The American Dream: What Is An American?

Since this great country was first established many intuitive minds have tried to answer the question; "What is an American". This country is full of individuals of many backgrounds, and diversities and each person has a different opinion on this question. In my opinion, an American is someone who values freedom and equality and pursues the "American dream." Every American exercises these rights and these are great adjectives to describe our country. Each of the seven readings, and the one image I compiled help mold this broader definition into a more precise description of an American.

What does it mean to be an American? In my eyes to be an American means to have privileges, rights, and freedom. America isn't perfect, but it is one of the only countries that have rights given to people of different diversities and gender. America does not have tremendous poverty. Instead we have choices given to us by the people who fought and died for the American people. Without George Washington and the other patriots who planted the first seed in the ground and help plant the American nation we live in now who knows what America would be like now.

What does it mean to be American? The technical definition is, of or relating to the United States of America or its inhabitants. This definition is too limited to describe being an american. It means fighting for what you believe in and working hard to achieve your goals

What does it mean to be American? Webster’s defines an American as: Of or relating to the United States of America or its people, language, or culture. My definition to be American means that you’re free. Free to say what you want. Free to choose your own religion. Free to vote for whom you want. Free to grow up and pick the occupation you desire. Free to go where you please. Free of being a slave to no one! Free to love whom you want. Most importantly, free to get a good education. Just being free period! As a child, I was taught those things to grow up and realize you’re not as free as they portray us to be.

America is the land of the free and the brave. Without freedom America the great wouldn’t be so great. Without freedom we still might have slavery. The Bill of Rights is the first and most important

other necessities but he chooses to throw it away week after week just because there is a slight chance he could win. The get-rich-quick solutions, such as winning the lottery or inheriting a large amount of cash at a young age, are unlikely. Therefore, they are not realistic or practical ways to achieve success and certainly no way to achieve the American Dream.

If asked the question, “ What is the American Dream?”, many people would have a variety of answers. It may depend on many factors including, how one has been raised, their age, socioeconomic factors, and ethnicity. There have been so many changes in our country over the years from the 1900’s until now including wars, racial beliefs and family structures which led to an array of definitions of the American Dream. An American Dream can be different for each person. It can be about many factors as we will see throughout the paper.

Since the very first steps taken on American soil, people have dreamt of pursuing the American dream. What is the American dream? Many people believe that the American dream can’t be defined in one simple sentence. To some people the American dream means getting a new car and to others a new home, but for many Americans it has a deeper meaning. As we have seen, equality has been a struggle from the beginning; but it has led to the liberty within the country.

Although America has gone through many changes since the term, “American Dream” was first coined, our group believes the idea behind the phrase has stayed relatively the same, Our definition of the American dream is that it’s the idea that if one works hard and takes the opportunities that come their way, they will be rewarded with the success they crave. Our definition is similar to the original definition of the American dream. When the term, “American Dream” was first coined, it was defined as a, "dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement" (Florida). In versions of the American dream after, it was believed that, “thrift and hard work [was

It’s hard to tell when someone starts to daydream about what his or her life could be. It must start early because as a child, I’ve always envisioned my future life to be the American dream. I must have inherited that dream for my mother; she came to the United States from Mexico when she was merely 15 years old. She came to pursue the same dream; she wanted to have the opportunity to achieve wealth and success. Growing up in a traditional Hispanic household is something I will always cherish, but a characteristic of Hispanic culture is the mindset that women were made to be housewives and mothers. This trait blended in with my American dream, I thought as a child, perhaps I could be the mother that was always baking and cleaning. I wanted a two-story house with a white picket fence and an American Flag in the front yard, the ideal family of three with a golden retriever, I wanted to be the perfect housewife; I wanted the American Dream. As a child your dreams haven’t been affected by reality, but over time your dreams change. I realized in life there is so much more than just the materialistic aspect. My American dream consisted of material things; I never wished to be happy, but to just to have things. Now, my greatest aspiration in life is to be happy; which to me means to be financially stable, to earn a master’s degree, and have a wonderful job that allows me to give back to the community. The biggest difference between my American dream and my goal to be happy is that

“What is an American?” To some people an American just someone who is a legal citizen of the United States. When you get down to it, do you agree? I believe an American is much more. An American has freedoms , they want what is best for the United States, and they overcome the odds.

What is the American Dream? The American Dream was defined as the possibility for a better life for every individual, regardless of their heritage, position in society and economic status. The American Dream is written into the Declaration of Independence: "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." Lennie and George's dream of owning a farm and living off ‘the fat of the land’ symbolizes this dream. The definition of this dream is that any individuals could improve on their circumstance, and that their children could do better than their parents; this motivation has not been maintained in the modern day. Of Mice and Men shows that for poor itinerant workers during the Depression, that their American Dream became an illusion and an impossible

Most Americans are unsatisfied with their lives. So many people live their lives discontented with where they are in life. They are discontented with their status in society, the money they make, goals they have yet to achieve, their profession, how they didn’t complete their schooling, and the list unfortunately goes on. We as Americans have a large advantage in comparison to most societies within the world, we have the freedom to live the American dream. What is the American dream? The Declaration of Independence states it is “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.” We as Americans have great privilege, unfortunately this is also our downfall. I believe that our discontentment with our lives and the way they are being run is a large

Every year millions of people immigrate to the United States of America in order to live out the American Dream. America is often referred as a melting pot because of all the different cultures that migrate to the U.S. This then begs the question, what defines an American? While many people believe you can not truly define an american because of all the different cultures and races America posses, however, an American can be defined if one is a citizen, believes that everyone has equal rights, and the desire to succeed.

An American is someone who is part of a culture of individuals, who sought to achieve greatness without any control over them. A priority of immigrant ancestors, that has been passed down to form an ideology of freedom and peace. Americans are a people of fight and determination. The nation that was solidly built on morals that have been stuck to and believed in for centuries.