The Attainability of the American Dream

This selection gives interesting insight into the world of Franklin, relating both to his everyday habits, and his reactions to the Enlightenment. There was one very interesting, but small segment, towards the end of the selection. It read, ‘It was about this time I conceived the bold and arduous project of arriving at moral perfection; I wished to live without committing any fault at any time; I would conquer all that either natural inclination, custom, or company might lead me into .. . . But I soon found I had undertaken a task of more difficulty than I had imagined.’ This particular section of the source was very revealing of Franklin’s character. Throughout the entire paper, Franklin had discussed different aspects of his upbringing, and current lifestyle, however this quote reveals more about the man behind the paper than anything else. Yet, he spent most of the text comparing his life to religious teachings, and the paths that the Enlightenment opened.

The visionary outlined his plans for the institution in a reading titled, Proposals relating to the Education of Youth in Pennsylvania. As a means of resolving public health issues and providing care for the physically or mentally ill., Franklin constructed the idea for the first map for a public hospital in Pennsylvania. The final bit of philanthropic advice given from Franklin outlines a list of the 13 virtues necessary to live a virtuous life. Franklin mastered all of the virtues on his list and felt that others could benefit from his system “not [by] attempting the whole at once, but [by fixing] one of them at a time” (Franklin, 96). As a philanthropist, Franklin continuously sought after ways to improve his community. With the help of his Junto, Franklin succeeded in leading new undertakings of social advancement. “He expressed his hope to produce something for the common Benefit of Mankind” (Franklin, 6).

The American Dream has always been based on the idea that each person, no matter who he or she is, can become successful in life by his or her own hard work. The dream, to desolate immigrants escaping an oppressive Europe, also embodied the idea of a self-sufficient man, an entrepreneur garnering success through his own hard work and ambition, not

B. While others crossed the border to obtain a better eminence of education for their offspring, especially, those looking to obtain a sophisticated step ahead of the rest.

It was because they thought that the United States could give them opportunities for jobs, their livings and a better life. Not only benefited to immigrants, the United States was also improved in industrial because of immigrants as workers in factory. Moreover, the Gilded age in the United States rose in industrialization, technology, railroad and business. Therefore, the immigration in the United States was important to the past history of America because they made the United

When the phrase “American Dream” is uttered, it is typically associated with having money or striving to have money. The dream of much of the public is to have money and to be able to purchase anything they desire whenever they want. For some, this dream is not about money, but it is about having the opportunity to better his or herself and his or her loved ones. In either case, there are certain circumstances and obstacles that make this dream increasingly difficult to attain. Some would even be willing to argue, the American dream is unattainable. “American Dream” is defined as the concept of every citizen of the United States having an equal opportunity to achieve success and happiness through hard work, sacrifices, and risk-taking (Fontinelle);

The American Dream as it is defined cannot simply hold true without preservation of it’s ideals. An ideal is maintained by the people. Enjoying the benefits the American Dream promises requires each person to uphold its ideals among his fellows. If this were the case, the original definition might have been preserved. The problem is that other factors kicked in which prioritized wealth and status among people which interfered with the ability of others to pursue the dream. From there, the American Dream gradually changed from hard work to status.

In The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin, we are reading the path that one man took to go from a middle class child to a well respected adult. Benjamin Franklin created what we know today as the American dream. Today we understand the American dream to be that one can go from rags to riches with a little hard work. The autobiography is based around the age of reason and a time man was thought to be able to be perfected by means of science and invention. The Autobiography of Benjamin

a. During this time the American dream became more difficult to achieve and was only done so by hard work and labor to earn your living and the strive to do better than your parents.

The reality of the American Dream is that people are capable of succeeding. Success, though, requires one to work hard and be dedicated to

Throughout the years, the definition of the American Dream has evolved as the world itself has changed. In the 1800’s, Alexis de Tocqueville wrote about ideas that dealt with the American Dream, such as equality, liberty, individualism, democracy,

Although Tom Buchannan doesn’t represent Franklin’s version of hard work, his college friend, Nick Carraway does. Nick is not lazy nor relies on family wealth. He comes to New York to learn about the bond business and work hard to earn money himself rather than depend on his family’s wealth. In addition, Carraway is one of those people who have “ a sense of the fundamental decencies” (Fitzgerald 2). Overall, unlike Tom, Carraway exhibits respect and admiration for others regardless of their social status.

The Declaration of Independence is most famous for ensuring opportunities to Americans that believe hard work and dedication is the only way to achieve lifelong dreams. Within the Declaration of Independence, a particular quote ties the American Dream with the individual rights that the people were granted, “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”(Mathew Clemente). Originally, the principles closely associated with the initial American Dream were best expressed by this idea, “The American Dream traditionally has meant the ability of all Americans to attain a better standard of living, including owning a home and an automobile, and having access to higher education”(American Dream). Many different individuals based on race, ethnicity, religion, and social classifications began to flee to the United States in search of the freedoms and rights the American Dream brought forth. The infrastructure of The American Dream has vastly developed into something much more complex; however, the original American Dream was much more attainable and individuals knew that they were not ensured success, but more importantly they had to devote their time and efforts to achieve

The Perspectives of the American Dream The definition of the American Dream varies from each person. Some see it as going from poor to rich or living as a stereotypical American with a stable life to accomplish one's personal dreams. The American Dream was originally designed to make people dream big, most commonly to aspire them to richness, so there would be economic growth in America. As time passed, it started to evolve into accomplishing any dream whatsoever from materials items such as money, to intangible goals such as being united as a family.

Through this journey Franklin took, he was able to create the model version of what every man should aim to be. According to Betsy Jordyn, President of the Accelera Consulting Group, “Leaders must first change themselves if they want to change their corporate culture, says Betsy Jordyn, an expert on authentic leadership, who accelerates results by igniting leadership and organizational potential.” To be intelligent and obtain an adequate level of happiness is truly such a rare thing that unknowingly, Franklin placed the first stepping stone for what the future generations can be. Within Benjamin Franklin’s personal autobiography, in the closing paragraph he writes, “What reverses may attend the remainder is in the hand of Providence; but, if they arrive, the reflection on past happiness enjoyed ought to help his bearing them with none resignation.” After spending years upon years of harvesting the self-improvement he was looking for, Benjamin Franklin was able to reap the benefits of being an