Is the American dream still achievable today? It is a question that is sure to invoke strong opinions from both sides of the question. One problem with the american dream still being achievable is the uncertainty of what it actually is. In order to determine whether it is still achievable, it must be determined what it is. Additionally, in the hyper competitive job environment of the modern day, simply being hard-working is not enough to be successful. Also, the lack of economic security for many americans leads to trying to stay alive, rather than aim for a dream that seems way out of reach. This all adds up to the american dream being unachievable in the modern day. In order to tell whether the american dream is achievable, we must know …show more content…
Back then, the dream was to be be able to work hard, and by doing that. you could be successful. Nowadays, however, the dream isn't as simple. A chief reason for this is the increasing gap between social classes. As the gap widens, the respective members of the classes dreams differentiate. For example, someone born into a wealthy family does not dream of being rich. Rather, they may simply dream of being happy. Also, for someone born into poverty, the dream may not be to be rich, but rather just to earn enough to live another day. This all adds up to the american dream being something different for …show more content…
This is evident in the words of people actively searching for jobs. Mark Mclellan, a former manager at a local employer, has seen his credentials become less and less valuable over the years. In the past, he says “I had a house with a swimming pool, new cars. My wife never had to work. I was right in the middle of middle-class America and I knew it and I loved it.” He was able to live a middle class life without a college degree, by simply working hard and being loyal to a company. Nowadays, he says he regrets not obtaining a degree, because his lack of college education has left him at a severe disadvantage when seeking a job. This illustrates how hard it is to be accomplished in the current job world. If you do not have a degree, you are always one step behind those who do. This can be further illustrated by Andy Blevins, a college dropout who left college to pursue a warehouse job. He now thinks that he could've done more with a degree. He laments that when looking for a job "A lot of places, they're not looking that you're trained in something,They just want you to have a degree." This contradicts one of the key parts of many people's conceptions of the american dream, which says that if you work hard, you’ll be rewarded accordingly. Rather, the key to a successful career is a college degree. This puts many people at a disadvantage due to a lack of opportunity to get
Everybody has a different perspective on what the American dream is. From my view, the American dream is the opportunity for anyone to accomplish their goals and obtain prosperity by working hard. I believe to some degree the American dream is still alive but it isn’t as uncomplicated as before. In Paul Krugman’s “Confronting Inequality”, it’s obvious that he believes the American dream is dead because of the ongoing inequality in society (pages 561-562). While in Brandon King’s “The American Dream: Dead, Alive, or on Hold”, considers the American dream to be very much alive (page 610). King believes most people do not strive for a rags-to-riches transition instead they prefer a healthy middle class positon.
People have always asked what really is the American Dream, and there is no right answer. The Dream changes along with our society and economy. The older version of the Dream varies greatly from that of now. It is no longer about maleristic things and trying to one up your neighbor. Many today see the Dream as a much simpler task than they used to. No longer must one sweat and break their back climbing up the ladder of success. The Dream is much easier to achieve and keep a hold of. Today, a simple middle class family is what is considered as the American Dream. After the Great Recession, which had a large impact on the American Dream, families started to save back all of their money instead of wasting it
The American Dream is mostly impossible because of the amount of money that America is in debt. If America wasn’t as in debt as it is, the American Dream could be possible, but it would still be hard to accomplish. The American Dream began before the U.S was even born, starting in the 1600s
A wise person,Tommy Hilfiger once stated, “the road to success is not easy to navigate, but with hard work, drive and passion, it’s possible to achieve the American Dream”. This quote means that through willpower and passion, anyone can become successful. In the world we live in now, achieving the American dream can be challenging than before, on the contrary, with the right mindset, and inspiration the American dream is still possible.That being said, yes the American dream is still possible to accomplish, getting a good location, a future, and lastly a monumental historic moment that can be never unremembered.
