What makes an American, ‘American’? The answer to this question will vary greatly depending on the respondent’s beliefs and cultural background. As the United States continues to grow and evolve in areas such as race, ethnicity and culture, the image of America changes as well. In an article entitled ‘Nation or Notion’ by Patrick J. Buchanan, he argues that Americans need a common identity based upon ancestry and culture to survive as a country. On the other hand, an article entitled ‘What Does It Mean to Be an “American”?’ by Michael Walzer argues that America does not need a common identity.…
Andrew Avery Mrs. Draper English III, 6th Hour 9/14/17 Definition Essay December 7, 1941, WWII, Japanese pilots bomb Pearl Harbor in Honolulu, Hawaii spurring the American people into action and into joining World War II. What does it mean to be an American? It’s a question that seems easy to answer until you are asked to explain it directly. The definition of an American is shown in Veterans Day: Never Forget Their Duty, I Hear America Singing, and What is Freedom?…
Every American has a divergent perspective on America. With this, there are numerous amounts of definitions for America and what it means to be an American. Some definitions can exclude others from reaching their full potential in America and some definitions can benefit everyone to reach their full potentials. However, America should be defined to have the ability to reach one’s full potential with their owned civil rights to benefit American society. One example of one’s view of excluding others from reaching their full potentials is in Ann Coulter’s speech, “We Only Owe Black People Not Gays, Women or Immigrants Civil Rights,” Coulter believes that America should prioritize giving Civil Rights to the black people due to their controversial history in America.…
Due to how rapidly diversity is increasing in America, it’s getting extremely difficult for Americans from all 50 states to sustain a common identity. From the interviews conducted by the New York Times, people with completely different backgrounds provided variety of responses to the same question “What does it mean to be an American?”. According to David Koch, a lawyer and mayoral candidate in Farmers Branch, he stated “It’s just a concept that’s always there. To me it’s just a hard work ethic, a commitment to country, to the community, always wanting to give of yourself to make the whole better, to make the country stronger, to help your neighbors.”…
From the beginning of American people have been helping develop a nation to be its absolute greatest. Helping your nation is one of the key objectives to success. Many definitions of Americans could be made in many different ways. In "What is an American?", "What is Freedom?", and "Veterans Day: Never Forget Their Duty" there are plenty of definitions of an American. Identifying them can be seen as negation, function, exemplification, and classification.…
What it Means to be American What it means to be american is a person who will stand up for our country and someone and a american wood fight for his family and his country now matter what it is family and your country is all you got in thas world and why not save your country and fight for tham you only live one time do it for your family . There is no other why to live in lase you are free in this world and this world will beat you to your needs and keep you there if you late it it's not how hard you get hit it's how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward and for a moment of paen is a lifetime of happiness. And a american blevs that he can do anything in this world even if it can't be done a american can dowt it…
What does it mean to be an American? That is the question that many people ask, but do not know the real answer. Everyone will have their own opinion on what it means to be a true American. Some may say pride, some may say fearlessness, some may say determination, but to me the most important word that I could use to describe what it means to be an American is a family. We work so hard together as a nation to keep America going strong and become unstoppable.…
What does it mean to be an American? What does it mean to be an American? There are many definitions on what it means to be an American because there are many diversities in this country. Historian Philip Gleason once said, ”To be or to become an American, a person did not have to be any particular national, learning languages, religious, or ethnic background.…
What does it mean to be an American? Being an American means to be able to wake up know you have free choices, know you are not living under the ruling or dictatorship of another person, or persons. It is getting out of bed and choosing the slippers you chose be cause theyre your favorite. It is stepping outside with a cup of tea or coffee and reading a book that you want, not one that was chosen for you. I am proud to be an American because every day is a new day.…
What does it mean to be an American? What ideas and experiences define being an American? These are questions that people living in the United States occasionally ask themselves. Some individuals simply choose to define being an American as simply living on United States soil, while alternatively certain Americans wish to limit being an American to a more legal definition – such as legally being a citizen in the country or the rights we are given. Others choose to find more personal definitions to answer the question of what it means to be an American.…
The ability to possess several freedoms was not only fought for, but worked for by the American citizen. America is a unique country compared to many of the oppressive countries across the…
In the United States of America, people, especially in the world of politics, are often asked to define who is exactly is an “American”. On the surface, the answer seems rather obvious; an American is a person who is a native or citizen of the United States of America (Oxford Dictionary). However, 239 years ago, the United States of America became it’s own independent country. Since the formation of the original 13 colonies, men, women, and their families have fled to the USA to escape the injustices happening in their home countries in hopes of a better life. The USA was a country founded by immigrants, built by immigrants, for immigrants.…
The term American, when used by one who considers themself to belong to this term, is perceived to portray a person containing the traits of strength, duty, and unity. It is thought that the individual characterized by this term should be proud to classified as one. This is the picture painted by media, that when “Uncle Sam” calls on the people of America, everyone would stand up and defend this beautiful, peaceful country till their last breath. The term American gives those classified as such a defined sense of community and of belonging to and relating to those within that community. However, the characteristics that make someone an American is as different as the people that are asked.…
What does it mean to be an American? An American is not simply just “a person who was born in America.” The definition goes beyond birth-place and many other common superficial features. An American is one who seeks conformity, as conformity ensures a lack of judgment from society. As apparent through many time periods of American Literature, a person’s perception within society plays a large role in how they develop themself.…
If the meaning of freedom has been a frontline throughout history, so too has been the definition of those enabled to enjoy its blessings. Founded on the principle that liberty is a prerogative of all mankind, the United States, from the onset, patently deprived many of its own people of freedom.…