Themes and Meanings
The junkshop in which Mamet sets American Buffalo presents a parodic model for all commercial enterprises and reveals the triviality of all relationships associated with commercial ventures. Mamet himself has suggested that this indictment of business enterprises indeed forms one of the themes of the play: “The play is about the American ethic of business.” The ethic that dominates the interplay between the three characters in the play is a tawdry display of predatorial selfishness. The burglary is a venture in which Teach demands an exclusive role, in which Don expects to regain his dignity after supposedly being swindled out of greater profits from his buffalo-head nickel, and in which Bob attempts to achieve affirmation of his relationship with Don. The egoism that characterizes the actions of the characters is an indictment of the acquisitive society; the buffalo-head nickel and the other scattered artifacts that litter the junkshop represent the fragmented lives and relationships governed by mercantilism.
Another aspect of this business ethic that predominates in the play is the paranoia that infects Teach and affects his treatment of Don and Bob. Mamet uses Teach as the spokesperson for the peculiar business ethic that empowers the play, and his definition of free enterprise is itself a doctrine of selfishness: any individual is titled “To Embark On Any . . . Cause he sees fit” for his own personal gain. The paranoia that pulsates in Teach’s diatribes against Gracie and Ruthie and in his suspicion of Bob are interwoven with his sense of business as an essentially manipulative relationship. His insecurity over his participation in the burglary hints at the insubstantiality of his relationship with Don and with the other characters he mentions. His vitriolic attacks on Gracie and Ruthie for an apparent slight are exaggerated outpourings of the frustration that threatens his involvement with Don. Business is the only relationship he shares with Don, who has indeed established a more sensitive bond with Bob, though it too is fragile enough to be undermined when Don feels his integrity threatened by a misplaced trust in Bob.
Fear of failure, and perhaps especially of the unrelenting shame when failure is made public, appears to motivate the verbal drama in the play. It also accounts for Bob’s frenetic entrances and exits, for Teach’s vituperative attacks on anybody who has succeeded (Fletcher had both won at poker and made a profit selling pig-iron purchased from Ruthie), and for Don’s submission to Teach’s fables of the American enterprise. Each character possesses a hollowness which he fills with expletives and business metaphors as a means of avoiding moments of self-recognition. Teach’s hostility toward Fletcher—and toward Gracie and Ruthie—stems from the lack of his own participation in any successful venture. His attack on Bob at the play’s end is thus a defensive action, because he is hoping to destroy any possibility that Bob’s story about Fletcher’s mugging may suspend the only enterprise capable of offering him any success. Ironically, the attack forces him out of the enterprise by bonding Bob and Don’s fragile relationship. The last scene reinforces their participation in a bond from which Teach has been excluded, and their presence onstage as the lights dim transcends the purely commercial ventures that have littered the play’s earlier action.
Themes
Last Updated October 3, 2024.
Friendship
In the opening scene of American Buffalo , Don is advising Bob on the necessity of fully committing to their "business" arrangement. Bob is supposed to be keeping an eye on their robbery target but has returned to the junk shop instead. Don emphasizes the importance of...
(This entire section contains 1204 words.)
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action by saying, "Action counts. Action talks and bullshit walks." When Bob apologizes, Don reassures him, "Don't tell me you're sorry, I'm not mad at you." This exchange reveals to the audience that Don genuinely wants to help Bob become more savvy in their unique line of work. He encourages Bob to emulate Fletcher, a "standup guy" and skilled card player who had to "learn" his way to success. Don stresses to Bob the significance of attitude and intelligence when navigating the business world: "Everything, Bobby: it's going to happen to you, it'snot going to happen to you, the important thing is can you deal with it, and can you learn from it."
Don's role as a father figure to Bob is evident through the guidance he provides on various subjects. When he sends Bob to the diner for coffee, he insists on Bob getting something for himself, reminding him that "Breakfast is the most important meal of the day"; later, he encourages Bob to take vitamins. However, his most crucial lesson revolves around friendship: "There's lotsa people on this street, Bob, they want this and they want that. Do anything to get it. You don't have friends this life..." The implied conclusion—"is worth nothing"—illustrates the high value Don places on friendship and mutual protection from the world's "garbage." As the play unfolds, Bob is revealed to be a drug addict, often asking Don for money to support his habit, which Don "lends" him without demanding explanations. By the play's end, Don sacrifices his friendship with Bob for business reasons, leading to significant regret as he realizes he has not adhered to his own advice. The final scene depicts their relationship being mended, with Don attempting to make up for questioning Bob's loyalty.
