This essay will focus on the origin of the American Dream and its key elements on the one hand, and try to prove its veracity on the other hand.
Even though the term ‘The American Dream’ became a well-known saying describing an assumed very specific phenomenon, its meaning is as vague as it is ambivalent. It is, nevertheless, a crucial part of the American national identity and a symbol of a nation’s self-conception. One could argue that Thomas Jefferson already lay the foundation of the most famous myth of all time by declaring “these truths to be sacred and undeniable; that all men are created equal and independent,” and are thus entitled to “preservation of life, & liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” (Jefferson 243).
More than a century later, James Truslow Adams rewrote Jefferson’s words in his novel The Epic of America by saying, “The American dream, the dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for every man, with opportunity for each according to his ability or achievement." (Adams 404). While Adams focused on the hope for a better and happier future for everyone, regardless of their social, ethnical or religious decent, Richard Nixon stressed the material aspect in his First Inaugural Address in 1969, by defining "full employment, better housing, excellence in education; in rebuilding our cities and improving our rural areas; in protecting our environment and enhancing the quality of life" (Lawler and Schaefer 84) as key elements of the American Dream. Martin Luther King dreamed of freedom and equality for all American citizens and that they ”will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character” (King qtd. in Kirck 82) and two decades later, during his First Inaugural Address in 1981, Ronald Reagan reminded his people of their uniqueness as "too great a nation to limit (them)selves to small dreams." (Reagan qtd. in Grafton 109)
Although often merely political calculation during election campaigns, those previously mentioned variations of the most famous dreams of all times illustrate two things; On the one hand that each generation interprets the American Dream in its very own way, and on the other hand, it’s fundamental value for the American society.
Table of Contents
1. The American Dream – An Introduction
2. The American Dream – A History of Origins
2.1. The Brave New World – A Mythical Dream
2.2 The Holy Commonwealth - A Religious Dream
2.3 Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness - A Political Dream
3. The Fundamental Elements of the American Dream
3.1. Freedom and Equality
3.2. Melting pot
4. Dream or Nightmare? Conclusion and Outlook
Research Objectives and Key Topics
This essay explores the historical origins and the fundamental elements of the American Dream to assess its veracity and its ongoing status as a defining aspect of American national identity, questioning whether it functions as a realized ideal or an unattainable myth.
- Analysis of the mythical, religious, and political foundations of the American Dream.
- Examination of the concepts of freedom, equality, and the pursuit of happiness.
- Investigation of the "melting pot" metaphor in American social history.
- Critical discussion of social inequalities and the disparity between the dream and reality.
Excerpt from the Book
2.1. The Brave New World – A Mythical Dream
The mythical conception of the American Dream focusses on America being the country of recommencement, endless opportunities and an El Dorado of abundance and riches. This conception is fundamentally coined by an European body of thought and replicated in visions such as the island Atlantis or Utopia.
America’s glorification as the ‘brave new world’ and as a second paradise on earth has always been promoted in promising messages from the New World. Christoph Columbus compared the country in his accounts of his journey as “earthly paradise” and Captain John Smith, in American folklore romanticized as Pocahontas’s lover, portrayed Virginia not only as a “fruitful and delightful land”, but also as a place where “heaven and earth never agreed better to frame a place for man's habitation." Sir William Penn, founder of the English North American colony the Province of Pennsylvania advertised, “The air is sweet and clear, the heavens serene, like the south parts of France.” (Penn 73) When the founder of the British colony of Merrymount, Thomas Morton, first arrived in America, he wrote, “I did not think that in all the knowne world it could be paralleled . . . . in my eye t'was nature's Masterpiece; her chiefest magazine of all where lives her store: if this land be not rich, then is the whole world poor.” (Morton 54)
However, there were critical descriptions on diseases, misery and death as well, those negative reports were extensively ignored due to mainly two reasons; On the one hand, the discovery of a new, in most parts unsettled and, from a European view, uncivilized continent, sparked a thitherto unique possessive mentality. Of course America hadn’t been the first country, which confronted the Europeans with cultural differences, but, according to Greene, this time they didn’t only take the role of a bystander or a visitor, but rather the status of a discoverer and, therefore, of a conqueror. (11)
Summary of Chapters
1. The American Dream – An Introduction: This chapter introduces the American Dream as an ambivalent, yet crucial, component of national identity, illustrating how various historical figures have interpreted it through political and social lenses.
2. The American Dream – A History of Origins: This section investigates the historical roots of the American Dream, categorizing them into mythical, religious, and political visions that shaped the nation’s formation.
3. The Fundamental Elements of the American Dream: This chapter discusses the core pillars of the dream, specifically focusing on the ideals of freedom and equality alongside the concept of the melting pot.
4. Dream or Nightmare? Conclusion and Outlook: The final chapter reflects on the complex nature of the American Dream, concluding that it remains a powerful yet problematic ideal that continues to influence society globally.
Keywords
American Dream, National Identity, Myth, Religion, Politics, Freedom, Equality, Melting Pot, Puritanism, Enlightenment, Declaration of Independence, Civil Rights, Immigration, Social Inequality, Anglo-Conformity
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the core focus of this essay?
The essay explores the historical origins, key components, and current relevance of the "American Dream" to determine whether it functions as a dream or a nightmare for modern American society.
What are the central themes discussed in the work?
The central themes include the mythical origins of America, the religious influence of the Puritans, the political framework established by the Founding Fathers, and the evolution of the "melting pot" concept.
What is the primary research goal?
The primary goal is to deconstruct the myth of the American Dream by analyzing its historical development and evaluating the extent to which its promises of equality and self-fulfillment are realized today.
Which scientific approach is utilized?
The author employs a historical-analytical approach, synthesizing primary documents (like the Declaration of Independence) and secondary sociological research to trace the evolution of the American identity.
What is covered in the main body of the text?
The main body examines the mythical, religious, and political dimensions of the dream, followed by an in-depth analysis of "freedom and equality" and the "melting pot" as its primary structural elements.
Which keywords define this work?
Key terms include American Dream, National Identity, Freedom, Equality, Melting Pot, Puritanism, and Social Inequality.
How did Puritan beliefs contribute to the American identity?
Puritans viewed themselves as a "chosen people" tasked with building a "City upon a Hill," a concept that influenced later notions of American exceptionalism and "Manifest Destiny."
What is the critique of the "melting pot" concept in this essay?
The author highlights that the melting pot often transitioned into "Anglo-Conformity," and cites sociological studies from the 20th century suggesting that total assimilation did not occur as initially envisioned.
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- Kristina von Kölln (Autor:in), 2019, The Myth of the American Dream. Dream or Nightmare?, München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/945746
