The American Dream

Does being American mean that you’re an American citizen, or does it mean that you have the same rights and decisions as someone who is a successful American citizen? These decisions include choices you make in order to better yourself in life, whether it has to do with your choice in career, or what you want to do in life. Making decisions, and having choices comes with freedom, as a person, and that reflects on being an American everywhere in the world, even though you’ve never been in America. To be an American means that you have the freedom, and rights to do what you want, be who you are, and be/ become who you want. This right of having the freedom to do what you want, can be elaborated by someone’s life chances.

Many people have come to America for adventure, opportunity, freedom, and the chance to experience the particular qualities of the American landscape. The American Dream is the idea that every United States citizen, including immigrants and residents, should have an equal opportunity to achieve success and prosperity through hard work, determination, and initiative. America somewhat provides access to the American dream, it is more so the citizen who provides access to the dream for themselves. Even though they encountered many trials and tribulations, with persistence, people such as Langston Hughes in “I Too Sing America and Anzia Yezierska in “America and I” they were able to achieve their individual American Dream.

The topic of The American Dream has been brought up on many occasions. The arising issue that still ascends is whether or not The American Dream is alive or dead in the United States. The American Dream has come to the generalization of the personal perspective of any individual. The history of The American Dream has always gone back to the common man thinking of their future generations to come and how he will implant a positive outcome throughout it. Many now believe that the ideal plan of The American Dream cannot even be met anymore. Values and beliefs are now being questioned towards the aspect of upward mobility, the cost of education, jobs, and even affordable housing. Referring to an executive editor and vice president of Time Reporting, he states, “combined with a formidable American work ethic, made the pursuit of happiness more than a full-time proposition” (Meacham, Keeping The Dream Alive). This statement is targeted towards the actual definition of what The American Dream actually meant in various societies in the past. Happiness and a full-time of gratitude were critical aspects towards being met because it was the initial reason for this ideal. Some of the key causes and components that affect the way The American Dream is supposed upon today is the basic principles of economics, education, and a downward spiral. These reasons lead to The American Dream being considered in a diverse way with much complexity. The American Dream was different from the past and

The "American Dream" is marked as unattainable in John Steinbeck's novella Of Mice and Men. This is mostly shown in the case of George, Lennie, Candy, Crooks, and Curley's wife. These characters all have admitted to thinking about the "American dream" concept, and the freedom to pursue happiness and their dreams.

If you were to ask anyone about what they thought was “the American dream” most of them would say something along the lines of a movie themed in the 50’s. A nuclear family, living in a house with red shutters and a blue door, the house is an astounding off white, there is a white picket fence around the house and the grass is cut to perfection. The family stands outside on their lawn playing tag with the family golden retriever, drinking lemonade or an ice-cold tea and the father is grilling something while laughter fills the air. If the American dream was this cookie cutter life everything would be much simpler. Instead the American dream is a social construction. Everyone has learned to believe this American dream and instead of refuting it, we play along. In recent years, we have seen that this version of the dream has changed from the cookie cutter life to just a life of equality. In an idealistic world, we would get to have both but we live in imperfection. While the dream of the house has carried over some, it is just not realistic in this time and that is why it is slowly dying out with the millennial age and morphing into a new being. Millennials would like to own a home, but with the economic standpoint of limited jobs to those without education and education being extremely overpriced, it is an impossible dream. The workplace has started to make It that only people with masters or bachelor’s degrees can get good paying jobs, otherwise you’re getting $12.00 an hour.

The American people once believed that the dream included “a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each person according to ability or achievement...regardless of fortuitous circumstances of birth or position” (Adams 2).. Once the ideal of millions to achiever a greater life of success for all, the American Dream has now become distorted, and replaced by new immoral ideas on how to succeed. The renowned sociologist Robert Merton published his Social Structure and Anomie in 1938. In it he states that rigid adherence to

wishing to fulfill the “American Dream” of happiness and prosperity in the early 1900s, came to

In the early 1950s, the American dream was the nation's common heartbeat. Citizens longed for the ?ideal? family; most hid their shortcomings. The nuclear family included a mother, father, two children and a pet, all residing in suburbia, USA. Fathers were the breadwinners, and mothers stayed home, cooked, and cared for the kids. Each family included a boy and a girl, the former who always parted his hair to the side and the latter who always wore pigtails. The nation was convinced that if one worked hard enough, he or she could earn enough money to support the family and have plenty of professional satisfaction. Everyone sat down to dinner together nightly, and discussed his/her day, and innocence

While the idea of the American Dream became more popular during the 17th to 20th centuries, the achievability remained elusive due to a static and hierarchical social order that prevailed throughout this time. Thus, the tireless claims of the New Left for a reformed society are supported by the unchanging accessibility of the American Dream.

Previously, in the 1920’s “The American Dream” used to be conclusive among the majority of the people of which it effected. However, as time progressed new religions began to show up, new laws passed and different forms of people began to join together, which was the beginning of change. Back then everyone envisioned the same dream. Which was possibly to be rich, successful, live in fame, and to be known. In today’s society we still want to be rich and successful but things have been a bit altered.

idealistic belief of equality, liberty, and happiness for all to the view that what is most important

In the late nineteenth century in the United States, the idea of the American Dream was firmly in place. In 1931 in the book The Epic of America by James Turslow Adams puts into words, the sentiment that Americans felt the years following the civil war: “but a dream of a social order in which each man and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature of which they are innately capable. . . regardless of the fortuitous circumstances of birth or position.” (American Dream) Essentially, what Adams is saying is: when one thinks of the ideals of the United States, individual economic opportunity, emphasis on democracy, and social equality, could all be summed up

In Post-World War Two, America shot out of the Great Depression thanks to some government programs that helped support home mortgage loans and GI Bill for a veteran’s education. During this time, the idea of the American Dream had become an established mindset for all, to work hard with the result of holding prosperity and success. Frank and April are a couple living in suburbia Maine, who seem to be another couple aiming for the American Dream, but in reality both wanting to be far away from where they are. Both of them are free-spirited people who despise having their own selves live to society’s norms of fulfillment. From Yates narrative of Frank and April and These United States depicting suburbanization, both contradict each publication’s stance on the subject and paint the picture of the failure that is their marriage and relationship.

During the eighteenth century, America had transformed from a simple homestead into an ornate country. Within the bustling empire, the wealthy were able to live lavish lifestyle that inspired the idea of the “American Dream.” The

Owning a house has been a sort of subcomponent of the American dream. A small but important part of that dream that motivates individuals’ is to strive and invest their energies to meet this objective. It must be acknowledged that in every phase (political-economic-social), there have been different pursuits, on a societal level, which gave direction to economic, political, and social evolution. However, from the systematic study of American history, we learn that prosperity, success, and owning a home have always been part of various interpretations of the American dream.