Coalhouse, Class, Dreams, and Listening to my Mother's Advice (Also, I quoted CULLEN)

A Brief Anecdote: On my first day of college, Mama Dvorak took me aside and said "Beth.  We're not successful.  We all work hard, but no one in our family is successful." She laughed as my mouth hung open, trying to sound out her words for myself.  "B-b-but, mom..."

"Oh Bethie," she said, laughing at the fact that I am easily stupefied by her advice "I'm reassuring you." 

We talked a lot in class the other day about class and how people perceive different classes.  Higher class people can be seen as braggarts and lower class people can be seen as lazy.  To quote Paige "Everyone can pull themselves up by their bootstraps!" (Note that we both laughed at the absurdity of this statement). We all want to reach that middle point, or so it seems.  The extremely wealthy people I've encountered at St. Olaf don't use the word "rich".  They say that they're "well off" or "my parents work really hard." And I'll admit, I've later mocked them behind their backs, asking "how can you determine your self-worth by what your parents make?"

But the reverse is also true.  I pride myself on being able to afford to go here; I pulled myself up by my proverbial bootstraps and I have the scholarships and grants to prove it.  Does that fact make someone seem more noble in the eyes of their peers, or less so?  We all know that there shouldn't be a stereotype surrounding who has what amount of disposable income; but since we live in an imperfect world, I'm more inclined to ask which stereotype is more palatable.  Would we rather have someone like Tateh and Coalhouse succeed, or someone like the boy?  We can argue that we're past all that, but I think that would be a lie based on the noblest of intentions-good and idealistic, but a lie nonetheless.
But to get back to my anecdote, I think the dreams of class and transcending those bonds, a dream shared by Morgan, Tateh, Ford and Coalhouse, is probably one of the primary motivators of my mother's little speech.  It took me a long time to figure out, but I think that she was trying to say, in her vague/roundabout way was this: "Beth, none of us are successful.  Your family is made up of teachers and librarians and landscapers.  You don't have to do any of those things.  You can be whatever you want.  You may not be successful to some, but you'll be happy. You're smart and beautiful and you were always my favorite."  (At least, I hope that's what she's saying).  And sometimes, people like (SPOILER IF YOU HAVEN'T FINISHED) Tateh transcend their class. The great thing about America is that we're nourished by that dream, it seems so much more attainable because it's embedded into our psyches.

  To quote Cullen: "And like other American Dreams, the power of this one lay in a sense of collective ownership: anyone can get ahead."

Maybe my mom doesn't phrase it correctly, but if her optimism doesn't reflect this, I don't know what does.