The American Dream
The American Dream is a dream to live in a place where someone’s rights and freedoms can not be taken away from them and where they can achieve their goals without anyone stopping them no matter what their background is. People achieved the American dream through motivation and hard work. Although as time passed, they became too lazy to actually work for it. Somewhere along the way, people began to interpret the American dream as a dream to live in wealth. Because of this, it has made them think that happiness is defined by how much money they have. They also started to find ways to get rich quick without working for it. Many people question whether or not the American dream is attainable or too far fetched. The American
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Andrew Warshauer states in his essay that Americans once “honored thrift and hard work as the preferred way to become successful” (Warshauer). Americans worked hard to for their freedom and as they say, hard work pays off. Now, people have become too lazy to work for what they want. They have parents who probably achieved the American dream so they could get a good education and have a good life, but they aren’t appreciating the advantages they have been given. They are used to having things handed to them because their families have worked hard to make them happy. So when they don't get what they want right away, they give up. In Lorie Johnson’s essay, “The ‘American Dream’: a Delusion?”, she explains that our nation has become “a whining bunch of overfed adolescents, wanting all the toys and none of the responsibility” (Johnson). For the people who are not willing to give up so easily, they can achieve their goals and attain the American …show more content…
They want a happy life, but are too lazy to do it themselves. The results are things such as the lottery or game shows. We have demolished the meaning of the American dream with this idea of “instant wealth” (Warshauer). Our nation is “pinning their hopes on what they perceive as ‘easy’ money” rather than getting a proper job (Warshauer). For the people who actually have a job and have good work ethic, they can be happy and reach their goals, which is the American
Through everybody’s eyes is their own version of the American Dream. Whether it’s the stereotypical dream with a good job, a family, and a house with a white picket fence, or it could be just getting by at the end of the month financially. The American Dream doesn’t have a specific image but rather a particular mindset. Lots of people have a goal in their life that they have to work hard to be successful towards that goal, but in most cases that goal may be unrealistic.
The American Dream is one of those terms that people refer to when talking about immigration, financial status, and so much more. But what does the term really refer to? People used to think of the American Dream as financial prosperity, religious and financial freedom, and all around success. Now, the term may mean something similar, but people are much less focused on it. If anything, the American Dream today is focused on gaining material goods and proving your bank account is larger than your neighbors. With today’s economy, laws and regulations, immigration customs, and overall attitude towards work, people are seldom focused on achieving the American Dream.
The American Dream is a fantasy that has not come true for the millions that are toiling in the system hoping to get a piece of the wealth which America so liberally shares with its rich upper class. Mansions, expensive cars, a happy family and of course lots of money. These images adorn the minds of the less privileged of this nation.
Why people are not achieving the american dream is because.America thinks that we are amazing people at what we do we think we are “natural born mechanics and know enough about a car and how to work on a car.Americans think that they are to good to have jobs because we think we are the smartest people in the world and we are not the smartest people in the world.Some americans are smart and others don't have a clue about anything.”We believe implicitly that we are the heirs of the pioneers:that we have inherited self-sufficiency and the ability to take care of ourselves,particularly in a relation to nature’’.
First off, we must understand the definition of this so called, “American Dream”. A basic definition would describe it as, “the mindset that every US citizen should have an equal opportunity to achieve success and prosperity through hard work, determination, and initiative”. Now in a way this can either be true or false. You could either strive for success and work your entire life to make it to the “White picket fence”, or you could be born with a silver spoon and literally have everything you needed in life just given to you. This is also a lifestyle we all sought out to be an easy task to live every day in this “American Dream.” Let’s look into some readings that actually tell about these thoughts.
However, we must remember an important fact: our generation of American faces the same wall of hopelessness that stood before those who lived through the Great Depression – and they overcame it. What we can take from them, is that we can succeed if we accept the simple fact that we must do what must be done, even if it isn’t desirable. If we graduate with a degree in fashion marketing and fail to secure employment, we work at a retail store in order to pay rent and get the bills paid. Running around for hours to work in a store takes grit; being underemployed takes gut; learning from experience and applying it to one’s life creates character. And one day, we grow. That in my belief is “the Dream.” For too many versions of “the Dream” equate prosperity to happiness, happiness I feel is not so simple. This makes it seem that the American Dream may always remain tantalizingly out of reach for some Americans, making the dream more like a cruel joke rather than a genuine dream. Perhaps, what our generation needs is to
The American Dream is defined as all of it’s citizens having equal opportunity to have success and beneficial growth through hard work and dedication through hard work. Sadly, this is not the case for many citizens living in the United States of America and it is not attainable for anyone. In America, all of its wealth is owned by a small circle of individuals that have the power to rule this country from the inside. These wealthy believe that power and wealth come to those that work very hard and turn nothing into gold, however in many cases with very wealthy families the money is most likely an inheritance. The American dream is not attained for all of it’s citizens because of the large wealth gap between classes, the media’s coverage on class, and distribution of wealth.
