Most of Simon's works are based on his own life. Growing up as a working-class Jewish-American during the Depression has greatly influenced Simon and his works. While the "Brighton Beach Memoirs" trilogy is considered the most autobiographical of all of his plays, elements of his own life can be seen also in "Lost in Yonkers" and "The Odd Couple." It is widely accepted that Neil Simon represents himself as a teenager in Eugene, the main character, in the "Brighton Beach Memoirs" trilogy.
Simon addresses many painful situations through humor, deflecting potentially serious situations with a quick-witted line or two. In his plays, situations such as poverty, war and marital trouble are almost always deflected through a humorous line or two, making this a strong literary technique used in his plays. Most of his plays touch on serious situations, but would be classified strictly as neither dramas nor comedies.
Neil Simon is famous for the one-liners his characters utter. They often have quick retorts or deliver a snazzy one-liner in response to a question. For example, in "Brighton Beach Memoirs," Eugene's mother asks him what he would tell his father if he came home to his mother dead on the kitchen floor. Eugene retorts with "I'd say 'Don't go in the kitchen, pa.'"
While many of Simon's autobiographical texts reflect his working-class Jewish upbringing, it is his ability to write for a universal audience that has made his plays so loved. Plays such as "Barefoot in the Park" reflect the universal ups and downs of newlywed life, while "Brighton Beach Memoirs" and "Lost in Yonkers" discuss the idiosyncrasies of families, family togetherness, sibling rivalry and the tensions many families feel living together. Although the characters are poor Jewish families, they are very relatable no matter the ethnicity of the reader or audience.