the American Dream

a prose

"Our son is better then your son

because our son is on the honor roll

at Chatsworth Private School the best

that money could buy because

we only want him associating with

the best and did you know that he

started reading at nine months

old because we bought him Your Baby

Can Read and now he's age nine reading

at a tenth grade level most intelligent kid

in his class and I hope you know that

he's going to be a doctor just like his

father and be on Xanax just like his

father but pouring out thousands of

dollars a week just like his father

and have a mental breakdown just like

his father but keep it from the neighbors

just like his father and have poster

board children that wear the most

expensive brand names and nicest things

and a chateu on the hills

with a pool and a hybrid car and

swirling stairs and

living the American dream because

we want the best for our son."

Author's Note

tell me what you think

Reviews

[外人 (Gaiji..]

That's a great parody of the american dream ! I loved it, I enjoyed reading so much, sadly the negative aspects of the American dream ... are not just American :( The whole world lives'em ! I didn't start speaking 'till I was 3, my cousin (she's as old as me) started very soon, my uncle showed it proudly to my mum that was desperate because I couldn't say a single word ... now my cousin speaks Portuguese and English, I speak Portuguese, English, Italian and French and am planning to learn Spanish and Japanese. Things change, it's silly to feel all this pressure and competition, EVERYTHING HAS ITS TIME TO HAPPEN AND IT'S DIFFERENT FOR EVERYONE.

[Celestial Witch Child]

Love the brutally unadulterated honesty.

[Sneakygnome]

I wonder if "better then" should be "better than". Unless it's poetic license. =)

[KayD]

I liked this! You hear it all the time - not quite so intense, but you have represented the flip side of the American dream. What parents want for their children is not the same as what the children may want and what a battle if the parents are competing against each other all the time. Where is the child in all of this.
Good writing

[nigrum homonculus]

damn this was very intense. almost as if a mother was frantically preaching. very well thought out and structured. well done.

[GunMetal]

This was intense. Like that cliche, "what comes around goes around." You built the tension well in this, and the format is excellent. Perfect, strong ending. I enjoyed this very much.

[Tai Ryens]

I would not go as far as to say it represents hypocrisy, but rather a misunderstanding or failed pursuit for happiness. Not all Americans nowadays (I do not mean to offend anyone) are hypocrites, but rather ignorant and optimistic. Parents do want the best for their son, but often a role model, such as an abusive alcoholic for a father, can ruin any hope for a future. They DID send a child to a top-notch private school, but the child messed up himself somewhere along the way. You see, the parents may be striving to give their child the best, but the child may take the worst instead. I'm not sure if you could comprehend this, but I am ranting again.
I'll shut up now.

Anyhoo, I enjoyed this.

[Androglossia]

It's a perfect representation of hypocrisy. Impressive POV. Great piece!

[kayla]

thx(: