In his play "Waiting for Lefty", Clifford Odets attempts to stir the tired American public of the 1930s by providing examples of ordinary people who, with some coaxing, rise to the top above the capitalist disorder they inherited and took control of their destiny. In his work, Odets depicts the common man as honest, sacrificial, and exploited, while big business and government are depicted as the enemies of the proletariat, faceless corporations of rich men determined to crush their dreams. Odets makes his point clearly: to survive in the unforgiving world of Depression-era America, one must unite with others, make the necessary sacrifices, and live for oneself, not for a paycheck or in an illusory imaginary state. plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay The centerpiece of the piece, the gradual movement toward a strike for a group of taxi drivers, begins with an anti-striker , aptly named Fatt, both for his physical and fiscal qualities, giving a speech castigating the idea of ​​a strike. Using unity as a means to sedate disgruntled workers, he proclaimed: “I am against the strike. Because we must stand behind the man [FDR] who is behind us! (5) As Fatt and a man Fatt describes as a communist debate the strike, Odets launches into a short episode about a taxi driver and his wife, intended to relate as much as possible to the common man in its names simple, vernacular and emotions. Joe's reluctance to strike for more money, based mainly on fear of being blacklisted, is harshly criticized by his wife Edna: "They will push you to three or four a week before you realize it. ' too!... I know - your boss is driving you crazy every minute, boys. " (9-10) Joe remains skeptical until Odets asks Edna to make a subtle move; she threatens to strike herself. Reminding Joe of the possibility of her leaving him for an ex-boyfriend friend, she says: "Listen, boyfriend, if you think I won't do that, it just means you don't see clearly... I would leave you in one fell swoop." (11) Her audacity. wins while Joe is pushed towards the side of the strikers. The context of the strike within the family illuminates for the common man the power that workers, when united, exercise over the employer. Odet's Criticisms of Big Capital » Lack of sympathy in the second episode, which features Fayette, a corrupt industrialist, and Miller, a naive and idealistic young laboratory assistant. When Miller expresses concern about the industrialist's proposal for a new toxic gas, Fayette responds: "If big business disappeared. sentimental about human life, there would be no big deals of any kind! " Later, as Miller nostalgically describes his brother who died in World War I, Fayette is superficially apologetic: "Yes, these things stay. How is your handwriting, Miller, quite readable? » (15) The idealism of the ordinary man ends up winning out, however, after Fayette asks Miller to spy on his superiors; An angry Miller said, “Of course, hard feelings!...Nothing suave. or sophisticated about me... Enough to want to punch you and everyone like you in the mouth! » (17) The punch he lands on Fayette is a call to the workers of the United States to defend themselves and risk their lives. This phenomenon is repeated in the "workplace spy episode", when a man in the crowd chooses union over brotherly loyalty and betrays his brother, a.