The conclusion of Freitag’s article, “Playing the American Dream”, argues that while there were American published board games that challenged the notions of capitalism or American idealism their short lived popularity only furthers the overall argument of the paper that American game boards outline the emergence of true capitalism. These exceptions say more about a very distinct historical time, than they do about the progression of the American spirit.  While being fleeting they are cultural relics of America’s subcultures.  They illuminate the multitude of conflicting consciousnesses present in America at any given time.  The evolution of the way in which “success” is attained in the United States starting in the early nineteenth century and progressing into the twentieth century is outlined in much detail by Freitag, Adams & Edmonds, and Hofer. The use of board games as sources to promote their arguments is fascinating, but I appreciate the induction of the misfits into the story. The misfits not only show the conflicting nature of what it means to be American but also the fleeting nature of the American struggle. Class Stuggle, described by Freitag, is the best example. Invented in 1978 as a pass time with a Socialist agenda, the game’s three outcomes were Socialism, the persistence of capitalism, or nuclear war.  The cover of the board game features Neslon Rockefeller and Karl Marx arm wrestling, with the inscription “to prepare for life in capitalist America — an educational game for kids from 8 to 80.”  Socialism may not be an active subculture today, but at the time of the games publication Socialism’s fight against Communism was a very important part of the American consciousness. The game excellently portrays the effect that an American subculture had on the general public, or at the very least that the number of subscribers to the Socialist subculture was great enough to warrant its own board game.  Hofer, displays images of games with outright racist sentiments.  The most striking of which was Jim Crow Ten Pins. The game’s box shows a smiling black man holding a ball in a field, with pins being knocked down by a bowling ball in the background (Hofer, p. 20). The aim of the game is similar to bowling, but in this case the pins being knocked down, are “minstrel figures” or black comedians in layman terms (Hofer, p.20). The dissected maps of America while crafty educational tools, were placed in boxes representing racist ideals of their creators.  The box of the 1887 edition depicts an imposing Lady Liberty reading a geography book to a slight Native American man. The 1900 edition while trying to display the elements of the American melting pot, depicts an African American women without clothes, without culture, when compared to the European immigrants clad in their countries finest customary dress (Hofer, p. 60).  Imperialism and racism were both prominent parts of the American way, both were considered vital parts of the capitalist system during the rise of mass produced board games. Yet these doctrines have been widely discredited, and are not to be found so overtly in the board games of today. Further examples can be found in Adams & Edmond, particularly with the original Parker Brother’s games all based heavily in the current events and culture of the time, i.e. Rough Riders and World’s Fairs. The overall history of board games is more readily filled with examples of failure then persistence.  Freitag’s, Exception Proves the Rule is factual; none of these games can be found nestled between Monopoly and The Game of Life.  But its important to remember what the exception does prove; American culture is not homogeneous, there are always exceptions to the rule, even if the exceptions are fleeting.