Comparing The American Dream In 'The Way To Wealth'

Henry David Thoreau was a great American writer, philosopher, and naturalist of the 1800’s who’s writings have influenced many famous leaders in the 20th century, as well as in his own lifetime. Henry David Thoreau was born in Concord, Massachusetts in 1817, where he was later educated at Harvard University. Thoreau was a transcendentalist writer, which means that he believed that intuition and the individual conscience “transcend” experience and are better guides to truth than are the senses and logical reason (Prentice Hall 1174). Thoreau is well known for writing Walden Pond, Excursions, The Maine Woods, Cape Cod, and A Yankee in Canada. In 1849 Henry David Thoreau wrote an essay

What truly is the “American Dream”? Furthermore, during the Great Depression, even the concept of the “American Dream” was not readily available and was no more than a fallacy at the time. For the 2 protagonists in Of Mice And Men, their dream, like many others, was to “live off the fatta the land” and become independent. However, this was not such an easy task at the time, not just because of the rough economic times, but because people of that era still had World War 2 still very fresh in their minds, with the harbored hatred and untrust that came along with it. Nevertheless, for the millions who died in the course of the war, this “American Dream” was not only something worth living for it was something dying for too. However, in the novella Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, the author emphasizes that the dreams and hopes were delusions and has a grim outlook on living life in search of a dream.

As America continued to grow and developed so did its writers. A major changed came with writers such as Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau. Emerson was an American philosopher, poet and the leader of the Transcendentalist movement. This movement started as a protest against the current state of the society and culture; and was based on a fundamental belief in the unity of the world and God. "Emerson declared literary independence in the United States and urged Americans to create a writing style all their own and free from Europe" (Ralph). This type of methodology is easily portrayed in his two stories, The American Scholar, and Self Reliance. Thoreau was a nonconformist and attempted to live his life at all times according to his rigorous principles, which became the subject of many of his writings. In "Walden", Thoreau not only tests the theories of Transcendentalism, he re-enacts the collective American experience of the 19th century, living on the frontier. The overall story of "Walden" is in fact a view on Thoreau's radical and controversial perspective of society. Many of Thoreau's repeated, irrelevant details can be traced to his description of what is wrong with the American society. He believed that the society is extremely overwhelmed with material things and they often seem to think that is what matters

Henry David Thoreau was a simplistic man and philosopher well known for his attacks on American controversies. Thoreau was full of opinions and had many problems with the way the United States was run. He had strong opposition towards slavery and spoke his mind when it came to politics. Especially when it came to the Mexican American war, which he heavily disliked. Ralph Waldo Emerson heavily influenced him, and introduced him to the ideas of transcendentalism, a philosophy vital to Thoreau's way of thinking and writing. Thoreau was not an agitator. He did not believe that there shouldn’t be a government, but only a better one than currently existed. The government would not improve itself, so he argued; it was a patriotic man's duty to refuse to support it.

If ever a story embodied what has come to be known as the American Dream, it is the life story of Benjamin Franklin. Franklin could be considered a passionate and energetic man who motivated himself by self-determination and a strong work ethic to achieve self-improvement. Beyond his sometimes-lofty personal aspirations to attain self-improvement, Franklin’s deep conviction inspired him to help others live well. He demonstrated this conviction in his reasons for writing, his willingness to portray his mistakes as well as his successes as a means of instruction, his recounting of the assistance he gave to others, and his desire to create useful solutions. Franklin successfully used his story to depict this

“I think the American Dream used to be achieving one's goals in your field of choice - and from that, all other things would follow. Now, I think the dream has morphed into the pursuit of money: Accumulate enough of it, and the rest will follow” (“Buzz Aldrin Quotes”). The real American Dream is not an income level. The American Dream is the ability to rise through one's own work and improve the condition, no matter where the person started from. John Steinbeck’s Of Mice and Men, and Cannery Row both contain characters that are misfits and outsiders who are lonely and are striving for the American Dream which they think is being successful by being rich, but the author guides people to understand that money is not the root of happiness and success is not necessarily based on being rich.

