What ideas of success and failure does Mamet explore in 'Glengarry Glen Ross'?
Max Rankin Page 12/18/2007 English Coursework What ideas of success and failure does Mamet explore in ‘Glengarry Glen Ross’? Introduction Mamet introduces us into a world of success and failure of salesmen in real estate, which in effect is a microcosm of the reality[a] of the U.S.A. He presents a world in which the salesmen are dominated by the fact that they need to close the leads otherwise they lose their jobs. This is a world of corrupt values where people are prepared to tread on other’s faces in order to help themselves. Their love of money is so great that they become selfish, devious, materialistic and extremely competitive. It especially judges success and failure as if you close (ABC – Always Be Closing) you win a Cadillac, come top on the board and carry on to reach the American Dream. If you fail then you lose your job and all hopes of this kind of American Dream are smashed. This is a world about being a man, being macho. If you are not man enough, you cannot close and there is no place for you in real estate. Machismo / Masculinity: The real estate world in this play is mostly about
how much of a man you are. You need to be ruthless and aggressive, it is compulsory that you close deals and you need to have the right attitude. The salesmen’s attitude towards Williamson is that they treat him just like an assistant. They know he is not a real man, he hasn’t been out on a sit and closed a lead, he is just the assistant who issues the leads to the salesmen. This is shown when Roma says to him, ‘Whoever told you you could work with men’. This suggests that Williamson is not a man and that ...
This is a preview of the whole essay
how much of a man you are. You need to be ruthless and aggressive, it is compulsory that you close deals and you need to have the right attitude. The salesmen’s attitude towards Williamson is that they treat him just like an assistant. They know he is not a real man, he hasn’t been out on a sit and closed a lead, he is just the assistant who issues the leads to the salesmen. This is shown when Roma says to him, ‘Whoever told you you could work with men’. This suggests that Williamson is not a man and that the salesmen are superior to him as they are real men because they go out on sits and close the leads. To be a real estate salesman you need brass balls and have the guts to go out into the world close, be successful and live the American Dream. You have to be prepared to stab others in the back and step on their faces in order to benefit yourself. It is about control and domination, if you are in control then you have the power and you are a man. If you are not in control, your not closing and you don’t have the right attitude and brass balls, then you are not a man and therefore have no place in real estate. An example of this is Shelly Levene, he keeps reverting back to the past when he was closing and he was a good salesman. In effect he is actually conning himself into think he is still good and is still able to close. The truth is he is not a man and not able to close, he is losing his grip and as he is coming bottom of the board he is about to lose his job. He pleads with people and rambles on, he is desperate, this is shown in the first scene where he is pleading with Williamson to give him better leads, ‘I need you help’. This quote is degrading him and shows a definite weakness, which proves he is not a man as he is not able to close the leads. He is actually begging Williamson to give him better leads, this is a desperate plea, his last chance. Levene wants pity and charity even though he says he doesn’t, he is trying to be macho. Swearing is also to be a man in real estate, each of the salesmen use pejorative language towards each other and try to diminish their power by calling them ‘child’ andgenerally swearing the whole time as in this world to swear is to be a man. The salesmen also use words like, ‘Polack’ and ‘Indians’, the American is corrupted by racism. However the Polacks and Indians are free of it all and can get on with their own lives, they are not trapped by America and the American Dream as they are socially excluded in this world created by Mamet. Persuasive Skills: Their love of money is so great that all they care about is the board and being top. The American Dream is inverted and corrupt, the salesmen are trapped they are slaves of Mitch and Murray, this is show when Moss say, ‘It’s medieval’. Not only are they slaves to Mitch and Murray, but also to money and society’s new values. The competition in the office is basically down to survival of the fittest, Always Be Closing, if the salesmen keep to this then they stay and acquire money, which was their goal and then they proceed onto the American Dream. The board is the center of attention in the office, and the salesmen’s materialistic attitudes are shown in the play as they strive to be number one and win the Cadillac. The more selfish and money-oriented they are the more they want to be top, their whole lives revolve around money and obtaining it, which shows how corrupt things have become.You cannot make a good salesman if you do not have persuasive skills as you have to convince the lead to buy the plot of land and therefore aiding you with being top of the board, which in turn helps you along with the American Dream. This is linked with love of money as if they don’t close then they lose their jobs and therefore it is difficult for them to earn money. Also without persuasive skills and manipulation you do not have your independence in this profession as you will no be able to close and you will fail in the office as well as in reality. Success comes with these language skills as then they will be able to close and A.I.D.A (Attention, Interest, Decision and Action) with that they will always be able to close and proceed to the American Dream. Conclusion: Ultimately Mamet depicts to us a world of success and failure which can be related to the U.S.A. He does this through, love of money, competition, survival of the fittest, the American Dream, Being a man / machismo, interdependence and essentially sales. The values in this world have been corrupted and in real estate in order to get anywhere you have to be a man and have brass balls[b]. [a]What he sees as the reality of the greed in 1980 America, a corruption of the American Dream [b]This is fine as a first draft but you need to spend a little more time exploring a couple of key scenes in the play and considering the way that Mamet as a writer brings to life some of the concepts of success and failure.
