Is America the land of opportunity? Are we really all living the American dream we imagined when starting our journeys to success in this country? Over the years, America has become the land of economic disparity, not opportunity. The American dream has changed and people now are happy just getting by. There are many factors that are detrimental to one’s ability to succeed; among them are socioeconomic status. One’s very class can even affect health and education. With sixty percent of Americans only owning 4 percent of the wealth, the difference between classes is only more evident each day (Mantsios 285). This inequality is a leading cause of Americans’ inability to not only succeed, but live their daily lives. What is a classic success story in America? Perhaps you work really hard at your job, rise in the ranks, and get paid accordingly. Perhaps you were lucky and landed a job that makes it possible for you to be successful. This is the case in Horatio Alger’s “Ragged Dick”. This tale
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This is best shown by Mantsios’s profiles on children from upper, middle, and lower classes. Harold S. Browning, a child of successful parents was given the opportunity to have outside tutors, attend a prestigious preparatory school, and spent time with his family by going on winter trips to the Caribbean and summer vacations to Europe (287). Cheryl Mitchell, a child of a single mother, had no supplemental tutoring, went to a large public high school, and spent time with her family by attending church (292). The difference in lifestyle is evident. Harold aspires to be CEO of his family’s firm, whereas Cheryl just aspires to “get out of the ghetto” (287, 292). These two people are not given the same opportunity to succeed. This is a self-reinforcing loops found in classes due to the large gap between them only contribute to the issue of lower class citizens staying in the lower class and being unable to reach their full
This is best shown by Mantsios’s profiles on children from upper, middle, and lower classes. Harold S. Browning, a child of successful parents was given the opportunity to have outside tutors, attend a prestigious preparatory school, and spent time with his family by going on winter trips to the Caribbean and summer vacations to Europe (287). Cheryl Mitchell, a child of a single mother, had no supplemental tutoring, went to a large public high school, and spent time with her family by attending church (292). The difference in lifestyle is evident. Harold aspires to be CEO of his family’s firm, whereas Cheryl just aspires to “get out of the ghetto” (287, 292). These two people are not given the same opportunity to succeed. This is a self-reinforcing loops found in classes due to the large gap between them only contribute to the issue of lower class citizens staying in the lower class and being unable to reach their full