The American Dream isn’t well known to many people. The definition of the American Dream is rather simple; it is the desire of Americans to have freedom and to be better off than their parents. The American Dream means many things to many people. Some people consider the American Dream to be composed of success stories, while others think of it as a casino that has some winners, but a lot of losers. The American Dream is composed of four central themes: government, business, religion, and the American identity. The purpose of this essay is to examine each of these themes and see how they allow normal citizens the opportunity to achieve success.
We begin our story with the Declaration of Independence and the United States Constitution. It is here where the American dream is truly born. The Constitution starts with a preamble that establishes the American Dream in this line
| The US Constitution wrote: |
| “… and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our posterity…”(Constitution) |
| The Declaration of Independence wrote: |
| “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights that among these are: Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.” (Independence) |
According to the textbook Understanding Business, the American Dream is
| Understanding Business wrote: |
| “Americans’ hope for a better quality of life and a higher standard of living than their parents.” |
The greatest stories of the American Dream are not the born successes, but the successes that come about as a result of hard work. Not everyone succeeds the first time, every time. The story of Chris Gardner is one such example. He had quit his job as a medical supply sales job to go for a job which he learned later had been closed. His family had left him on the same day he was arrested for unpaid parking tickets. He spent ten days in jail and went from jail to a job interview.
| Kaiser wrote: |
| “I could not think of a lie bizarre enough,” Gardner said. “I told the truth.” (Kaiser) |
Capitalism is defined as
| Dictionary.com wrote: |
| “an economic system in which the means of production and distribution are privately or corporately owned and development is proportionate to the accumulation and reinvestment of profits gained in a free market.” (Dictionary.com) |
| Professor Von Hayek wrote: |
| “Freedom in this sense is, of course, merely another name for power or wealth.” (Von Hayek, 40) |
| Professor Von Hayek wrote: |
| “The economic freedom which is the prerequisite of any other freedom cannot be the freedom from economic cares which the socialists promise us and which can be obtained only by relieving us of the power of choice. It must be that freedom of economic activity which, together with the right of choice, carries also the risk and responsibility of that right.” (Von Hayek, 58) |
Many people that have sought the American Dream came here so that they might escape from religious persecution. Even in America, it has been the dream of the faithful to run from religious persecution. Everyone knows the story of the Mayflower and their search for religious freedom. They aren’t the only example of religious groups fleeing religious persecution. The Jews that could afford to leave Germany before the holocaust went many places, especially America.
America is a well known receiver of many different kinds of people, but not all Americans treat foreigners kindly. There is some anti-Hispanic sentiment due to the illegal immigration going along the Mexican-American Border. This is, ironically enough, a result of the enormous promise that America offers the people of poor countries. It is an issue that will need to be addressed in the future. America is far from being a place where persecution is gone. America has a history of persecuting many minorities: Indians, Asian Americans, African Americans, Hispanics, everyone. The Mormons themselves wiped out an entire wagon train of settlers out of religious fervor before word could be sent to them to not attack. (Gibbs) Indians were relocated many times, had their land taken away from them, and were generally treated badly.
What is interesting to note is not that these things have occurred, but that these processes have ceased over time just because of the changing of society. Government policy has become more tolerant to people of all races, cultures, and religions. The suffering of minorities has been brought to light by the minorities themselves and historians. A nation that was founded with slavery has since become a place where all people are equal in their opportunity to accomplish something great. These changes were a result of changes in how individuals viewed themselves as Americans.
The American identity varies from person to person but it does have some common traits. These include patriotism, independence, and competition. A love of country is certainly one. Patriotism is a,
| Dictionary.com wrote: |
| “Love of and devotion to one's country.” (Dictionary.com) |
| General Patton wrote: |
| “When you, here, every one of you, were kids, you all admired the champion marble player, the fastest runner, the toughest boxer, the big league ball players, and the All-American football players. Americans love a winner. Americans will not tolerate a loser. Americans despise cowards. Americans play to win all of the time. I wouldn't give a hoot in hell for a man who lost and laughed. That's why Americans have never lost nor will ever lose a war; for the very idea of losing is hateful to an American.” (Patton) |
What is going on in Iraq and Afghanistan today is a sign of another interesting phenomena: the exportation of the American Dream. It is present in many modern countries and the US is exporting it to other countries via American Culture, according to Joseph Nye.
| Joseph Nye wrote: |
| “During the Cold War military containment prevented Soviet expansion but the real victory was the transformation of the cultures behind the Iron Curtain by their attraction to Western values. So soft power [American Culture] was essentially the transformative force,” (Marcus) |
The American Dream is now common in many countries because America has had such a great influence in so many places in the world. Afghanistan, Italy, Iraq, Japan, Germany, and Russia are all countries which have since been given democracy by America. Many other countries have sought the advice of America to determine how they can form a democracy in their country.
The American Dream came about from a group of men who created a country on the foundation of economic, religious, and social freedom for America. The capitalist system of government has given great incentives for people to succeed. These incentives continue to this day and economic freedom is available to anyone who works hard enough to achieve it. While America has violated the rights of its citizens in the past, it has since moved on, showing the change of character in the Americans. The character in America is very competitive, independent, and patriotic. While greed flows in the undercurrent, this is hardly a unique trait to America. The American Dream is becoming more and more common due to the amount of countries that are adopting the same governments and policies of the United States. The American Dream is really the dream to succeed. It has thrived in America because the conditions in America are better for success than in other places in the world. Since the American Dream was recognized here first, it will forever be known as the American Dream.
Works Cited
Bradshaw, Gary. “Doing it Wright.” <http://www.wam.umd.edu/~stwright/WrBr/first_airplanes/wrights_methods.html>
Dictionary.com “Definition of Capitalism” <http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=Capitalism>
Dictionary.com “Definition of Patriotism” Online. <http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=Patriotism>
Gibbs, Josiah F. Meadow Mountain Massacre 1910.
<http://www.utlm.org/onlinebooks/meadows3.htm#THE%20MASSACRE.>
Kaiser, Rob. “Once homeless, now millionaire, Chicago man's life to hit big screen.” The Standard-Times (April 5, 2005). <http://www.southcoasttoday.com/daily/04-05/04-05-05/l02ca253.htm>
Marcus, Jonathon. “Exporting the American Dream.” BBC News UK (February 23, 2004). <http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/3512897.stm>
Nickels, William et al. Understanding Business 6th Edition. McGraw-Hill College. July 2001. <http://www.mhhe.com/business/busadmin/nickels_6_ub/student/olc/glossary.mhtml>
Pilgrim Society. “Religion.” (Updated July 14, 1998) <http://www.pilgrimhall.org/religion.htm>
Province, Charles M. “The Famous Patton Speech”. <http://www.pattonhq.com/speech.html>
US Government “The US Constitution” <http://www.usconstitution.net/const.html>
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Von Hayek, Friedrich A. “Condensed Version of “The Road To Serfdom” <http://www.iea.org.uk/files/upld-publication43pdf?.pdf>
