Dalton repudiated the myth that Horatio Alger conveyed as socially destructive and false. The author explains that the myth conceals important social realities like race and class. Dalton asserts that the Horatio Alger myth conveys three basic problematic messages: each of us is judged solely on his or her own merits, we each have a fair opportunity to develop these merits; and ultimately, merit will out. I agree with Dalton that success in life has to do anything beyond our individual control such as predigree, race, class background, gender national origin, and sexual orientation. I found the example of the Black student being described as the best Black student to have ever taken his class to be wrong. It is wrong how we are judged on a
