The American Dream takes the shape of each individual’s ideal life story. This Dream comes from our concepts of what America stands for. There are fairly consistent notions inherent to our connotations of what the Dream encompasses, but how we express those notions may differ dramatically. In my paper I will consider some of the ways that people see the American dream, whether they see it as alive or dead, and why I believe that the Dream is alive and within reach. What is the American Dream? The American Dream is a term which is broadly used to describe the American way of life. It comes from the Declaration of Independence, which states that we have “certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness”
…show more content…
Luke is a student who will gain his BS in Engineering from Marquette University at the end of this semester. He had a very positive outlook on the American Dream when I interviewed him. This is what he said in response to my questions about the American Dream: “The American dream in my mind, means the opportunity to succeed. I want to own my own business. I want the ability to earn money from my own hard work and be my own boss. This is what the American Dream means in my …show more content…
Many people believe that it is not the same, and that the American Dream is dead. In 2015 a writer named Chris Arnade took it upon himself to travel the country and ask people to talk about their perspectives on the American Dream. He received a variety of answers. Some of the answers were positive, some were not. When he interviewed a woman named Karen, she said that she thought the Dream was dead because values are dead. She saw people becoming obsessed with things like money, instead of true happiness. To her, the Dream represents happiness, and happiness is found in caring about others in a community. She thinks that no one cares about others anymore. While this may be true for some people, it is certainly not in the majority of cases. I, personally, see people who care about others. My professors are one example. They set aside a lot of time to help you learn, they usually genuinely care about you and your future. When I was younger, I lived in Monroe, WI. Monroe had a huge homeschooling community in which the families were very close and helped each other learn. Mothers would take children from many families out on field trips, children would sit in the library and study math together, older children would help younger children to learn to read and write. We held our own gym at a big park. I certainly agree that community is a necessary factor in achieving the American Dream. I don’t believe that anyone must, or even can,
Luke is a student who will gain his BS in Engineering from Marquette University at the end of this semester. He had a very positive outlook on the American Dream when I interviewed him. This is what he said in response to my questions about the American Dream: “The American dream in my mind, means the opportunity to succeed. I want to own my own business. I want the ability to earn money from my own hard work and be my own boss. This is what the American Dream means in my …show more content…
Many people believe that it is not the same, and that the American Dream is dead. In 2015 a writer named Chris Arnade took it upon himself to travel the country and ask people to talk about their perspectives on the American Dream. He received a variety of answers. Some of the answers were positive, some were not. When he interviewed a woman named Karen, she said that she thought the Dream was dead because values are dead. She saw people becoming obsessed with things like money, instead of true happiness. To her, the Dream represents happiness, and happiness is found in caring about others in a community. She thinks that no one cares about others anymore. While this may be true for some people, it is certainly not in the majority of cases. I, personally, see people who care about others. My professors are one example. They set aside a lot of time to help you learn, they usually genuinely care about you and your future. When I was younger, I lived in Monroe, WI. Monroe had a huge homeschooling community in which the families were very close and helped each other learn. Mothers would take children from many families out on field trips, children would sit in the library and study math together, older children would help younger children to learn to read and write. We held our own gym at a big park. I certainly agree that community is a necessary factor in achieving the American Dream. I don’t believe that anyone must, or even can,