Jorge Rodriguez
Ms. Gladstone
Language Arts Literature 3 Honors
5/15/14
Is It a Dream or a Nightmare?
The land of the free and the home of the brave are renowned for its freedoms that enable its citizens to pursue their own happiness. America is portrayed by many as the country where your dreams can finally be fulfilled with hard work and perseverance.The daunting truth behind the American dream is that not everyone’s fantasies can come true. Being successful in America is correlated with the people you know, and the connections you have. Making it in America without any help is a fallacy, the only true success stories today are those standing on the backs of the individuals that got them there. Making it in America does not occur the way it did in the past, the American dream no longer exists!
It is no secret that the American economy has been trending downward for a couple of years now. Jobs are scarce at the moment and unemployment rates are the lowest since the Great Depression era in the 1930s and 40s. There are just not as many jobs available for people to even get started on accomplishing their dreams. Paul Heyne once said “The gap in our economy is between what we have and what we think we ought to have — and that is a moral problem, not an economic one.” People coming to America are sometimes misled into believing that jobs are bountiful but in fact, the situation is exactly the opposite.
“About 48 percent of employed U.S. College graduates are in jobs that the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) suggests requires less than a four-year college education. Eleven percent of employed college graduates are in occupations requiring more than a high-school diploma but less than a bachelor’s, and 37 percent are in occupations requ...
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...people turn to the people in the past that have overcome incredible odds to achieve great things. People like Linden Strandberg who became successful in unconventional ways are often looked at for inspiration for achieving thing that generally do not seem possible. When looking at examples like Mark Zuckerberg it can sometimes be misleading because he had accomplished so much in his life already. People love a good underdog story to help them cope with their own letdowns and failures but stories like Zuckerberg’s are outliers they are not the norm. Strandberg’s story was one that was more plausible and more feasible for its time. Nowadays someone going from nothing to something is just as close to impossible as you can get.
The ideas of the American dream is not dead, not by any means, what has died is the notion that anyone can come to america and be successful.
Is the American Dream dead or alive? To many the American Dream is the ability to work hard enough to fulfill their dream and unlock opportunities for success. In the article “Is the American Dream Still Possible”, David Wallechinsky demonstrates the many problems in Americans way. He provides family and individuals stories that explain the reason they don’t believe in the American Dream like prices going up and citizens not getting paid enough. He makes his claim convincing to make individuals believe that his perspective is correct.
The United States has always been viewed as a land of opportunity, where one could achieve anything they put their mind to, no matter who they are. Freedom and economic stability are the factors that make our country appealing. People are hopeful that the opportunities the country holds will help them achieve the American dream. This dream consists of achieving financial success, but time has proven that the American dream is a rare occurrence. Unfortunately, ambition, hard work, nor perseverance are enough to be successful in America. No individual is guaranteed success or destined for failure, but it is apparent that women, people of color, and those born into poverty will face greater obstacles than others,
Some say the American dream is completely dead in today’s society. No. The American dream is alive and well for those who will go the extra mile for it. People may believe it is dead due to factors that may “hinder” a person from achieving it. These factors include, but are not limited to, discrimination, lack of job opportunities, debt, natural disasters, etc. These theories may be proven wrong in most cases, with the exception of some. The American dream is the idea that anyone, no matter the situation they are currently in, can eventually live a happy and stable life in America. The dream is attainable for a willing individual, who will work hard for what they want. This does not mean it will be easy, nor does it mean
The American dream has been a tangible idea, greatly sought after by many over the course of American History. The dream has eluded many, to strive for achieving in America’s open markets, and become a self-made man from the sweat of one’s brow. The idea of become self-sufficient, and have limitless dreams that take one as far as they are willing to imagine is captured very differently from The Great Gatsby to A Raisin in the Sun. Both novels seem to have the American dream as their subject, but both end up having very different outcomes to how one achieves it, and if the dream is truly in existence, namely with the characters of Jay Gatsby and Walter Younger. The books mainly brushes upon the idea of what the American dream truly is, how one achieves the dream, and what the real fulfillment the dream encompasses.
If more people went to college, and less went the vocational route, jobs will take a momentous hit. Today, companies will not even touch an application that does not include a Bachelor’s Degree; even if the Bachelor’s Degree has nothing to do with the job being applied for. Attention is not given to whether the hopeful applicant qualifies for the job; all that matters is that the applicant has a Bachelor’s degree. Murray best sums up the American job market when he says, “Employers do not value what the student learned, just that the student has a degree” (Murray). However, if less people obtain a Bachelor’s Degree, employers will be forced to base applicants on their skills, and abilities. Furthermore, important vocational jobs that lie vacant will be filled. Good electricians, carpenters, and construction workers will always be in
The American Dream is the traditional, social ideals of the U.S. such as equality, democracy, and material prosperity. “The American Dream is the ideals of freedom, equality and opportunity, traditionally held to be available to every American” (Dictionary.com). It was believed to be a life of material happiness and comfort. Nowadays, The American Dream is nothing more than a mere stipulation. Bob Herbert and Cal Thomas are two individuals that bring up quite a few key points in their arguments pertaining to the American Dream and the economy. While one focuses in on how we as Americans had a huge hand in the current crisis of our “hidden” reality, the other focuses in on the government’s hand in this affair as to cause him to actually question is the American Dream really over?
