pearls around his wife’s neck “like every wife should have,” according to him.
