Value Of American Culture Essay

Only a couple of decades ago, hard work and determination guided people to obtain a piece of the opportunity America is all about. Lately there is a surge in having our fifteen minutes of fame and work less, buy more. There are Americans who feel that materialism is the way to obtain true American happiness. TV ads bombard the population with information on what is truly needed to be the best. All media outlets convey how to be more like the famous. Commercials inform on how this star uses this phone and this athlete buys this car. In trying to assimilate to others, some continue to spend even though they cannot afford it. In “Framing Class, Vicarious Living,

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.

In The More Factor author Laurence Shames explains that Americas fascination of wanting as much of everything as possible has played a key role in building this nations character and has been evident through Americas short history. Laurence Shames claims that the so called "ethic of decency" has been absent in the American way of life and replaced by an "ethic of success". While Shames has a valid point, I consider the lack of emphasis on decency and contentment in America a positive rather negative. Shames suggests that in the 1800's Americas love of possession and want was born.

In a capitalistic economy, driven by materialism and greed it's easy to see how competition can be steep, and even overwhelming. Many aspiring for the American dream find themselves in the above position, often times succeeding without advancement, for fear the competition is too steep, and the resources too little. Although entrepreneurship has become a booming industry in America, and all capitalistic governments, it seems that corporations, or large business has all the advantages, often times running smaller companies into the ground, buying them out, or offering prices, or deals that can't be competed against. People see the American dream as just in front of their reach is situations like this, when in actuality they are separated by miles of competition that is far too steep, or unfair. Materials are sometimes presented to those who wish to attempt competition, but most times it is unfortunately unfair. Situations like this also promote each party to do whatever it takes to succeed, even if that may be immoral, or inappropriate. The competition sometimes gets too intense for the average person, especially without the proper utensils to cope with such

American ideology state that there is same opportunity and this is call equality of opportunity; and yet not all of them have the talents or make the necessary effort to accomplish the goal. (Merge p 230). The third key notion is meritocracy and it is closely related to the idea of equality of opportunity. The people has got the opportunity to move up into the society ladder because their talents and skills; now they need to be rewarded. Meritocracy means “strength power”, so the power and the decision making is granted to them, all the benefits that the society offers is for the ones that work hard. The belief of working hard is the basis for the work ethic belief. There is no other way to reach their goal; people need to take the opportunity, get more education and skills, and have a good work ethic and they will earn the rewards and merits in their

Finally, I have a lot of motivation to get myself through my American experience. If you have not noticed. I have shown or you could point out that I am very determined. And of course, you don’t have to be so determined, but in my case. I am even though I am lazy. I want to be able to see myself living really well in the future. Or you could say that I want to have a good amount of money. But I am not selfish person, just as most of America, like Claude Fisher’s research said in “Sweet Land of… Conformity” is that “Americans also believe that once individuals are members of the group, they must be loyal”. I that is true for the most part because what I translate that to say. Is that you must love that group (family) that you were born into, or to love that family that you have put together. So it motivates me to work hard for those people, so that one day I can repay them.

During the Gilded Era, Robber Barons-- capitalistic individuals such as Rockefeller and J.P. Morgan-- presided as economic kings. Their dominance of the economy even allowed J.P. Morgan to bail the United States government out of a debt crisis. During this era, individuals could create new methods to increase efficiency as Ford showed with the construction of the automobile. As Alexis de Tocqueville states in Democracy in America, “Death is often less dreaded by them than perseverance in continuous efforts to one end.” At heart, optimism is the ability to imagine better ways, methods, or products to forge the American identity. Arduous work to increase efficiency is a strong component of the American identity. Achieved through hard work, the American identity grew into an optimistic belief that every American has an opportunity at success, even if starting with nothing, —the ethos of the American Dream. This dream circumscribes the ideal of personal monetary gain. The predominant American identity during this period consisted of unrestricted capitalism and personal

Defining what really is to be an American does not sound as easy as it seem. It will always be complex process. As immigration continues to fuel the growth of the population of our nation, racial and ethnic gap increase and evolve along with it. Racial and ethnic identities become more and more convoluted and difficult to understand. Race and ethnicity continue to intermingle and push a cultural shift in the US– a shift that plays a significant role in redefining America in a day-to-day basis.

According to the material, Americans are taught that their behaviors and choices made come from within themselves. This particular characteristic asserts the position of individualism. Individualism drives Americans to believing that there is uniqueness about themselves and their situation. The belief of emphasizing a human’s ability to choose is strengthened by American cultural narratives. This belief also leads to the fundamental narrative of American culture: Regeneration through regression.

In today's world there is one thing that can be found across the globe. This thing is highly influential, loved by many, and of of the most innovative things to ever be seen. What is this thing? It is America. The modern world would not be the same without it. But what does it mean to be American? To be an American, you must follow one principle: you must chase the American dream. Being American is not about being successful or even having money. It is the simple concept of chasing the American dream not succeeding in achieving it. This essay will explain the American dream and how it relates to the American identity in three ways: Through classic American literature, a study of historical documents, and a close look

Is it true that immigrant’s native roots never leave them? Do cultures keep the best interest in mind for immigrants? I live in the great state of Texas where according to the US Census for 2016, Hispanics account for 37% of the population. My church in Buda, Texas has 3500 families and is about 70% Hispanic in membership, moreover; half of our family friends are Hispanic and most of these friends are living the US culture. Some of our employees though maintain Spanish as their primary language. Immigrants have an unbreaking bond entwined with native culture.

R.E.M. ....Religious, educational and moral values. These are the three values that affect society today the most, I think. Society may look down on people if they do not live by what society thinks is correct. For example if a persons values are corrupt then society will look down on that person, but if a person has real high morals then society will think that they are fake of just a “goodie”. In society today you will be looked down anyway your moral beliefs are.

What does it mean to be American?Well it all depends on who you ask, because everyone has their own opinions. Being an American mean has and had many definitions for many centuries. During WW1 being an American was helping server the war or help the war. In WW2 it was the exact same thing. Women in this age thought being American was having the same rights as men.

For many years now, the American society is recognized as a capitalist one, and as a lot of people know, capitalism is mainly based in competition. This quality, recognized by other countries, is usually notable, since in the United States success requires competition. Often people find themselves competing in different situations like: sports, education, and even when working. All of these do or die contest of rivalry in the American society has created many issues. Those include, people focusing only on winning, not working together, and when someone loses the battle someone else loses.

The belief in hard work and its rewards is a universal American value. Born of one of America’s foundational mythologies, that all men are created equal, hard work is thought to be the key to securing financial and social success. When all are equal, so the argument goes, success depends not on the circumstances of one’s birth—race, class, gender or geography—but on one’s natural talents and willingness to work hard. Within this meritocratic framework, hard work, not opportunity, is the primary determiner of achievement. Contemporary ethnographies support this claim; studies of the working-class from Silva, Hochschild, and Lamont, along with Khan’s ethnography of the upper middle-class, confirm a fundamental belief in the merit of hard