This paper analyzes the image of 1930s' Los Angeles, as seen through the eyes of two authors, Nathanael West and James Cain.
Written in 2006; 1,378 words; 2 sources; APA; $ 46.95
Paper Summary:
This paper reviews and examines James Cain's "Mildred Pierce" and Nathanael West's "The Day of the Locust." Both authors give a detailed view of Los Angeles, which has been shaped by various writers over the years, as well as by film and television depictions of the city. The writer of this paper analyzes both authors' perception of 1930s L.A. which was a different sort of city than it is today. Los Angeles in the 1930s was a city beset by a corrupt administration in City Hall, a corrupt police department and a citizenry, affected as was the rest of the country, by the economic failures of the Great Depression. This paper reviews Nathanael West's "The Day of the Locust" which is a realistic portrayal of a sub-culture in Hollywood in the 1930s which includes a non-realistic vision of the horror hiding behind the surface in that society. The writer contends that in West's novel, Hollywood represents a target, the place where people flocking to the city believe their dreams can be fulfilled if only they could get hired and be seen by the public. The writer also discusses the issue of social class as an important motivating force in the plot of Cain's "Mildred Pierce." The writer of this paper details the plots and main characters of both novels.
From the Paper:
"Social class is an important motivating force in Mildred Pierce and is a particularly strong force in the life of Veda Pierce. Mildred, her mother, has fought to build a business in a world where women rarely manage to accomplish this feat, let alone do so with the success that Mildred achieves. The Los Angeles of this novel is the area to the north, with an area of old money in Pasadena upholding an old idea of social class, and with successful entrepreneurs like Mildred creating a new moneyed class emerging from the working world and suggesting the power of the American dream for those able to make it a reality. The denizens of Hollywood want the same thing with less overt work, while people like Mildred fight their way up from strength of character and personal talent."
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