The American Dream Of The Millennial Generation

Owning a home is emblematic of the “American Dream”. Unfortunately for many Americans, especially Millennials who are entering or have entered the job market, the thought of owning a home still remains a dream. Our unstable job market and fragile economy has made this aspect of the “American Dream” quite difficult, and many Millennials are more content with landing their dream job than owning a home. The wealth gap between the rich and the poor has prevented the poor from attaining the Dream since the Dream has always been within the grasp of those well off. In our modern society, the same unfortunately is true.

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.

Bernie Sanders once said, “For many, the American dream has become a nightmare”. The American Dream is a cultural belief that anyone can achieve prosperity through hard work and determination. Millennials, however, are having a hard time achieving the dream as quickly as prior generations were able to. Home ownership rates for Americans under 35 years old are at a record low. The Millennial generation, those born between 1981 and 1997, is the largest in the United States’ history. According to a 2017 Harvard study, only 31% of Millennials own homes. This could be attributed to numerous factors such as student loans, later marriage, and the housing crisis of 2008. While putting off owning a home has its benefits, there are also several cons that come along with it. Are Millennials unable to attain the “American Dream”, or is the generation simply re-defining it? Certainly, homeownership is a complicated aspect in the lives of American Millennials.

Homeownership is a far in the future goal for many young American and many may never even reach it. The rising cost of living and education puts many into debt. And, the difficulty of finding a job before, during, or after college makes staying above that debt difficult. As a result, for those who want to have kids they could be putting themselves even further into financial distress. Overall, there are many factors that make obtaining a home difficult, so luck and/or hard work may not be enough to achieve the original 1950s American dream. In conclusion, the house in the American Dream seems to be fading

Ever wondered what it is like to be truly free, safe, or have a true friendship? In the 1930s, people constantly asked themselves this question, as they traveled the country in search for work. In the novella, Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, George Milton and Lennie Small are in search of a new job to provide a steady income. An inspiration that always keeps them on track, and something to look forward to is the American Dream where they will own land, and have truly achieved freedom. In the real and cruel world, can one especially as unfortunate as George and Lennie really accomplish the freedom, safety and friendship of the American Dream? Throughout the story the reader sees many people who want

Life is changing everyday, America’s question today is if the American Dream is attainable or not. The answer to this question is yes, it is attainable. With evolution, the American dream has been modified throughout the years. It is defined as “the idea that the American way of life offers the possibility of unlimited economic, social, etc success to every individual” (The Chambers Dictionary). Many people called the American Dream, the “good life”. Starting as a simple dream, with today’s world, it has become more complex, and is hard to come by. America is not giving up, and with our work ethics, hope, and opportunities our country gives us, the dream will always be there for us citizens.

As a child, growing up our families instilled in us that we could accomplish anything we put our mind to. Throughout our years of school we learned that every man has the chance at life, Liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Every person has the aspirations of bettering themselves and improving their lifestyles and people involved, and with this lesson, there came an understanding of how to reach the American Dream.Now that we are in college and hearing this question majority of our lives, when asked, “Is the American Dream of one day owning a home and living well among millennials?” I wouldn't agree with that because millennials are urban and not suburban.

The American Dream is an ideology that has fueled the progress of this nation since its inception. Defined in the prompt as, “the ideals of freedom, equality, and opportunity traditionally held to be available to every American.” The American Dream today, by this definition, is not readily available to every American and an argument can be made that it is even moreso true for immigrants. The thing that use to make the American Dream a reality is that it could adapt and change from person to person in the respect that it always will lead the person to happiness and prosperity no matter what path that person took to get there. What I mean by that is, a person’s happiness use to derive from their view of things that made them happy on a personal level. Today, a person’s happiness is dependent on what makes others happy.

“We need to teach the next generation of children from day one that they are responsible for their lives. Mankind’s greatest gift, also its greatest curse, is that we have free choice. We can make our choices built from love or from fear.” -Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

The American Dream isn’t a piece of legislation or doctrine laid down on paper by the founding fathers, it’s an idea passed down from generation to generation as a path to prosperity. This idea however, is gradually dying out with each passing generation as people continue to lose confident in their influence on the world around them. This mentality is sprinkled about in nearly every aspect of American life now, from the spread of cynicism to lack of political activism in the average citizen. This is felt most in the most recent generation to reach adulthood, the often-derided Millennials. A Daily Beast article by Joel Kotkin depicts a transformation in this generation from opportunity-devouring carnivores into passive herbivores, stating “Rather than seek new worlds to

The “American Dream” is a concept that everyone grew up understanding and striving to achieve. However, as the dynamic of day to day life has changed, so has the attainment of that goal. Some might say that the idea of what the “American Dream” is has changed as well. Millennials are the generation that will have the most significant impact this changing ideal of success. Many factors have contributed to the evolution of this dream determining the direction that this dream is headed and how they are effecting the housing market.

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

As someone who was born at the tail-end of the millennial period, 1997, I can definitely say that I am experiencing this new American Dream for myself. Owning a home is definitely a part of the American Dream that has remained intact for as long as the country has been standing. However, for a millennial there is a new and added depth to the Dream. Millennials have been accused of many things, killing the diamond industry, killing the department store industry, and for being unwilling to enter the housing market. While the dream of owning a home is indeed alive and well among millennials, it is something that feels far beyond reach for the majority of us.

For a great number of people during the twentieth century, The American Dream was huge inspiration. It was a concept that evolved across generations from our nations conception. In my own family’s history, it is the reason that I exist. Had the aspiration for a better life not been tied to America, my ancestors may very well have been killed as a consequence of religious persecution in the Ukraine. The manifestation of social mobility allowed for each generation to do marginally better than the preceding, notwithstanding plentiful hardships. Regardless of my own family’s success in the hands of a rapidly fluctuating world, I nevertheless find myself considering the idea of the American Dream with a degree of cynicism. We would like to imagine that this flexibility and opportunity is available to everyone. I have always been of the opinion that practically everyone has the individual, and intellectual capacity to accomplish whatever he or she sets out to do. Nevertheless, there are so countless limiting factors that prevent individuals from attaining their full potential. Many of which, are basically out of their control. For example, I have my doubts that the American Dream was envisioned to incorporate minority populations that undoubtedly would have been severely more socially repressed before the twenty-first century.

What do millennials define as “The American Dream?” As a millennial, I believe that our mentality can’t be defined as a collective. I can’t tell you what we believe or don’t believe together, but I can give you my opinion. After all isn’t that what being a millennial is about? “The American Dream” is different for each American, that is why it is called the American dream, but I believe that the biggest factor that defines the millennial American dream is the region in which we live.