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Understanding the Disillusionment of the American Dream

1. DIRECTIONS: Before you watch the music video of this song, annotate the lyrics for tone and main idea. Think about the tone of the chorus and how the versus of the song support that tone. What is the main idea of this song, and how do the verses and chorus support that?

“Pink Houses” by John Mellencamp

There's a black man with a black cat livin' in a black neighborhood
He's got an interstate runnin' through his front yard
You know he thinks that he's got it so good
And there's a woman in the kitchen cleanin' up the evenin' slop
And he looks at her and says, "Hey darlin', I can remember when
you could stop a clock."
Chorus:

Oh but ain't that America for you and me
Ain't that America somethin' to see baby
Ain't that America home of the free
Little pink houses for you and me
There's a young man in a t-shirt
Listenin' to a rockin' rollin' station
He's got greasy hair, greasy smile
He says, "Lord this must be my destination."
'Cause they told me when I was younger
"Boy you're gonna be president."
But just like everything else those old crazy dreams
Just kinda came and went
Repeat Chorus
Well there's people and more people
What do they know knowknow
Go to work in some high rise
And vacation down at the Gulf of Mexico
Ooh yeah
And there's winners and there's losers
But they ain't no big deal
'Cause the simple man baby pays for the thrills, the bills,
the pills that kill
Repeat Chorus

2. Find two separate lyrics from this song that you think demonstrate the disillusionment of the American Dream. Explain why you think each lyric supports the disillusionment of the American Dream.

Lyrics / Explanation
1.
2.

3. Describe the tone for this song. Explain why you feel this song possesses this tone.

4. Watch the “Pink Houses” by John Mellencamp music video on YouTube. As you watch this video think about the images presented that show what “America” is. List at least four images below that support the toneof the lyrics.

5. Think about the tone of the music in comparison to the tone of the lyrics. This is an interesting juxtaposition (toplaceclosetogetherorsidebyside,especiallyforcomparisonorcontrast). What purpose do you think this juxtaposition serves to the meaning of the song? Why would John Mellencamp place these two opposite tones together in the same song?

6. Based on what you learned about Modernism and the ideas presented in this song, define the death of the American Dream. (Create a definition for the death of the American Dream.) What do you think causes the death of the American Dream? Why do you think the people in the songs experienced this “death”?