This  paper  examines  Roddy  Doyle’s  The  Van  as  a  poignant  literary reflection  of  the  affective  condition  of  individuals  living  under  neoliberal restructuring in late 20th-century Ireland. Focusing on Jimmy Sr., a laid-off working-class father, the study argues that his persistent yet futile pursuit of a “good life” through a food truck business embodies Lauren Berlant’s concept of  cruel  optimism.  Jimmy  Sr.’s  daily  struggles  in  The  Van  reflect  the precarious  condition  of  individuals  navigating  life  under  neoliberalism.  For Jimmy, the truck becomes a source of modest achievement and a symbolic vehicle for the hope of a better life. Despite his small moments of happiness, Jimmy  Sr.  remains  trapped  in  an  impasse,  revealing  the  exhaustion  and affective  damage  caused  by  clinging  to  unattainable  ideals.  Jimmy  Sr.’s condition exemplifies what Lauren Berlant defines as situation tragedy, a genre emerging from the instability of the neoliberal public sphere. Unlike sitcoms, where disruption leads to harmless humor, situation tragedy reveals a world already too fragile, where even minor actions can collapse the fantasies that sustain life. Trapped between partial inclusion and total exclusion, Jimmy Sr. clings to the illusion of normalcy, only to find himself relegated to a social nonplace marked by anxiety, exhaustion, and loss of recognition. Ultimately, The Van critiques neoliberalism’s erosion of solidarity and stable subjectivity by  portraying  the  protagonist’s  regression  into  childlike  helplessness  and disillusionment.