The American Dream is a key theme in the narrative. Paul's father and the residents of Cordelia Street, a "perfectly respectable" middle-class area, uphold values centered on hard work, family, and church involvement. During their free time, they share stories about their employers, the "captains of industry," who rose from humble beginnings to lead major corporations and enjoy luxurious lifestyles. Paul despises the mundane existence of Cordelia Street's residents, who believe that diligence will eventually grant them such glamorous lives. However, Paul shares their dream of becoming wealthy and living without worries. He enjoys hearing the "legends of the iron kings" and, despite his disdain for the "cash-boy stage," longs for the "triumphs of the cash boys who became famous."

Paul briefly achieves a life of leisure and beauty, but not through hard work—only through deceit and crime. This allows him to enter what he sees as his true world, the high life of New York City, symbolized by the Waldorf Hotel. In this opulent environment, Paul feels that "his surroundings explained him." He understands that "this was what all the struggle was about" and that "money was everything." Cather invites readers to ponder whether the American dream of wealth corrupted Paul, instilling in him a destructive love of materialism that ultimately leads to his demise.