Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in The Flivver King, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Capitalism and Dehumanization
American Idealism and Disillusionment
Misinformation, Media Bias, and Ignorance
Individualism vs. Unionization
Technology and Progress
Summary
Analysis
When the factory reopens, Abner Shutt returns to spindle-nut screwing, and his children continue to climb the social ladder. John is promoted and receives a monthly salary; he marries the daughter of his department head, Annabelle, and buys a home in an elegant neighborhood. Daisy now works in an office of a company that makes cushions for Ford cars, earning $23.50 a week.
Daisy and John continue to fulfill the promise of Abner’s American Dream, as they rise higher and higher above his social standing and wages. However, it is notable that Abner doesn’t find the same opportunity; after more than two decades of loyal service, Abner is in exactly the same position in which he started.
Themes
Hank’s business is also thriving, but recently he landed himself in jail for manslaughter. He was defending his employer’s property—a truckload of liquor—and because Hank has powerful friends, he is able to get witnesses to testify that they were playing pool with Hank at the time.
Hank represents a counterpoint to John’s and Daisy’s success. While they find success through hard work, Hank shows that he can achieve the American dream through criminality, laying bare the corruption in some of America’s institutions.
Themes
Tommy continues his career as a football player and also continues to criticize Ford—and even the people working in the factories are starting to criticize Ford, too. Meanwhile, The KKK has become inactive and the Dearborn Independent is no longer in circulation, so Abner has no means of finding out what is wrong with the country and no way to counter Tommy’s criticisms.
Abner’s thought process here underscores the power of media bias and misinformation. Even though people around Abner like his son and his fellow workers are trying to discuss what is wrong with Ford and the country, Abner believes that the only reliable sources of information are a publication that has proven disreputable and the hate group that recruited from its subscription list.
Themes
