Point of Inquiry: How does the promise of upward mobility in America (the American
Dream) contrast with the experiences of working-class Americans?
Allentown What triggered Billy Joel to write this song?
Observations
by Billy Joel
Overall tone of melancholy and disillusionment. About the decline of Connections
American heavy industry and manufacturing in the 70s-80s
Questions
[Verse 1]
Known for production and mining
Closing factories, killing time,
Well, we're living here in Allentown lling forms, standing in line;
connotations with mundane life
and worsening situations
And they're closing all the factories down
AABB Rhyme scheme
Bethlehem refers to a city in Virginia,
Out in Bethlehem, they're killing time
Contrast between generations
neighboring Allentown, steel industry in decline.
Suggesting the decline is reaching Allentown
Filling out forms, standing in line
WW2, Jersey shore, USO, dance;
Well, our fathers fought the Second World War connotations with heroism,
tradition, family. Nostalgia for a
prosperous past
Spent their weekends on the Jersey Shore
United Service Organizations, provides
Met our mothers at the USO service to US armed forces
Asked them to dance, danced with them slow
[Chorus]
Repetition of we’re living here in
And we're living here in Allentown Allentown to convey the feeling of
being stuck (ongoing struggle),
changes to ‘waiting’ to show
But the restlessness was handed down worsening conditions.
And it's getting very hard to stay
[Verse 2]
Well, we're waiting here in Allentown
fi
For the Pennsylvania we never found What did the speaker expect?
Even when they did what was expected, what was
For the promises our teachers gave promised was not achieved. Betrayal
Irony, disillusionment of the belief of the
If we worked hard, if we behaved American dream and education as a
pathway to success
So the graduations hang on the wall Today, some people also feel a sense of
worsening conditions or a lack of
improvement (increasing costs of living,
But they never really helped us at all wages stagnating, etc.) With the rising
cost of college, people, especially in the
US, also question the value of higher
No they never taught us what was real education.
Iron and coke, chromium steel Cacophony, Imagery of industry
[Chorus]
And we're waiting here in Allentown
But they've taken all the coal from the ground
Allentown being emptied
And the union people crawled away “crawled” - suggests humiliated, forced away.
As industry declines, unions lost power
[Bridge]
Every child had a pretty good shot
Belief of upwards mobility and equality
To get at least as far as their old man got
But something happened on the way to that place
They threw an American ag in our face sarcastic remark about empty patriotism
What does this symbolize? Dismissal of patriotic Deindustrialization justi ed with cheaper
pride, or an accusation of the weaponization of the goods and better jobs, but ended up
American Dream to silence grievances? harming the people, and the promise of
better jobs not given.
[Chorus]
fi
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“We” created a voice of shared frustration,
changes to “I” to create a personal connection
to the listener, admission of defeat.
Changes back to ‘living’, despite
Well, I'm living here in Allentown pessimism, possibly accepts the
conditions and leaves room for hope.
And it's hard to keep a good man down
Irony, starts with optimism, then
the next line undercuts it.
But I won't be getting up today
Today suggests temporary
Exhausted, hopeless
[Outro]
And it's getting very hard to stay
Despite di culties, the speaker still
And we're living here in Allentown remains in Allentown.
ffi