FAST FOOD: The Small-Scale American DREAM

The American dream: rise up from the position in which you are born, make money, give your kids a better life than your own. White picket fence, two kids, golden retriever. Opportunity, possibility, a wide open future. American fast food: large quantities of burgers, french fries, chicken fingers for inexpensive prices. Processed and packaged with cheap plastic toys to make it more appealing to children. Made as quickly as possible, so restaurant patrons can get back to work and keep striving to attain their dreams, which supersede concerns about quality and enjoyment. How do these two concepts – the dream and the food that fuels it – correlate?

American fast food restaurants champion speed, affordability, and taste. While their meals can be unsatisfying, they are available to everyone. McDonald’s does not dis criminate. It sits there, waiting, in every town, every strip mall, and every highway rest stop, ready to provide consistent food at a moment’s notice for anyone who pulls up to the drive-thru.

Sophomore year of high school, a friend of mine spent her first-ever paycheck at Culver’s and was delighted to find she had so much money left afterwards. There is something quite satisfying about knowing that your job allows you to afford a delicious meal, even if you are a teenager making minimum wage. At Dairy Queen, Culver’s, Wendy’s, you can provide for yourself and your family – even give them an exciting night out – no matter your financial situation. When you bite into a slice of Domino’s pizza, the world feels like it’s yours, like it’s ready for you to succeed because anything is possible.

However, certain aspects of fast food contrast distinctly with the American ideal. Their meals, while affordable, have an insubstantial quality that makes them ultimately unsatisfying. The first bite of a McDonald’s burger is delicious, but ten bites later it is gone. And despite the quarter-pounder’s high calorie count, it’s hard to feel full after a five-minute meal. Fast food’s accessibility forces people to choose between quality and money when picking a place to eat. Perhaps this is a reflection of the time and work that goes into a fast food meal. Each receives only the minimal attention necessary to defrost, heat up, and package before the cook moves on to the next one. With that in mind, it’s not hard to see how the rewards of eating a quick, low-quality meal – momentary gratification and a fleeting sense of enjoyment – correspond directly with the way it is made.

The disparity between fast food’s democratizing effect – making an agreeable experience available for all – and its frustrating lack of actual substance illustrates the unexpected duality of the American dream. McDonald’s is the American dream in miniature. Although it promises satisfaction, rewards for one’s work, and happiness, any indulging in this dream leads to an unsettling feeling that it is just a facade. Those who partake barely have time to enjoy its best parts before it is over. They spend so much time talking about it and worrying over it and working towards it that it is gone before it is really even started. As with those who purchase fast food, people who exert their time and effort to attain the American dream may find that when they get it, they don’t want it, and the price – while appearing small – was too high.

By Olivia Schmitt