An American Tragedy

Cars are symbols of freedom and class in the novel. The first important car is the luxury one that Clyde and his fellow bellhops take on a joyride outside of Kansas City. When the working-class men and women are on the way out of town, the car gives them mobility that they do not have in Kansas City. The couples in the car caress each other and switch off partners, making the car a symbol for sexual freedom in particular. When the driver crashes the car speeding back to Kansas City so that the bellhops can make their shift at the hotel, the destruction of the car symbolizes the destruction of Clyde’s class aspirations.

Cars appear again after Clyde moves to Lycurgus. Sondra Finchley’s car is the site of her first meeting with Clyde, and the car emblematizes the wealth of the Finchley family. Clyde eventually goes on day trips and joy rides with other young people, giving him a taste of the liberation that comes with material wealth. Clyde’s lack of car as he takes Roberta to the place where he plans to kill her leads to his arrest later, an outcome that shows the role that class plays in Clyde’s encounters with the US legal system.