The American Dream In The Overnighters And The California Gold Rush

Are group was given the time period between 1900-1920. This time period was a sad but prosperous time. The idea of “The American Dream” then is different from what we perceive it today, it was imagining that everyone was equal and that money had no sway on who you were. During this time period one of the biggest wars called World War 1 took place, supplies were being used up quickly. Men were sent overseas to fight leaving women and children behind to fend for themselves. Women began joining the workforce doing the jobs that men would have done originally, such as working in munition factories to make ammo for the soldiers, this was a big step to equality because before, women’s main role in society was to take care of the children and to

The American Dream is “a dream of social order in which each man and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature of which they are innately capable, and be recognized by others for what they are, regardless of the fortuitous circumstances of birth or position” (Adams, 1931). It is the guarantee that with hard work and passion anyone can achieve upward mobility regardless of their origin. Many Americans believe in this promise, hoping that one day their first circumstance will not dictate the outcome of the rest of their lives. However the American Dream can be elusive without any real he American Dream eludes The novel Ragged Dick; or, Street Life in New York with the

Alongside with the previous theme, Franklin was very ambitions with the outlook and concept for a greater America. America in the 1700's was not quite developed as a nation yet, but it has become more than just the original cluster of thirteen colonies in the East. People during this time, as they start developing their legal systems, are debating on what kinds of rights they want and think they need. Many people had their own opinions, but Franklin's opinion favored more toward developing communities into a stronger and thought-out civilization. This autobiography shows an America with opportunity and idealized thinkers with a budding start of the American Dream. Franklin lives in Philadelphia for the majority of the book but he doesn't quite

The idea of the American dream captured the hearts of millions. It twisted people’s mindset of believing that America was a place of wealth and that anyone who traveled here would be filled with happiness. Many immigrants discovered the complete opposite. These people were met with criticism, hardships, and false dreams. Nick Carraway, was an American who was entrapped by the artificial dream. Originally, Carraway was from the West but traveled to the East in search of a new beginning and a new job. He is met with is a wealthy neighbor who hosts extravagant parties, his cousin and her cheating husband, and all the problems that come along with them. The American dream blocks their vision of what is really happening in their lives, until it

It is well known that industrialization in America started in the east. However, the gold rush was the reason why California industrialized much faster than the east. With the technological improvements, that the gold rush demands it helped California industrialize much faster. James Marshall first discovered gold on January 24 1848 on the south fork of the American river. A not so well know part of California history is that James Marshall was not the first person to discover gold in California. Francisco Lopez was the first documented gold rush in California. It is less know because right after Lopez had discovered gold the war between Mexico and US had begun. Moreover, like everyone knows Mexico lost and lost California and other territory to the US. After James Marshall had found gold and after everyone had started to hear the news, few people started rushing to the minefields. The gold rush fever had not started yet because many people were hesitant. It wasn’t until president, President Polk at that time, confirmed that there really was gold found in California after the announcement by Polk was heard. Massive amount of people from all over the world rushed to California. States were not the first to hear about the news. Actually, people in Hawaii were the first to find out. As trading ships were leaving the San Francisco port on their trips across the pacific. Was when the Hawaii found out about the news? When the states

The American Dream is a commonly known theme among the general population today. It states that with the right amount of work any US citizen can obtain success in their lives. This idea was popularized around 1930 with James Truslow Adam’s book “The Epic of America” bringing about the idea that there is opportunity for everyone in America if they can work hard enough.3 This idea of the American dream however began much earlier than the 20th century. Rather it began in the west in the 1800s as US citizens gained the ability to cross the frontier and begin completely new lives, whether those lives became advantageous or not. According to the American Dream the western settler’s level of work, not race or gender, would determine whether or not he or she became successful. However this was not the case. The American Dream of the 19th century is disparate from the one known today. Unlike Adam’s “American Dream” of the 1930s, this western “American Dream” was heavily skewed towards white male, US citizen obtainment. This was because the main drive of the western frontier was for white male US citizens to profit from the newly obtained land and keep it for themselves thus fulfilling their new “American Dream.” In the mid19th century, economic opportunities existed in the Western Frontier of America, allowing people to go and accomplish their dreams if they had the motivation, but those opportunities were prohibitive for women, nonwhites, or non US

do was ask the men at the mill to keep the secret for another six

Before the Gold Rush of 1849, California was a sparsely populated, unimportant territory of the United States mostly inhabited by the people of Mexico. However, that all changed when on January 24, 1848; carpenter and small time sawmill operator James W. Marshall discovered a gold nugget in the American River that would forever change the history of California and America1. Not only did the Gold Rush lead to California’s admittance into the Union in 1850, it also rekindled the idea of the American Dream. Hundred’s of thousands of people poured into the state by the lure of quick and infinite riches. As a result of the Gold Rush, California

