Definition Essay: What Is An American?

What is an American ? To me, an American means freedom. Freedom to choose and practice a religion of your choice without persecution. Freedom of speech, press, and expression. An american is not only someone who is free but is also strong.

What it means to be an American has nothing to do with race, gender, size, origin, etc. Being an American solely relies on how far we have came as a country to call the United States of America a home, how we have fought through blood, sweat, and tears; depressions, wars, and movements for rights. Being an American means there is freedom of religion so you have the right to believe in whatever suits you. Americans work with the opportunities given to us to not only better, as well as protect our homeland and retrieve knowledge to better our future, but Americans give up their own lives to help do the same thing for other countries as well.

Being an American can mean a number of different things. The most important however, is freedom. As an American citizens, we have freedoms that many others do not. We have the freedom to vote for our president, freedom of speech, religion, and more. Being an American doesn’t just mean you were born in the United States, you can become a citizen by taking a test about our country. Our country is unique because we are made up with people from all around the world. We all have different religions we follow, languages we speak, as well as where we come from. Unlike other countries who might split apart and come up with different names, because of diversity, we embrace our differences.

What it means to be American? Everybody you ask this question to will have a completely different response. Some responses might have similarities but none will be exactly the same. In the beginning of the year my response was “To be an American means having a rich history, having opportunities to better ourselves, and having freedoms.” Unfortunately not everyone has had the same opportunities or freedoms. Native Americans, who are indigenous, dealt with having their freedoms taken away, less opportunities even though they had rich history in this land before it was taken away from them. Look at what Zitkala-Sa endured. Not only that, but African Americans have fought long and hard for freedom and equality as well. W.E.B. Du Bois stood for

Conversely, many believe that being an American comes only from an emotional standpoint and that no other classification is needed. As declared by Jose Antonio Vargas of the Huffington Post, “What it means to be an American is less about who you are than what you are about— how you live your life, how you contribute to this country, how you pledge allegiance to a flag hoping and praying it will make room for you.” Albeit this emotion may contribute to Americanism, it cannot operate by itself. Without citizenship, one cannot be considered American. Going back to the original definition, to be an American is to be, “a native inhabitant of the U.S.: a U.S. citizen.” Anything past this denotation is simply an opinion and cannot be used when coming up with an unambiguous definition of the

How does our generation define what it means to be “American”? Being in America gives us the freedom to become who we want to be and, to do what we want to do. We are using technology to get places or to make a point. We want to support things we don’t know anything about. For example, Black Lives Matter. I’m not saying I know everything about it but I know enough. So one day as I was scrolling through Facebook I came across a post. The post was about a 9/11 “Never Forget” picture. A teen one or two older than me had said something along the lines of “When is our never forget day?” along with the hashtag “#Blacklivesmatter”. I got pretty upset by that. Not to mention it was said on 9/11. I was thinking about how they have a whole month to

What is an American? This question cannot be answered by one word. There are so many different characteristics, qualities, and features that can be used to describe an American. Besides features, someone is only a real American if they take advantage of all of the many privileges that are given to them. Any person that is not grateful for the privileges that are given to them to me are not real Americans but this is only my opinion. Real Americans use their privileges to benefit themselves and everyone around them. In today's society there are certain things that are expected from American citizens, for instance being a responsible citizen.

America was founded on the principal of freedom: Freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and the freedom to choose who and what you want to be, these are all rights outlined in the bill of rights and the constitution. So, what does it mean to be an American? Well, it means that you support and accept people of different nationalities, political beliefs, religions and everything about another person’s culture. America is a country were “Freedom rings from sea to shining sea.” American is a place where people should be able to express themselves any way they want with out the fear of censorship or persecution. To be

An American is a man, a woman, a child who came to the U.S. and started to grow and flourish to become the men and women that feel pride for their country and the freedoms they have through salutes to the country and leaving behind their past heritage to become a citizen of the U.S. We as Americans have very well tried to become who we are today by not being prejudice and not being without freedoms. We strive to be the best we can by saying our pledge of allegiances and our doing as much as we can for our country. Just as my grandfather does every morning by saluting of the flag always hanging in his yard up high.

The dictionary definition of an American is, of or pertaining to to the United States of America or its inhabitants. But there are many different definitions of an American. People think that an American or being an American is to live the American dream. They think the ideals of freedom, equality, and opportunity. These three subjects are held to be available to every American in the American dream.

What does it mean to be an American? Every opinion is different. The United States of America is a country of diversity. Although American citizens are divergent, they share some important qualities. These qualities include freedom, opportunities, and patriotism.

The Question of “What is an American?” can be answered in many ways depending on the person you’re talking to. Over time, technology and people have changed drastically. From the big sail boats the pilgrims used to cross the seas to the huge freight ships that travel ridiculous amounts of miles used today. But through all of the advancements that we’ve seen over the years, one thing has stayed in place and that is perseverance. There are always those people who get the job done when it needs to be done, no matter how dirty or hard it is. They fought for their country, family, and beliefs. When the Puritans sailed overseas, the people accused of witchcraft in Salem fought for their innocence, and when Equiano freed himself from slavery, they form Americans into people who strive to survive.

American. What is an American? Well, the current dictionary definition someone would find of an American is slightly flawed. For example, the Merriam Webster Dictionary describes an American as “a person born, raised, or living in the U.S.”. The problem with this definition is that it’s only one part of being an American. Yes, an American does need to be involved with the United States, but there’s more to that in order to be an American. An American is someone who welcomes diversity, cares about the good of America, and follows the ideal of a strong work ethic. That’s what a real American is.

An American is an immigrant living in the United States of America; someone who calls this country “home,” based on his/her political, economic, social, and cultural ideas and affiliations. This is the definition of what some people believe is an American. On the contrary, others believe this is not the case; an American is someone who is born on American soil. I believe that former definition is the correct definition because the American foundation was built on the backs of immigrants from all ethnicities and races. Being an American is a state of mind rather than it being perceived as a physical state.

The official definition of an American is “a native or citizen of the United States.”