America historically owns the reputation of being the land of opportunity, and for generations immigrants have fled to the United States to experience the freedom and equality our government lays claim to. At the root of this reputation is the American Dream, the belief that with hard work anyone can succeed based solely on his or her merits. While definitions of success vary, the American Dream defines it as the ability to become a "self-made man," thereby rising to a more-than-comfortable state of living. The American Dream is believed to be blind to race, sex, or socio-economic status and at a first glance, seems to be almost Utopian. Conversely, repeated examples and statistics of the lower-classes, those continually facing the harsh

The American dream gives hope to many people striving to be successful despite not having a wealthy upbringing. The goal is surrounded by the idea that coming from a poor background does not determine the quality of one’s future and with enough effort and grit, one can achieve greatness. This dream was sold to the early immigrants of America that believed with this young nation, the opportunities and chance of success were plentiful, and anyone could have a better future in America. One of these people was Benjamin Franklin that ran away to America to have a better future in his printing business. Franklin is one of the nation's founding fathers and is considered one of the men that lived the original American dream.

The American Dream has long been thought the pinnacle idea of American society. The idea that anyone, regardless of race, ethnicity, or financial status, could rise from the depths and become anything they wanted to be with no more than hard work and determination has attracted people from all around the world. Two writers from America’s past, however, have a different opinion on the once-great American Dream. F. Scott Fitzgerald and John Steinbeck have given the public their beliefs on the modern Dream through the novels they have written, The Great Gatsby, and Of Mice and Men, respectively. One novel placed during the Great Depression and the other during the Roaring Twenties both illustrate how their author feels about the Dream

Ben Franklin’s autobiography is a prime example of the American Dream. He starts life in a large family and is sent to find work fairly early. He grows into an educated, humble, and honorable man. Through his work in printing and writing he develops a formidable business and makes some money. Throughout his life he focuses greatly on achieving perfection, but finds that is not very practical, however it does lead him to happiness. He wrote this autobiography as a path, to live a life of virtue, mainly for his son. However, it has become a moral guide and tale of the so called American Dream. While there are several ways to interpret his writing and his character, Benjamin Franklin is one of the best examples of a pure and honest American.

As time has went on the meaning of the American Dream has altered. When Adams trademarked the term the American Dream, the idea of it was for people to become “better and richer and fuller,” (Adams 412), but now as 20th century inventions have been introduced to society the dream has changed. People want what others have and what is portrayed as glamorous and prestigious. A prime example is Gary Soto’s recollection of his childhood obsession with wanting to be like the families he saw on the television saying, “I very much wanted to imitate [the families from Leave It to Beaver and Father

Walden, by Henry David Thoreau describes the events and the thoughts that came to Thoreau all through his time living at Walden Pond in the eighteenth century. Henry David Thoreau was a poet and a theorist who experienced a life of ease so that he could create a relationship between nature, people, and God. His narrative in Walden depicted many themes, for example the significance of the natural world, the implication of development, the meaning of detail, and the connection between the body and mind. He also urbanized many theoretical ideas about living a simple and natural life, and

Founding father Benjamin Franklin described the American dream as the “pursuit of a better existence… a higher quality of life through hard work, determination, and devotion” (Benjamin Franklin). The American dream is an idea that if you work hard, you can rise from “rags to riches” and live a wealthy and prosperous life with moral values of respect and integrity. Ironically, Franklin’s version of the dream was decaying during the roaring 1920s when society became corrupt and obsessed with greed. In his classic book, The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald shows how the American dream of “hard work, determination, and devotion” was deteriorating because society had become greedy and materialistic. In addition, moral values were in decline and that

Henry David Thoreau, author of “Civil Disobedience” and Walden, has become one of the most influential authors of all time in the eyes of many. Though some might be led to believe his essays and writings, including “Where I Lived, and What I lived For”, make him a down to earth and even rugged author, as he spent some of his life in the forest. However, his life in the woods was not one of heavy duty work and he often was supported with objects and material possessions, contrary to what many of his essays describe. Although some might think of him as a cheater or a liar, Thoreau’s conflicting lifestyles prove him to be a literary genius as he successfully dictates a lifestyle he himself does not take part in throughout paragraphs one

As a background, Thoreau had lived alone in the woods by Walden Pond for two years and two months, in Concord, Massachusetts. A lot of people had asked him how his daily life was when he was there, and this book, Walden, is an attempt to answer that question. In his writing, he uses the first person view which he states that he knows his self best and aims to give a what he call a “simple and sincere account of his own life.” When Thoreau removed himself from society and chose solitude at Walden Pond and wrote this book is a proof of which he can communicate his ideas well to the readers.