State Of The American Dream

Brandon King, a law student who majored in political science, writes on topics of inequality and political structures in the United States. One of his published works, The American Dream: Dead, Alive, or on Hold?, debates his interpretation of the notion of the American Dream and whether the concept is dead, alive, or on hold. The speaker emphasizes his belief that the common phrase is still alive within America and that one must work hard in order to achieve it. When it comes to the topic of the American Dream, King will eagerly agree that the idea is still alive and thriving in the minds of Americans; however, I deem that the idea is on hold within American society due to lack of upward social position and economic mobility.

Anyone coming or currently living in the United States has a dream, or better yet known as the American Dream. What is the American Dream? Well, Brandon King, author of “The American Dream: Dead, Alive, or on Hold?” quoted James Truslow Adams, who wrote that the American Dream “is that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability and achievement, regardless of coral class or circumstances of birth”(610). Everyone’s American Dreams are all different, but a majority of them all have a few things in common, that is becoming financially fit, acquiring a good education, and pursuing the opportunities that were not available. Brandon King expresses that the ideals and values of the American Dream are very much alive. However, Paul Krugman author of “Confronting Inequalities” bring up several excellent points as well, regarding that not all Americans can pursue the American Dream because of all the inequalities Americans currently possesses. Achieving the American Dream is not impossible, but it is harder to attain now than how it used to be with social, income, and racial inequalities being the primary cause. As of now individuals has to overcome many of bias barriers to reach the American Dream which used to be a lot easier to gain back in the 1940s-50s.

Research conducted by Sandra L. Hanson and John Zogby concerning shifting attitudes toward the American Dream states, “lack of thrift, effort, ability, motivation, and self-control are the most popular explanations for poverty among Americans” (Hanson 571). Such explanations demonstrate the growing issues that help to create the darkness of the American Dream. In placing such an emphasis on achieving success, the American Dream belittles those unable to achieve it and allows no room for failure. Though some individuals may work hard their entire lives, they may never find the material success that others such as Ben or Charley do. Even in the case of characters who have worked their entire life, such as Willy, the lack of tangible, material success creates a false idea that they did not do enough or did not work hard enough. Concerning Willy’s career and life, Ben states, “What are you building? Lay your hand on it. Where is it?” (Miller 1271). This statement pushes the misconstrued idea that whatever success one has achieved needs to be tangible and seen, which is not always the case. It can be argued that by the end of his life, Willy had found success. Linda’s proclamation that they were “free and clear” after having finally paid off the mortgage furthers this argument (Miller 1298). Out of debt, and with the comfort of a devoted wife and loving sons, Willy had achieved a life that many can only dream. However, because he and others do not recognize love and happiness as

Not everyone may have the same American Dream, where some might agree on the basis of one another's, there is not a view of it as a whole. Some might see it as a level of wealth. Some might see it as a level of knowledge or prosperity, but it's all about what the beholder takes it as.

“When I asked my dad why he brought us here,he always answered, “For a better opportunity of course!”(Miglani 1). This quote about the American Dream gives the most accurate definition for the American Dream. Throughout the readings, there many ideas that were trying to come around, but the one thing that stood out is love for America. The authors of these articles teaches the reader that many people come to America because it a way for those to fit in, which in that case causes the love for America.

The American Dream has long been worshipped and held as an ideal in our nation for decades. One day settling down with a family of four and living in the suburbs was once held as the perfect end to an American fairytale dream, but as the housing crisis of 2008 tore through the market and threatened the dreams of countless families. Unfortunately millennials grew up watching the housing crash tear at the hearts of their parents and threaten to divide families from their homes. As a result, millennials see the American Dream differently than previous generations. Instead of dreaming to one day own a home, millenials see the American Dream as the opportunity for freedom to explore the world and decide where they shall land. The American Dream has changed from the destination to the journey.

