The Eerican Dream : The American Dream

It seems that over the decades, the “American Dream” has changed along with the generations who follow it. After the “Great Recession”, the housing crisis which triggered a financial crisis, and millennials have changed their point of view about homeownership. This change created another definition for the “American Dream”, because more opt out to rent versus buy, and some don’t bother with houses at all and prefer to live in apartments. This is all due to rising student debt, risks associated with owning a home, and the fact that homes are often suited for families and it’s been proven that millennials are pushing back the age for conceiving children.

It can be argued that the American Dream is dwindling as the country ages. As the country’s population rises, competition becomes more intense. This undoubtedly can make it more difficult to achieve a level of success that was more easily attainable 30 years ago. In addition, the cost of education has gotten so high that many graduates are paying back student loans for years. Many are stuck in a pit of debt that greatly hinders their career and personal goals. Also, rising costs of healthcare make it nearly impossible for some lower-income families to worry about more than keeping their basic needs met. In fact, some millennials are so fed up with current conditions that they completely deny the existence of the modern American Dream. For example, Andy Vasoyan, a 24 year old freelance voice actor and audio producer said, “I feel that the American dream (existed) and then just disappeared into the ether. Right now, because of income inequality and the difficulty of living in urban centers, it’s probably impossible for a huge segment of the population. And I don’t know if it was ever a real thing, but the idea of working

We have all heard of this intense rollercoaster ride that we are on called the American Dream. The term was coined by James Truslow Adams in 1931 defining it as “dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for every man, with opportunity for each according to his ability or achievement.” Since it’s arrival, the Dream has evolved from a pursuit towards “freedom, mutual respect, and equal opportunity” (Shiller) to later one of greed described by Shiller as being “excessively lustful about homeownership and wealth” beginning in the 1960s. Traditionally, the American Dream included features of a nuclear family, that is one with a breadwinning father, a housewife, and two kids, owning a white picket fence home, thriving without financial worries, and a happy family. There has been a shift in focus for the Dream caused by the Millennial generation and in turn they have included features that place an emphasis on equality in all aspects of their lives from family life to the workplace placing their own twist on the Dream. The American Dream has evolved over time to include equal opportunities, college education, and happy family.

The American Dream, an idea of what it truly means to be an American in some respects. For many, it is the idea of starting from nothing and making something to look back on in your later years and be proud of what you’ve done. For many in the generations before the millennial generation, the ideal was to graduate college, get married, get a house, and raise a family. For many millennials, this has changed with one key difference. That difference is the importance of having their own house. This was brought about by many factors including the economy, political ideology, and sustainability.

The American Dream is indefinable. There is no one set of words or characteristics that the entire population assigns directly to its definition. With the American population consisting of people of various races, ethnicities, ages, classes, and genders, it seems trivial to even attempt to attribute a single definition to the concept of the American Dream. It is this inability however, to be confined within one single meaning, that allows for the American Dream to govern the desires and goals of the large and diverse American population. And, regardless of all of the heterogeneity within society, the American Dream is generally a goal of all American peoples. In examining this idea, I began to think about the specific meanings attributed to the American Dream for different types of individuals. I broadly outlined the American Dream for myself, to represent the belief in hard work as a pathway to success and raising oneself in society. Consequently, this higher position in society allows for the possession of increased amounts of power. My definition however, neglects to take into account the certain other societal constructs that could possibly have a decisive role in how to both define and achieve the American Dream for the wide variety of people who pursue it.

American Dream: Noun, the ideals of freedom, equality, and opportunity traditionally held to be available to every American. That is the definition of the American dream according to Dictionary.com, but the American Dream is more than a definition, but a way of life for many. Millions of immigrants come to our country in search of this “American Dream” including my grandparents but more and more are disappointed. So does the American Dream exist? Has it ever existed or has it all been an illusion?