The American dream has changed drastically thru our history. Back in the 1950 and 1960 the American dream was to have the house with the white picket fence and the 2 ½ kids. Now the dream for a lot of people is to be able to pay their bills and maybe have enough money to go out for a nice little dinner that you did not have to cook yourself. The American dream is dead, it is because the concept has changed from the idea that everyone can improve their life through hard work to the idea that everyone can become a millionaire through virtually no work. The United State at one point used to have everything you needed to make this dream happen. But since jobs have been moving over sees we have lost all of that. The American Dream is so
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 forty-first president of the United States, George W. H. Bush, once said, “The American Dream means giving it your all, trying your hardest, accomplishing something…” As the years fly by, so does the American Dream. With busy lives, many Americans tend to forget the purpose of the American Dream. Failing to make ends meet, not being able to afford the new iPhone and the lack of success that is not America’s fault. People create their successes and failures based on what they desire. Through a person creating their own definition, not quitting once things go wrong, and creating opportunities the American Dream still floods the streets of America today.
There used to be a belief that all hard work and effort would eventually lead up to great success, prosperity, and happiness. Unfortunately, this false idea gives people an expectancy that people who are determined to exceed in life, will succeed in life. This is called the American Dream. This dream twists the true meaning of happiness. The American dream shouldn't be measured by how much money a person has, but should lay within a person’s own dream. Whether their dream is in becoming the president or having a chance to smell fries everyday. And just because someone who is successful, does not mean that they are satisfied -success is different to everyone. With so many people busy trying to reach this “dream”, they forget to create their own.
The idea of the American Dream has been around since America was founded, but until 1933, it was not put into words. In the article American Faces 1933’s Realities, by James Truslow Adams, he defines the American Dream as “ ...a vision of a better, deeper, richer life for every individual, regardless of the position in society which he or she may occupy by the accident of birth” (1). The American Dream does not have to be described as having copious amounts of wealth. To some, it is only a vision of a better life for themselves and their families.
What is the “American Dream”? The American Dream has always been characterized by a thriving job market, opportunities for advancement, stability, etc. It is “the pursuit of individual achievement without consideration for moral or legal restrictions” (Angulski, 2013). This idea dates back as far as 1630 to the puritan colonists. It was first established within a sermon given by John Winthrop while sailing to Massachusetts. This sermon set into motion the ideals that we have adapted today enveloping the “American Dream”. From then on Americans put their faith in the theory that if you work hard and do the right thing you will manifest your goals and eventually attain success and comfortability. The dream of the time was to live in a land where there existed a right to religious freedom and opportunity. This ideal has stuck to this day, however the validity may is no longer intact. The American Dream is a mere afterthought within today’s society, overtaken by massive debt and loss of opportunity. The American Dream is the greatest asset we as a country possess, “the fact that people from across the world still want to come to America to fulfill their dreams, to join a society that they see as dynamic, exciting, and full of potential, is a testament to the great potential of America to improve lives and offer opportunity for all” (Ross, 2016).
There is no escape from the incessant dream. It encompasses every factor of the modern American lifestyle. It all begins with "The American Dream," in which everyone strives to become part of something bigger then themselves. The obsession, that supposedly defines how happiness can be obtained. But happiness is not, contrary to the beliefs of the American Dreamers, measured on a checklist including 2.5 kids, 1 dog, 1 cat, baby blue house in suburbs, white picket fence, 2 car garage, and a perfectly manicured lawn. That image is a facade over the ever-crumbling ash heaps of our world. It is impossible to measure one 's life or happiness on a scale of coffee spoons, cars, or annual income, yet many people continue to plug away like machines for no other reason than to make the money that they honestly believe will bring them true happiness. This idea is everywhere, leaving much of America longing for a life that does not exist and working toward a goal that could never be reached in this lifetime.
The “American Dream” is an idea which is commonly interpreted as working towards a dream or aspiration one has until it has been achieved. This idea is so significant in American society because it encourages people to elevate themselves in society and to aspire to become something great. In theory, this concept is a great model to live by and to encourage a nation to propel themselves into their own unique ideas of success. Even if it is difficult and there are many barriers that exist and have existed, those who have continued to pursue a passion or movement have always seemed to succeed. American culture is full of real and fictional “Rags to Riches” stories because it is always a real option and possibility to pursue in American society. Many of the people who have their own rags to riches stories include Warren Buffett, Elon Musk, and Oprah Winfrey. From any limitation which anyone has faced, there always has seemed to be someone who has risen up from those struggles and prejudices in order to fulfil their interpretation of the American Dream. Many people are able to fulfill the American Dream from many backgrounds, but all had the same ambitions to pursue ones dream.