The American dream, as it is typically glorified, never truly existed. America boasts an “equal opportunity” environment, promoting a system in which people

America has long been known as “The Land of the Free”, “Home of the Brave”, and has established that “All men are created equal.”(US Declaration of Independence 1776) Although all of these things are what made America a choice place to live; she has not been without her flaws. One of the major flaws that stands in the path of the American dream today is the inequality of the sexes. Women are treated so unjustly when it comes to economic and social equality, women are not given the same opportunities as their male counterparts; but women should take a stand today to guarantee equality in the future . The question that lingers in the hearts of all Americans is: is the American dream still alive today? Or has it simply become too unobtainable that it has vanished from our eyes?

Marsha Blackburn once said “The American Dream is independence and being able to create that dream for yourself.” In the novel of Mice and Men, the characters such as George and Lennie struggled to maintain focus on their dream mainly because of discrimination. During that time, the world was too harsh to sustain such relationships which forced the two to separate tragically and lose track of their future plans. However, this generation has changed effectively in many ways. Now, we live in a world where opportunities are abound and discrimination towards race and age have decreased. The American dream today involves gaining the opportunity of reaching a personal goal such as being financially stable, getting an education, and pursuing the

The american dream is dead is my eyes. There's multiple reasons why I have a strong opinion on the fact it is dead. One of them are the fact that Student debt is destroying a generation of non wealthy people. another reason is that people can no longer look forward to a secure retirement. The American dream remains unattainable due to the Student debt and secure retirement both and many more issues faced by people and the lack of opportunity in the country.

Many years ago today, the United States of America was the prime example of prosperity and opportunity. It established America with the idea that its citizens would be guaranteed life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Today, it is true that people have liberties and are free to pursue happiness. However, in recent years, in the worst recession since the Great Depression. Unemployment, growing economy inequality, and medical care have skyrocketed. Despite the odds, the American Dream is still a goal that many people strive for and hope to reach. In fact, an essay written by Brandon King, The American Dream: Dead, Alive or on Hold? He says, “the American dream is a dream in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with the opportunity for each according to his/her ability and achievement…” (King 610-611). Therefore, the problem with the American Dream lies not within the dream itself, but within the means people pursue to attain this dream.

The American dream, an ideal that motivates and entices many. A beautiful yet extremely flawed concept according to Fitzgerald. The idea is that every citizen has an equal opportunity to achieve success through hard work. However, we will see in The Great Gatsby that no one is truly equal, and as one rises another falls. “We speak of equality and unlimited possibilities, but in reality both are illusions” (Hearne, 191). The American dream offers hope, hope to achieve anything, wealth, large house, fancy cars, or power. To achieve success, difficult decisions have to be made, and these decisions may in turn hurt the ones we love. For most readers, Gatsby represents the American dream itself. Fitzgerald purposely does this to emphasize the corruption and flaws in the American dream. The American Dream, once a pure dream, was distorted during the 1920’s to be focused on the wealth and possessions one had. The Great Gatsby is about the corruption of the American dream during a time when it was at its most brilliant high. This novel, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, focuses on the characters’ struggles and tragedies while they attempt to obtain the illusionary goal that is the American Dream.

The American dream is unable to be achieved because you can never change your class, no matter how much wealth you were able to put together or who you could hook up

America is known as to many as “The Land of Opportunity”. It is supposed to be the place where people from all over come to work for their success, that success being the “American Dream”. Now if this is truly the case then every American should have the chance at the American Dream, but do all have the opportunities achieve such a goal? In America there is a large range of incomes between the citizens, some doing very well all the way to others who are making just enough to get by. Now, I do believe that all American’s have a chance to live a financially successful lifestyle, even if they come from an underprivileged background. We have all heard the stories about the guy from the projects getting out and having a great career, but these

Money can not buy happiness, relationships, or life meaning. Multiple people in society base the success and meaning of a person’s life on the amount of money they possess. In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, most characters make decisions based on how it will affect their wealth and reputations. One of the main characters, Daisy Buchanan, chooses money and status over others, even if it hurts her and the people around her. Daisy’s character reveals the illusion and emptiness of achieving the American Dream through her loss of love, her increased immorality, and her carelessness.