Collectivism vs Individualism in Glee

This episode focused on three subplots. The one in particular that I’d like to talk about is Mike’s sub plot. The subplot with Mike shows his parents cracking down on him for getting an A- in chemistry (which the show repetitively points out is “an Asian F”). This is the very common motif of Tiger mom/ dad. Throughout the episode there are scenes that show the conflict between Mike’s dream of being a dancer and desire to be involved in clubs that align with his dream. However, his parents think that this distracts him and is hurting his chance at getting into Harvard (and working towards a job as a lawyer or a doctor, his parents don’t seem to have any other requests and these are very stereotypical careers that supposedly Asian parents want for their children). This motif is very common as a plot device and mostly because at a deep level it speaks to the perceived competition between the west and the “orient”.  It is essentially a battle between the collectivism of China (where Mike’s family is from) and the individualism of the U.S. This conflict is resolved when Mike’s mom sees how important dancing is for her son and remembers how she was forced to give up her own dream for a high-income job. Clearly, what is really being shown with this plot line is how the U.S. is the ideal type of society. It shows that in the end, happiness is found in individualism and any reasonable and kind person will allow people to “follow their dreams”, which is really what America is all about, right? What it chooses to ignore is that the reason his parents do not want Mike to be a dancer is because those jobs are not valued in the U.S. highly enough for many dancer’s to make money by dancing. While Mike is perfectly allowed to follow his dream, if he is unable to make enough money dancing, he will be forced to get another job. His needs will not be met by the U.S., If he cannot pay rent or for basic living expenses, they are not necessarily guaranteed to him. While Glee will show the warm fuzzies of being able to do what you like and how cold and unfeeling Mike’s parents are for denying him those warm fuzzies, they neglect the fact that the U.S.’s individualism has amounted to a complete disregard for the needs of others.