Similar to Don, Teach views friendship as an unassailable virtue. He enters the scene fuming at Ruthie, a mutual friend, for making a joke when he took a piece of toast from her plate at the diner. Her sarcastic quip, "Help yourself," infuriates Teach, who reminds Don of all the times he's paid for their meals. He declares, "All I ever ask (and I would say this to her face) is only she remembers who is who and not to go around with her or Gracie either with this attitude. 'The Past is Past, and this is Now, and so Fuck You.'" Ruthie's comment wounds Teach because she fails to adhere to the friendship code he believes he upholds.
Yet, when Teach spots an opportunity to make "real classical money" in Don's robbery plan, he quickly tries to persuade Don to cut Bob out. Masking his greed as "good business," Teach argues that Bob, despite being Don's friend, is unsuitable for the job: "A guy can be too loyal, Don. Don't be dense on this. What are we saying here? Business." When Don eventually excludes Bob and their plan starts to unravel, Teach insinuates that Bob has betrayed them—a baseless claim that Don accepts until the play's final scene, where he realizes that he has betrayed Bob under the guise of "good business."
Success and Failure
Don and Teach are minor gamblers and thieves who frequently recite sayings they
believe demonstrate their "business" acumen: "Things are not always what they
seem to be," "You got to keep clear who your friends are," "Don't confuse
business with pleasure," and "You got to trust your instincts" are just a few
of their many mantras. Don advises Bob on "good business," while Teach insists
to Don that Bob should be excluded from the robbery because, as a "business"
deal, they "cannot afford" someone with Bob's inexperience to break into a
house.
Despite what the characters claim, anyone observing the play can easily see that their theory doesn't translate into reality. The audience learns a poker game took place in the shop the previous night, where Don supposedly "did all right" (likely an understatement), while Teach ended up "not too good." During a discussion about the game, Teach blames his loss on Ruthie's alleged cheating, claiming, "She is not a good cardplayer," because her "partner" is always "going to walk around," presumably to peek at everyone's cards. (Teach later accuses Fletcher, the previous night's winner, of cheating as well.) When Teach quizzes Don using a collector's guide about which coins they should steal from their next target's collection, Don reveals his lack of expertise by guessing a coin's value as $18.60, when it's actually only worth twenty cents. Later, as Teach attempts to call the collector's home to confirm he's not there, he repeatedly mixes up the phone number, leading to confusion and frustration instead of the "planning" and "preparation" they aspire to. Both Don and Teach are fully committed to the myths surrounding "business" and its practice but fail because their knowledge is based on sayings rather than experience.
DeceptionAmerican Buffalo unfolds through implication and suggestion rather than explicit events. As they plan the robbery, Don and Teach agree to meet Fletcher at the junk shop at 11:00 that night. Bob has been told he will not participate, and the two would-be thieves are confident their planning will lead to a successful "shot."
However, when Teach arrives at the shop after 11:15 and finds Bob there, the audience, along with the characters, becomes suspicious. Bob is attempting to sell Don a buffalo-head nickel, similar to the one they initially intended to steal before Teach joined the play. Don is angry about Teach's lateness, while Teach is equally upset about Bob's presence in the shop. Their tension escalates when Fletcher doesn't show up and can't be reached by phone. Teach then starts suggesting that Bob, Fletcher, and Ruthie have already stolen the coins and that Bob is trying to sell the buffalo nickel to Don for quick cash. When Bob claims Fletcher was mugged and hospitalized with a broken jaw, Don calls the hospital to verify but is told Fletcher was never admitted. Convinced they are being tricked, Teach hits Bob on the head. Don, who used to protect Bob, quietly says, "We didn't want to do this to you." At this point, the audience is fully convinced that Bob has betrayed the two men.
The real deception in the story isn't between Bob and the two men, but rather between Mamet and the audience. The playwright misleads the audience into thinking that Bob has betrayed Don and Teach by lying about Fletcher's absence. However, this isn't true: Ruthie contacts Don to inform him of a different hospital where Fletcher has been admitted. It is revealed that Bob did not steal the nickel from the intended victim's house. Driven by their greed for "business" and the belief that everyone shares their cynical values, Don and Teach ultimately fall victim to their own perspectives. As a result, Teach ends up as a speechless fool, and Don is left to attempt to mend his friendship with Bob.