American Identity

The identity of one’s nation is what makes that nation unique. American Identity has no set of unique traits because every nation influences America is some way. That is why America is called the “Big Melting Pot”. There were many American writers that tried to make a sense of American Identity. Washington Irving was one of these authors. He wrote stories such as “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” and “Rip Van Winkle” and used unusual characters to spread American ideals. He also used his stories to emphasize the idea of American democracy. Alexis de Tocqueville, a French political thinker and historian, also wrote of American Identity when he traveled to America. He published this book as Democracy in America. These authors have given us a sense of what our American identity is. American Identity, according to Washington Irving and Alexis de Tocqueville, is the idea of individualism, materialism, and exceptionalism.

Individualism is the ethical stance that emphasizes the moral worth of an individual. Individualists promote self-independence and self-reliance. In Irving’s Rip Van Winkle, the protagonist, Rip Van Winkle, is loved and admired by everyone in his town. However he loathed labor and was lazy to keep his own farm in order. However he always helped a neighbor. This can show that a person that did not helped himself would never achieve anything. This is showed when Rip leaves and comes back in a span of twenty years. No one remembered him, even the people he helped.

Individualism is also when a person thinks about benefiting himself rather than the whole society. Tocqueville states that this is a problem in a democracy because a person cannot do something to benefit their needs but rather must do something to benefit everyon...

... middle of paper ...

...t Katrina, the daughter of a wealthy farmer. Ichabod desires Katrina for the increase of his material wealth. He imagines himself selling her family’s farm once it is in his possession. Brom wants Katrina’s hand because he loves her. Because Katrina wants affection, she uses Ichabod to secure Brom’s affection.

American Exceptionalism is what makes America unique from other nations. Tocqueville often refers to the lack of aristocracy and its puritan roots.

When America was founded, there was no aristocracy but rather democracy. Tocqueville states that the germ of aristocracy was never planted in the Union because everyone who migrated to America was considered to be equal. He goes on saying aristocracy was never powerful in America. Even though a man can be rich, he could never be an aristocrat because there were no special privileges that he could partake in.