In Tortilla Flat, the theme of dissatisfaction comes up in some peculiar ways. This isn't just the story of poor people who want to get ahead, or rich people who can never have enough. It's really about a whole other outlook on life, about people who aren't satisfied with ordinary, day-to-day responsibilities and routine, people who want to be totally free from property, bedtimes, and blood-alcohol limits.
Dissatisfaction comes with some serious consequences in this novel. Danny, the main character, gets so depressed that his dissatisfaction ultimately leads (spoiler alert) to his tragic death. But what's the problem here? Is Danny wrong to want what he wants? Or is society wrong for being set up the way it is? Or is it something in between?
Questions About Dissatisfaction
- Why do you think Danny is so different from his relatives? Why isn't he happy to just have a couple of houses and be an important man in Tortilla Flat?
- Danny and his friends seem to be dissatisfied with a conventional life. Which characters are dissatisfied because they want a conventional life and don't have it? How do they show their dissatisfaction?
- Do you think that Danny is doomed to his tragic death, or are there any circumstances that would have kept him alive?
Chew on This
Danny is not satisfied as a traditional landowner and would rather be free, living off the land, because his values are more about the group than about the individual.
Danny is lazy, and that is why he isn't happy being a landowner.