The Phenomenon of “the Other" in the context of the American Dream in American Proletarian Literature and Left-Wing Political Discourse of the 1920s and 30s

Abstract

The global crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic generated serious social upheavals, intensified the politicization of the literary process and awakens literary discourse, highlighting the “enduring reality" of national identity and social class. The proletarian literature of the USA of the 1920s and 30s and the left-wing political discourse of this period echoing it are a vivid example of understanding these issues in American society and in the life of the common man. This article aims to analyze and summarize the most fundamental aspects of American proletarian literature, as a phenomenon of the 1920s and 30s, and left-wing political discourse, shedding light on the relationship between two phenomena directly related to American identity – the "Other" and the "American Dream". The themes of identity and otherness in American history and literature of this period were critically analyzed using the example of historical documents, literary texts and theoretical studies. The novelty of the study lies in its synthesizing nature; the important aspects and patterns have been identified that combine a body of sources of various scales on the topic of the American Dream and the concept of the Other, relating to individuals or groups who are excluded from the idealized vision of success due to the existence of systemic obstacles to access to the same opportunities and results that the mainstream or dominant culture possesses. The results of the study open the way for further literary studies of the broader socio-political contexts that shaped the production and perception of proletarian literature, and their significance for the modern understanding of American society and the social challenges that it faces.