In my opinion, America does not provide access to the American dream as originally intended. The American Dream was the belief that hard-working citizens could better their lives, provide a better life for their children, and save enough money to live comfortably after they retire. Some would argue that the American dream is still accessible, however, evidence shows that Americans are struggling financially and not quite receiving the opportunities and access to reaching that “American Dream”. I think America does not provide access to the American dream because of the real stories and speeches shared about American people’s struggles and unfair realities in attaining their American dream. My counterclaim describes the originally intended
The American dream can be one of the most possible things to have EVER been possible. Us as people must realize what we can work with. We can eventually become one of the world’s greatest countries to live in. If anything, we are already acceding a point in potential to became THE greatest county to ever live in. We have some amazing people that can do some amazing stuff for our country. Other countries might be thinking the same exact thing for their country, but I strongly think that anyone can do anything in the USA. So much opportunities to take in this country, but us humans are being put down for our hopes and dreams by other people. Sometimes it isn’t fair for certain people, they just don’t realize the type of impact that we can all
As citizens of America, we all work towards acquiring one thing: The American Dream. The American Dream is something that most citizens of America try their hardest to attain at least some point in their life time. This dream may include but is not limited to, wanting to reach a certain social class, having a safe country with strong military forces, and also wanting to “fit in”, or to find his or her’s place in life. Also, this dream may or may not look similar to the American dream you want to inquire. While most of us desire to attain most of the things listed above, some of us always dream of having a nation where the color of your skin and social standards do not define who you are as a person. However, while citizens may want these things, not all of America may agree with each other. A question that has merged into our minds is, “ is the American dream attainable?”
What is the “American Dream” everyone talks about? The term “American Dream” was first coined by a historian named James Truslow Adams. This term is used to describe the America way of life. It describes how every U.S. citizen should have equal opportunities and the freedom to be able to achieve their passions and dreams while completely disregarding the social class. It is also the importance of economic security and wellbeing which is being able to have the resources and tools to live a comfortable. Also stated in the Declaration of Independence, “all men are created equally” with the right of “life and liberty and the pursuit of happiness” (U.S, 1776). Is the American Dream attainable? I believe that the American Dream is what individuals think about the United States and how in this country they would be able to get a job, and be able to fulfill their dreams. I also think that the dream of ours was once achievable, but not anymore. The American Dream is slowly dying. There are many sociological concepts which help us support the idea why it is vanishing.
When the phrase “American Dream” is uttered, it is typically associated with having money or striving to have money. The dream of much of the public is to have money and to be able to purchase anything they desire whenever they want. For some, this dream is not about money, but it is about having the opportunity to better his or herself and his or her loved ones. In either case, there are certain circumstances and obstacles that make this dream increasingly difficult to attain. Some would even be willing to argue, the American dream is unattainable. “American Dream” is defined as the concept of every citizen of the United States having an equal opportunity to achieve success and happiness through hard work, sacrifices, and risk-taking (Fontinelle);
The American dream, for most people, is exactly that – A dream. It’s make believe, fiction. It’s what we think American should be like, not what it actually is. The American dream will always be out of reach for common people. The majority of people I interviewed said something along the lines of, “the American dream is to be given a chance to do something or be something you want to be.” This opinion seems to be too optimistic. Everyone wants more than what they have. It’s not enough to be given the chance, you have to succeed. What it takes to succeed is an entirely different aspect of the American dream.
Is the American Dream ever going to be achievable? Many studies from different viewpoints have been trying to get an answer to this question. It is looking like some generations are more likely to have the determination to achieve this status, and others do not even think it is close to possible. There are many different factors that influence the likelihood of an individual coming close to achieving the American Dream. Many individuals that have the possibility of achieving the American Dream were born into a higher class in society. It is highly unlikely to be born into a lower class in society and move to a higher class; however, it has been noted that the younger generations seem very determined to make that statement false by proving otherwise.
Most American’s work towards the American dream. This great idea that we can work hard, land our dream job, get married and start a family. Can the American dream still happen if you’re homosexual? Does that even exist? Now I can look back and reflect on the way I questioned myself, my experience and the values that I still hold.
In the world today some people have doubts that the American Dream isn't possible. Well the truth is that the American Dream is still possible if you put your mind to it, if you do what it takes to succeed, and if you just believe in yourself. You need to have faith in yourself
Is the American dream attainable or unattainable? The American dream is Attainable. According to these famous people that went through hard work,success, and faith accordingly to get where they are now, they would agree.
Another interesting trajectory that the concept of “The American Dream” can give a key, is the concept of social classes. Social classes that we have today are upper, middle, lower and the working class. “The American Dream” is rewarding those who are hard workers, who have qualities and skills, those people can always reach the top goals. But now days we have people who are working hard, who have skills but they barely make the ends. This shows that material success is very difficult to reach; we have 1% of rich people who have the financial resources to control the rest of people (Schaefer 216).