Mostly anything you want to achieve requires time and perseverance it doesn 't just come to you easily. In America we all have dreams we want to achieve, a set of goals for the future. The American dream is in your perception, what you want it to mean for you. It’s what you want to consummate in America where you can 't anywhere else. How you can succeed in life enough to survive and be happy. The reality of the American dream is the essence of any person living in America, immigrant or not. Trying to achieve in life more than their parents did and to be successful with a prosperous life, but many people believe it can’t be achieved, but with assiduous work and determination you can make your
America has always been known as the land of the free, living in America you’re always taught on the idea of living the “American Dream”. That means the chance of being whoever you want to become, deciding the route you want to go in life to live. To most that also means to have a family to take care of and also to have a stable career, own a house, car and more. The part of the dream they don't stress you about enough is that it's not easy to achieve. It takes a lot of hard work in which a lot of people don't achieve unfortunately.
The American Dream, recognized as being the earning of a college degree, the owning of one 's own home, taking vacations and experiencing upward social mobility, is a very important belief that helped create the success that America is today. Many people believe that anyone who works hard and has determination can achieve this American Dream. In this day and age, experiencing the American Dream is believed to no longer be as available to Americans as it once was. The economy and corporate America have had a strong impact on the availability to reach this state of success. Everyone wants to live the American Dream, whether they know it or not. I have never met a person who did not want to become successful. Even I had a strong belief that the
People will journey far and wide, traverse the entire continent, suffer all manner of pain and suffering, if they believe that, in the end, they will be rewarded. That is why it comes as no surprise when people from other countries struggle to get to America, believing the ancient tale of "the American Dream", convinced that they will finally make it big in this land of riches. But they find out it is not like that.
The American Dream is referred to by many people as the reason to come to America. It is, or so they say, the pursuit of life, liberty, and happiness. Unfortunately they are incorrect, there truly is no American Dream, it is all an illusion given to us by our founding fathers as a reason for the inequality in which people are treated. I have lived in this country for 16 years now and have all the patriotic bullshit about how we give everyone equal opportunity and how everyone is equal in the eyes of the law. I just laugh when I read this. Throughout our country’s 300-year history, it is all about raising one person over the other. It started with the movement of the Native Americans. They were here before anyone else, and they were moved because they did not live with all the violence our ancestors did. The founding fathers continued to push them further and further away because it was beneficial to them at the time. They said if you stay here we will not bother you anymore, then when they decided that area was nice and they needed it for the white man. Then we began to take the black man out of Africa and use them on our plantations so the white man could get more money. The President ended slavery, but there were ways around it and everyone knew it. No one ever said any persecution of the black man is wrong for years and why not, because it was more convenient for us to ignore it. Now the people from Latin American countries have come in homes of freedom, and better lives. We tell them they have to speak English, since they are in America, but I do not recall being taught the language of the Native Americans. Since they were here first should you not have to learn that language?
The American dream is not dead, because people from college with find steady jobs in the real world. It doesn't matter on your class, race, or gender anybody can make millions of dollars, and you can be successful in America. In the book “The great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald describes a man named Jay Gatsby that was poor growing up and running away to make it big in America. Therefore the American dream is possible if you can achieve it no matter what color of your skin, race, or what gender you are, you can achieve the American dream.
"I think the American Dream says that anything can happen if you work hard enough at it and are persistent, and have some ability. The sky is the limit to what you can build, and what can happen to you and your family" expressed Sanford I. Weill. The American Dream is still alive and obtainable. Many people have a definition of what the American Dream that is obtainable in their minds. People all have unique individual lives.
What is the American Dream, and who are the people most likely to pursue its often elusive fulfillment? Indeed, the American Dream has come to represent the attainment of myriad of goals that are specific to each individual. While one person might consider a purchased home with a white picket fence her version of the American Dream, another might regard it as the financial ability to operate his own business. Clearly, there is no cut and dried definition of the American Dream as long as any two people hold a different meaning. What it does universally represent, however, it the opportunity for people to seek out their individual and collective desires under a political umbrella of democracy.
The American dream changed by the ideal that every US citizen should have an equal opportunity to achieve success and prosperity through hard work, determination, and initiative. It means that people that live in the united states have what they need to live. On the other hand, people from foreign countries have to start from scratch to go from rags to riches to basically be accepted. The foreigner is expected to work harder than the normal americans. With the american dream i feel everyone, including people from other countries should not have to work so hard to fit into our nation. They aren't even use to how we do things here. I Believe they can be given a little leeway sine they probably haven't even learned how to do the things we do also