Play: Curse of the Starving Class

Introduction
"Curse of the Starving Class" (1978) is a play composed by American playwright and star Sam Shepard. It checks out the styles of family dysfunction, dreams of a better life, and the American dream's dark side. Embed in a rundown farmhouse in southern California, it informs the story of the Tate family and their unending cycle of hardship, despair, and futility.

The play is structured as a three-act drama, with the first act centered on the problems dealing with the household; the 2nd act concentrated on how their lives are impacted by external events; and the 3rd act exposing the terrible cycle that appears to be their curse.

Characters and Setting
The main characters within the play are the members of the Tate household: Weston Tate (the daddy), Ella Tate (the mother), Wesley Tate (the boy), and Emma Tate (the child). In addition, there are three other characters who play bit parts: Ellis, the owner of a close-by bar; Malcolm, Ella's one-time enthusiast; and Slater, a harsh and manipulative individual who basically alerts the family about the auctioning of their home. The setting is the cluttered and worn out Tate home, showing the sense of decay and poverty surrounding menstruation household.

Plot Summary
"Curse of the Starving Class" starts with a hungover Weston returning house to find the front door damaged. This leads to a fight in between him and his other half, Ella, who grumbles about their monetary woes, the reality that Weston invests the majority of his earnings on alcohol, and her own desire to leave and begin anew in Europe. Their boy, Wesley, attempts to repair the front door and avoid a raccoon from consuming their staying food, which is symbolic of the household's predicament and perpetual hunger. The very first act ends with Emma, the daughter, angry and harmed about her mother's plans to leave and her bro's evident indifference to this fact.

In the second act, more of the household's dysfunctional relationships are exposed, with Wesley urinating on Emma's job as an act of retaliation, while Ella participates in an affair with Malcolm. Weston returns home to discover the ruined door has been replaced with a brand-new one, but the original financial obligation is still owed. Ellis, the bar owner, hounds Weston's every move in hopes of recovering the financial obligation, leading to a major scuffle within the bar. Weston then brings house a big bag of groceries to feed his household, while Emma tries to escape by stealing a horse that eventually passes away from eating poisoned meat.

The 3rd act starts with the revelation that Weston, who had intended to offer the family house, had actually already been cheated out of the home by the vicious and manipulative Slater who prepares to auction it off. This drives Weston to a state of intense vulnerability and fear. Wesley, in a desperate attempt to save their land, brings a real estate agent to your house, however stops working to make any development. Emma, on the other hand, imagine running away and working as a stripper to accomplish success. The play ends unfortunately, with Wes and Weston burying the dead horse, a symbol of the family's despondence and defeat.

Styles
The play dives deep into themes like household dysfunction, hardship, hunger, and the disillusionment of the American dream. The recurring concept of the starving class is represented through the consistent battle for food and sustenance, in addition to the symbolic act of the raccoon attempting to take their food. The characters are caught in a cycle they can not seem to get away, despite their dreams and desires to transform their circumstances. The play ultimately works as a commentary on the brokenness and despondence that typically surrounds the forgotten and impoverished American household.