Structuralism, Maternal Authority, and Social Struggle in Clifford Odets’ Awake and Sing!

Abstract

The current study explores the representation of maternal authority and its intersection with structuralist dynamics and socio-economic struggles in Clifford Odets’ Awake and Sing! through the character of Bessie Berger. Positioned as the central force within the Berger household, Bessie embodies a maternal figure whose dominance has a negative impact on the relationship with her children by using them as tools to fulfill her dreams. By applying a structuralism, alongside an analysis of maternal authority and social struggles, the study examines the binary oppositions of control versus freedom and materialism versus idealism, highlighting the tensions between Bessie’s authority pursuit of financial stability and the aspirations of her children. It further investigates how Bessie’s maternal authority and her role as a mother, shaped by her immigrant background and the economic instability of the 1930s. Through Bessie’s actions and relationships, Odets critiques the dehumanizing pressures of capitalism and its impact on the aspirations of the younger generation. Ultimately, this study presents a comprehensive analysis of Awake and Sing!, a play that depicts the struggles of the Berger family, a lower-middle-class Jewish household living in a small Bronx apartment in 1935. Set against the backdrop of the Great Depression, the Bergers grapple with preserving their middle-class aspirations amidst economic hardship. At the center of the narrative is Bessie Berger, the domineering matriarch, whose materialistic values and obsession with social status shape the family’s dynamics. Bessie compels her husband, Myron, and her son, Ralph, to increase their earnings and coerces her pregnant daughter, Hennie, into an unfulfilling marriage, all in pursuit of maintaining appearances.