Paper Summary:

This essay looks at Victorian vs. non-Victorian literature and how each portrays the American Dream. Discussed are Kate Chopin's "The Awakening," Edith Wharton's "The Other Two," Ernest Hemingway's "The Sun Also Rises," and Upton Sinclair's "The Jungle."

From the Paper:

"The United States has come to be known as the land of opportunity. It has always had the allure as the one place on earth where empty lives can find fulfillment. This allure has come to be described as the "American Dream." Through the decades the American dream has taken many transformations, from being one of simply freedom to practice one's religion to one of desired wealth and riches. Moreover, the dream has had different meanings to each gender. For women, the dream has generally been choices, for men, power. From the Victorian era to the modern era, American literature has shown the changes in the dream. Kate Chopin and Edith Wharton are two examples of female authors that depict the lives and desires of the Victorian era, while authors Upton Sinclair and Ernest Hemingway show the post-Victorian American dream from a masculine perspective."

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