In an effort to save money and lower debt, more and more millennials are turning living in their parent's basement from the punchline of a bad joke or sitcom fodder into an accepted, and even

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 is what makes people from all around the world to want to move to America. The American dream is what makes America wonderful. The American dream has been categorized as an equal opportunity to attain success through hard work. The end result of the American dream for the universal people is for that character and their loved ones to be living contentedly for the rest of their lives. However, this is not the same apparition that every individual has of the American dream. The American dream differs from many different social classes of people in America. Comparing the picture of the American dream between the upper-class, middle-class, and lower-class can result in different situations. All in all there are many different discernments of the American dream for discrepant social classes yet every American in their lifetime will want to achieve their version of the American dream.

However, the author of this article seemed to want to focus on the negative aspects facing the millennial generation. This generation is not the only one facing tremendous debt. Having a degree opens a lot of doors and grants access to higher pay. The immediate rewards are difficult to see right out of college, but in the long run, I think the millennial generation will overcome these challenges. "The U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development considers home prices affordable for families who spend up to 30 percent on housing, with the remaining 70 percent spent on food, clothing and other needs (pg.1)." The latest census done in Colorado Springs states that the median household income is $54, 228 (pg.1). Taking this information and calculating 30 percent for monthly housing allowance, this household can afford around $1,380 for housing each month. With utilities and other monthly bills associated with homeownership, I don't think 30 percent is realistic in the current housing market in Colorado Springs. One thing this article did not mention was there are government assistance programs that can help millennial afford housing. El Paso county currently has a "Turnkey Mortgage Program" (adm.elpaso.com). This program offers down payment assistance. With financial planning and savings, millennial's looking to buy houses can find a way to make things work, either by being aggressive in looking for affordable housing or budgeting to take on more

From the early stages of American literature the dream of success has always been around, even at the very beginning. It has gone on the journey of merely surviving in small amounts of the literature from the native people to thriving in a growing society and being in everything. The dream to myself is becoming wealthy and being successful in everything I do. Today I believe that the dream has become different for everyone, every person has a different dream, a different way they want their life to go.

The American Dream, has stereotypically branded a permanent mental image of a successful and stunning married couple standing in front of their perfect white picket fence, 1.5 children, and in the back ground is their classic, cookie-cutter, utopian house. However, this idea has wrongly become the standard model to living a successful life. This “American Dream’ now excludes a large, diverse group of people; the poor and the immigrants who have given everything to migrate and relocate only to have their dreams become farther away from reality. This harsh, and rather unrealistic, utopian mental picture does not accurately show the dreams of all people, and is only merely a dream society has portrayed. Millennials especially, have taken note and are reacting with very different mindsets than the generations that have come before them. The millennials desire more and are attempting to make a change.

In 1937, James Truslow Adams coined the term “American Dream” in his book The Epic of America. Adams stated the “American Dream” was a land of opportunity for everyone. In this utopia, every man and woman is able to reach their highest potential in employment, housing, and family regardless of birth or position, because they worked hard and earned it (“What is The American Dream?”). Ever since 1937, Americans have had this idea in their head of finally achieving the “American Dream” with their spouse, house, white picket fence, 2.5 kids, and movement up the socioeconomic ladder. It is what people whisper at night as they leave their war-torn streets for a better life. Yet in the past few years, that dream has begun to crumble. I believe Millennials are waking up to see that this dream utopia is flawed.

In this Person settlements they saying very wrong information about american how the Euroamerican lived like the westward movement which I believe is wrong the western people lived worst then the Euroamerican and I will show u why. (The american dream is to build a land across the west to the south and live in all the place they build) which I think that he is wrong he is showing no fact. When someone show no facts that is bad that tells people that you are not sure about your knowledge. Then he is not going in details about his information that is how you know he does not know what he is talking about.” Final his sentence are mixed up and that is giving out false information to the reads like this sentences. As usual the needs and wishes of

We've all seen those movies of those lazy individuals we call millennials. These people are often depicted as dependent individuals that are either living with their parents or renting some shady apartment. That's the question has been proposed whether or not are they justified in doing so. It is obviously easy to say that they have a right to do so, but can it be considered rational in the days we live in. Are their benefits from withholding to buying a house. And maybe even this could be the redefining of the new “American Dream.”