Individualism Vs. American Life

Why has our sense of community weakened? And who or what is to blame? My intent is to answer these questions, and determine what can be done to fix the issue at hand. The above-mentioned communal crisis has affected our ability to connect with others, as well as our means to be self-sufficient. The concept of The American Dream is at fault for the decline of our social state, particularly the basis of individualism and consumerism, both at which reinforce economic inequality. The American Dream is seen as the opportunity to succeed and achieve upward-mobility, but in reality this dream has become a nightmare. The appearance of community has shifted more towards a manifestation of social class, and with all things considered, we are indebted

Think back to the 1800’s when slavery existed. The owners of the slaves treated them like animals. The slaves were just doing what they were told to do or else they knew that there would be punishment. They could not really show who they really were. If they were funny, shy, or maybe even artistic. No one got to see the real side of the slaves. As the years went on society really started establishing individualism more and more.

Another area many people tend to aim to be successful in is the concept of the American Dream. It is thought that if you live in America you need to fulfill the goal of achieving the American Dream and if it is not achieved or not meant to be achieved then the life lived has been a failure. Older generations and even present generations want the younger generations to get good grades, have a ‘successful’ college life, get a professional job, get married, have kids, and buy a big, just because that is normal to everyone but some may choose to live their life not as vanilla. William Zinsser talks about how everyone just follows the social norm in order to be seen as successful, “Our advertisements and TV commercials are a hymn to material success, our magazines articles a toast to people who made it to the top... He is our national idol, and everybody else is our national fink” (Zinsser 601). Becoming a specific type of successful is being pushed onto teenagers who are still struggling to find out who they are and what they want to do. They may want to figure out a different way to become successful in their own independent way.

Individualism in today’s society is the “belief that each person is unique, special, and a ‘basic unit of nature’.” The individualism concept puts an

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

We as human beings all strive for success. We use success as a measure of everyday life.

The meaning of "success" has numerous interpretations, whether it is your own or society's definition. Within Outliers author Malcolm Gladwell explains that being successful has nothing to do with what kind of person you are, so whether you are intelligent and hardworking or lazy and aloof, it depends on your circumstances growing up. Whether your parents happen to be immigrants, you are one of the smartest men in the country or you make a habit of practicing an activity for a certain amount of hours a day, your own personal success, according to Gladwell is defined by the conditions you grew up in; the idea of being successful varies from culture to culture, therefore, there is no definite meaning of success other than one's interpretation.

Success comes from self-determination, motivation, and hard work – that was the message I received from reading Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell. Gladwell helped me understand that the outliers mentioned in the book didn’t gain their success easily. Some may have had lucky opportunities and where born in the right year, but they had to work hard, they were smart, and out of their achievements, they made an impact on society. Prior to reading Outliers, I was lost among the success of others because I thought these people came from wealthy families, which meant they had a head start, but I was wrong. Success has a different meaning to everyone, but the commonalities of success are the advantages and opportunities given to us.

Success is a funny thing. Some define success as having a lot of money or a high power career. Others define it as how happy a person is within their life. No matter how success is defined, Margaret Mead's view on success applies. "But while we often rejoice in the success of people far removed from ourselves-people who work in another profession, live in another community, or are endowed with a talent that we do not especially want for ourselves-we tend to regard the success of people close at hand, within our own small group, as a threat" (Margaret Mead). Mead traveled the world studying different cultures and would be able to observe this behavior in cultures outside of America. Her statement isn't specific to one culture or another; it

Even though most people easily recognize societal success easily, it does little in regards to enhancing the apparently “successful” person’s sense of

To begin with, success does not necessarily mean having the best home in a city, or owning the car of the year. Everyone’s view of success can be very divergent. It can all depend on where a person stands, or what their past was like. For example, there can be students who might be the first in their families to attend college and getting a college degree can easily turn into their American Dream, it may even be their parents’ dream as well. In addition, the view of Individual opportunity for an undocumented homeless man may differ from the views of an American with a college degree. Owning a home, having

Jacqueline Smith explains how the views of what success has changed from what it used to be in the article,“This is How Americans Define Success”. According to a survey from Boston Strayer University it stated that a vast majority of Americans believe that success is passed on happiness instead of possessions and wealth.

1) What influence, if any, do you feel Protestant individualism has had on American social and political life? The influence that Protestant individualism has had on American social and political life is freedom. As the freedom, that Protestant individualism brought was all thanks to the printing press. For example, the congregations of the Catholic Church had no opportunity to decipher the Bible for themselves because they did not have the technology to make many copies.

A survey done by Dora Mekouar shows that 75 percent of Americans believe they are successful, but what is success? Is it achieving all one's’ life goals, (which only half say they have) or is it being rich, which only 34 percent of Americans believe is important (Mekouar).

Habits of The Heart create a vision of the middle class American life with all its good, bad, strengths and weaknesses. Its examines the conflict that exists between individuality and community in this country, as well as how these conflicts effect our ability to form relationships with others, whether it is in a public arena or our own intimate relationships with family and friends. The very word individualism means to look out for number one, it implies a me society that has lost it’s way from the way it use to be. The title “Habits Of The Heart” creates images of love, faith, hope and commitment to others, a sense of belonging to something larger than yourself. Does individualism really exist, or is it that people tend to forget where