In 1849, an inundation of Chinese immigrants came to the United States to take part in the California gold rush. Relations between the Chinese and Americans started off neutral, but soon conflicts arose. White workers saw Chinese as a threat to their status and tried to solve this issue by passing the Chinese Exclusion Act; this severely limited the number of Chinese allowed to immigrate into the country at the time. Although this compromise satisfied the white protests, it only lead to more conflicts with how the Chinese were treated during immigration. These conflicts would not be resolved for another 61 years.

The California Gold Rush was a period of time when thousands of people from all over the world came to California for gold, some were lucky, most were not. California was owned by Mexico 1600-1846. Mexico soon allowed the U.S. to have California as it’s own state, and that is when they found the gold. The California Gold Rush was a difficult time with the challenges people faced traveling to California, the way the Forty-Niners lived, and the way they used the gold.

The American Dream is often one of the most well-known benefits of living in America. It is the push factor that has driven millions of foreigners to flock to the so-called land of opportunity. Originally, the American Dream was established by a clause in the Declaration of Independence. It reads, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness” (Declaration of Independence par. 2). The original American Dream, as laid out by the founding fathers, was freedom from religious persecution and the right to live a happy life. That simple idea has undergone a significant metamorphosis and now the American Dream is much more complex. It has turned into a deep avaricious dream. This transformation has been noted in contemporary literature, especially in the novels Reservation Blues by Sherman Alexie and The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald. These pieces of literature can be read as a larger commentary on the mutation of the American Dream and how it is now more of a negative desire for greed and material. Both Fitzgerald and Alexie surmise that the American Dream has been twisted and corrupted into an uncontrolled desire that has become unattainable for many and that the pursuit of the dream has become dangerous.

     The California Gold Rush of 1849 is one of the most interesting and exiting events of the United States. From the wild stories of men striking it big, to the heart wrenching tales of people losing everything, these are what make it so alluring. There are many aspects of the California Gold Rush; effects on California; individual stories of struggle; and effects on the United States as a young country looking for stability.

Forty-Niners. A popular term that was emphasized during the time of the California Gold Rush which referred to immigrants who were traveling to the west. The immigrants were considered “forty-niners” because they began to arrive in the year of 1849. In his book Daily Life during the California Gold Rush Thomas Maxwell-Long notes that, “California is nicknamed “The Golden State;” and the official state motto is “Eureka” meaning “I have found it” in Greek- a reference to mining success” (Maxwell-Long 1). The California Gold Rush is the most well-known and largest mass migration that occurred in the history of America during the middle of the 18th century. The people who migrated to California went in having strict thoughts that the new American dream was to get rich and be fortunate from the gold they were in search of, however, that generally was not the case. In addition, the Gold Rush created a huge economic impact in the state of California which, ultimately, resulted in a range of environmentally destructive practices.

Forty-Niners. A popular term that was used during the California Gold Rush that refer to the immigrants that traveled to the west. The migrants were considered “forty-niners” because they began to arrive in the year of 1849. From a book titled, Daily Life during the California Gold Rush, “California is nicknamed “The Golden State;” and the official state motto is “Eureka” meaning “I have found it” in Greek- a reference to mining success” (Maxwell-Long). The author of this book wanted to make this known to readers that were not aware of the Gold Rush what the significance behind the term meant. Moving forward, the California Gold Rush is one of the most well-known and largest mass migration that occurred in the history of America during the

We live in a small gold rush town in the foothills of California. Growing up in a traditional gold rush community you will see pride and happiness in everyone’s face. It’s an outgoing community that makes everyone feel welcomed. I have made sure to raise my family in a small town to ensure they experience the lifestyle that comes from being a part of a community.