The American Dream And Happiness

We all have different notions about what defines success and happiness, one of these notions is the American Dream. The American Dream is the idea that every person has an equal opportunity to achieve success in life but also achieve prosperity with their hard work, determination, and initiative. In America this dream is an idea or goal a person aspires to achieve, it describes the type of life we wish for as well as the type of life we want to live. For example, a friend’s American Dream is to have a big house with nice cars, a family, and a job they would get paid well but also a place they would love going to every day. The American Dream should lead to happiness for those who achieve it but sometimes it’s the complete opposite. People believe …show more content…
Throughout the article “The American Nightmare” by Lauren Sandler, she states “And the more we strive to meet the expectations of the American Dream, the increasingly elusive happiness becomes...” Americans aim vigorously or try too hard to meet the expectations of their dream and do not compromise with what they have, making them unable to obtain happiness because they keep reaching for more and more. Many people who do not achieve their dream or just stop fighting for their dream and just give up will never fulfill their happiness. These people who halt give reasons such as they will continue later or there is no reason to continue; however, these are not good or acceptable reasons because people need to fight for their happiness and earn it, without a struggle people will never feel satisfied. Even though complications make it more difficult to achieving success, in the end pushing through them and not giving up will lead to happiness, fulfillment, prosperity and success. On the other hand, numerous people in America do fight and continue to challenge themselves to the very end leading them to their dream because they have the right to their accomplishments. According to Gus Speth, author of “Pursuing Happiness the American Ways”, Abraham Lincoln views America as “the laborer had a right to the fruits of his labor…” If the job or work of a person leads to success or happiness they have the right to it. Nobody can prevent them from achieving success accept for themselves. For example, a person can lose all their fortunes with a series of all their bad decisions just as well as a person can obtain or acquire a fortune with series of good decisions they