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The american dream def simple
The American Dream
American dream, my dream
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The creation of the American dream acted as an inspirational motivator for a better future. By stepping foot onto the land of opportunity and sinking into the great American soil, the possibilities were endless. However, the possibilities of coinciding prosperity and happiness are slim to none. The American dream has turned into a constitutionalized nightmare for the working and middle class; nonstop work, little time off, and for some; barely manageable wages, has lowered the standards of what’s fair and equitable. In order for America to live up to its reputation, adoption of more functional and adequate policies needs to take place. The American educational system has turned into a business where customers are selectively chosen from …show more content…
The American worker has built this country from once they took, industrialized, capitalized, and created an enormous factory under which they breathe and continue to work in. Workers continue to push the country forward towards upward mobility and economic growth in fear of losing their jobs or becoming stuck in the place they are now. American workers, educated or not, work their entire lives with barely any benefits, to reach retirement where they live off a fixed income and social security checks--finally getting to rest after years of relentless work. Compared to our European counterparts, benefits are generously provided for workers, even paid time off for as much as three weeks. In America, many don’t take that time off if given the chance because the slowing of personal productivity has implemented the notion of replacement and losing one’s job. Thus, why America is known for their work ethic, working to the point years later to catch a break. If America were to establish more benefits to its workers, and have constitutionalized rights to obtain benefits for work rather have the employer control all the power to give even a single benefit, it would create a better workforce that’s more motivated to push the country forward, not out of fear, but for a more prosperous future individually and collectively as
In Niall Ferguson’s essay “America’s Oh Sh*t Moment,” he mentioned America’s newfound unemployment work ethic. The statement was quite interesting to me because from my perspective, it is accurate because the majority of Americans do not want to work. They would much rather sit at home all day and watch television. Unfortunately, most can not sacrifice their jobs due to financial circumstances. Furthermore, I will use the idea of work ethic to write my paper by comparing America’s work ethic to India’s. Despite the fact that India is a third world country, most Indians have a stronger work ethic than Americans. Therefore, I will develop an argumentative synthesis to support my thesis based on the information I discover after I conduct thorough research.
The American Dream has always been a driving force in the lives of Americans. It has become a foundation of ideals and hopes for any American or immigrant. Specifically, one of the ideals that always exist is the dream of America free of class distinction. Every American hopes for a society where every person has the opportunity to be whomever he or she desire. Another ideal in the American dream is the drive to improve the quality of life. As one’s idea of the American Dream gets closer and closer, often times political and social ideals of America cause their American Dream to take a turn for the worst.
People who work hard enough become successful and build a good life for themselves and their family. Millions of Americans and others who admire America have believed this for generations. However, is this still true? Brandon King debates his interpretation of the American Dream in his published work, “The American Dream: Dead, Alive, or on Hold?” During his essay, the speaker highlights how important the American Dream is to the economy and providing a distance from inequality. The speaker emphasizes his belief that the American Dream is still alive within America and that people must work hard to achieve it. When discussing the American Dream, King will agree that the idea is alive and thriving in the minds of Americans; yet, I argue that the idea is on hold within American society due to lack of upward social independence and economic mobility.
The American dream is defined as “...the ideal that every US citizen should have an equal opportunity to achieve success and prosperity through hard work, determination, and initiative” (Oxford Dictionary). The guarantee of economic and social opportunity attracts hundreds of thousands of immigrants to the United States and allows this nation to be so prosperous. As time has gone on, however, the American Dream dwindles to just a whisper of the past. Although there are still many hard working Americans, the success of each individual no longer correlates to the degree of effort that American’s put into their line of work, proving the barriers that separate many from a successful lifestyle. This epidemic is shown in Barbara Ehrenreich’s Nickel
Because the concept of the American Dream has been around for many years, it is something that is familiar to everyone. It can be agreed that people all have their own opinions and views about it; even decades have their own version of the American Dream. But what about for the 1990’s? What was the American Dream during that era? The American Dream in the 90’s was greatly influenced by three things: the expansion in technology, the thriving economy, and various, pivotal political events; based on those three components, the American Dream can be defined as individual success, such as money, power, fame, and development.
The Founding Fathers once preached that the American Dream entailed the right to “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness,” nothing more, nothing less (Declaration of Independence). For centuries, the American Dream meant having a good job, owning a house, having a nice family, and generally enjoying life the best way possible. As history progressed however, people started working toward achieving individualistic success by any means necessary. Go back to the 1930s in New York City one fine spring morning. A boy, Moss Hart, remembers that back then “wealth, rank, or an imposing name counted for nothing. The dream of the wonderful American consisted of having a decent chance to scale the walls and achieve what they wished” (Kamp 1). Now flash-forward a century into the year 2014. Today in America, success does not reflect how muc...
