American Culture Definition Essay

In today 's society, it seems as if everyone has their own personal definition of America. Those personal definitions can range from praising American freedom and liberty to criticizing American government and scandals. In Webster 's New World Dictionary, America is defined as “North America, South America, and the West Indies, considered together; also the Americas” (20). Although those are indeed components of America, they do not necessarily define what the United States is. When technicality and opinion is put aside, it becomes clear to see what truly defines America: culture. It is a widely accepted concept that America is a “melting pot” due to the assortment of races, religions, values, and customs that have mixed together here. Almost everything that makes up the culture in America today originated from …show more content…
The most significant social aspect of American life is food. Food plays a role in every social event and is a vital necessity to maintain health and strength. It is no secret that food has been influenced by cultures all over the world, however, most people do not realize exactly how much of their cuisine is not America-based. For example, hamburgers, pizza, and fries are considered the definition of “American food” though in reality, hamburgers originated in Germany, pizza originated in Italy, and fries originated in Belgium. An additional unforgettable social facet is clothing. Clothes are imperative in society. What someone wears signifies where they fit in along with their social standing. Most of the clothes that are popular today are based on different cultures as well as the companies who design them. Jeans, for example, came to America from European culture. Along with clothing, body piercings are considerable in America also. They have been a massive part of several cultures for centuries going as far back as the