The American Dream provides Americans hope that if they work hard, they will eventually be successful, no matter how penniless the person. To understand the construction of this topic, there is a need to understand the circumstances involved. The Epic of America, The narrative in which the American Dream was constructed, was produced in the nineteen thirties. During this time, the Great Depression was at the height of destruction, and the new president Franklin D. Roosevelt created the “New Deal,” which inspired newly-found hope. In his Second Inaugural Address, he voiced his vision for the expanded role that the government would take in American's lives by stating, “The test of our progress is not whether we add more to the abundance of those who have much it is whether we provide enough for those who have too little” (Franklin D. Roosevelt). This began the facade of hope towards the impoverished folks attempting to achieve success. In reality the optimism and dedication given towards this dream is disproportional...
The American Dream is so important to our country and especially for our generation to take seriously. The American Dream is the opportunity to reach the goals one sets for themselves. It is about having your dream job and life you have always fantasized about. The dream is also about having freedom and equality. The American Dream was much easier to attain a few decades ago compared to today. However, it is still possible. The economy was better fifty years ago than it is today. People are in greater debt now and the United States is in higher debt than it was fifty years ago. The American Dream is still possible despite the lack of improvement within social mobility in American society over the past years. The American dream is achievable by being able to live a middle-class lifestyle and that lifestyle is obtainable through hard work and perseverance, even in light of obstacles such as racism. “The American Dream is still achievable, however, the good news is that people at the bottom are just as likely to move up the income ladder today as they were 50 years ago” (O’Brien 1). The ability to attain the American Dream is hindered by race, the middle class, and giving up facing adversity.
In today's society, the American dream is hindered by issues involving gender discrimination, racial discrimination, and weak economic mobility. The influence of money has broadened in our society, creating an elite group of winners, and leaving the rest as losers. Our government has been intoxicated under the influence of those holding a paper with a handful of zeros scrawled on it.
Years ago, the United States of America was the prime example of prosperity and opportunity. In recent years, in the worst recession since the Great Depression, unemployment and interest rates have skyrocketed. The “American Dream” is an idea that was once a commonly accepted ideology in this country. It has since become only a fallacy. The “American Dream” is no longer an attainable idea, only a fantasy. The “American Dream” is not a true dream that will ever be equally attainable by everyone.
Everyone grows up with the thought of an American dream in mind . Unfortunately that American dream is only limited to the people who are not of color. Sadly the people of color and the american dream don 't match up to well. I feel that this is because it can’t be easily obtained due to improper education and never being given the opportunity to show what they’re made of. Maybe if we weren 't categorized by our living arrangements, or the amount of our wealth, or better yet being presumed as these incompetent animals who aren’t good for nothing. Then we too would be able to achieve our own american dreams ,but as people of color the chances of that are not likely living in a world that feeds us with this improper mindset.
The American Dream is known to be a hope for a better, richer, happier life for all citizens of every class. For almost all Americans, this entails earning a college degree, gaining a good job, buying a house, and starting a family. Although this seems wonderful, a large amount of the American population believes that the Dream has changed immensely because of increased prices in today’s society, the price of tuition being highly unaffordable, as well as the unemployment rate skyrocketing and weaker job growth. While some American citizens believe it has changed, others believe that the American Dream has not changed, but point out it is harder to obtain.
America was built around the idea that if you work hard and endure your hardships you will reap the benefits life has to offer you. As religious leader and author Gordon B. Hinckley said, “Without hard work nothing grows but weeds.” Many families in America continue to instill a hard work ethic within their children, and the prosperity of our country relies its citizens work. Although, living in a country where more vacation time is being offered sounds luxurious in the long run it only negatively affects problems concerning, obesity, less household funds, and increased feelings of stress.
In America, if Americans do not work for what they want, they will not get that thing. The daily life of an American is either school or work. There isn’t really any time to do anything else. If Americans don’t work they won’t get their necessities. So as an immigrant coming into America you should take any opportunities that are available. In the short story, “America and I”, by Anzia Yezierska that is what she did. “In the golden land of flowing opportunity I was to find my work that was denied me in the sterile village of my forefathers.” She sees all of the opportunities that are in America so she is going to take advantage of that. “Once I thought that in America everybody works for love, Nobody has to worry for a living.” Sooner or later she realizes that that was completely wrong. But as the strong woman that she is, she proves that she has good workmanship and willing to work for what wasn’t given or allowed for her. She came from a country that didn’t allow women to work. Also is the poem “I Hear America Singing” by Walt Whitman, he says “The mason is singing as he makes ready for work, or leaves off work,” Working is an everyday thing like stated before. If you do not you will not survive in this cold world, people who do not work get looked down upon and they try to rely on everybody that’s around them. Somebody will let you to rely on them for so long until they tell you to get a job.
The American Dream The American dream has always been a talk amongst the American culture. When people speak of it, they often think back to the 19th century. The American Dream can be thought about when learning information on the Declaration of Independence which states that “all men are created equal, that they are endowed with certain unalienable rights that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness”. This was written by Thomas Jefferson.