American Dream Outline

The American Dream is one of those terms that people refer to when talking about immigration, financial status, and so much more. But what does the term really refer to? People used to think of the American Dream as financial prosperity, religious and financial freedom, and all around success. Now, the term may mean something similar, but people are much less focused on it. If anything, the American Dream today is focused on gaining material goods and proving your bank account is larger than your neighbors. With today’s economy, laws and regulations, immigration customs, and overall attitude towards work, people are seldom focused on achieving the American Dream.

     The American Dream cannot be defined clearly. Each person has his or her own dream. Some see it as owning a house or becoming a millionaire, while others define it as being able to read or to get a job. Society tends to associate this phrase with the amount of money a person earns or how many possessions they can acquire. The American Dream to others, especially immigrants, is a chance to succeed in a new life. The important fact is that Americans are given the freedom to decide what The American Dream is to them and the opportunity to achieve it.

"The American Dream is "a dream of a land in which life should be better, richer, fuller and with opportunity for each. It is a dream of social order in which each man and woman should be able to achieve the fullest stature of which they are capable of, and be recognized for what they are, regardless of the circumstances of birth or position."

When one talks about the American Dream, thoughts go to being happy and self-satisfied as an individual. It doesn’t portray following in others footsteps or becoming like one’s parents or grandparents. It allows a person to step out into world and find out who they are. It allows a person to become more than just another “chip off the block”. It allows a person to grow, succeed and transform into a person full of happiness and content due to the freedoms they are allowed. This is why many immigrants came to America. They wanted the freedom to drop everything that was burdening them in their homeland and become something new and prosperous. The American Dream takes a person’s determination and willingness to work toward their dreams and goals and gives them a chance to achieve it all. The American Dream is about the individual and the desires without these the goals will not be achieved.

In my opinion “the American dream” is just an international, economic belief of what the perfect life looks like that many seem to think can only be achieved here, in America. People say in America, there are countless opportunities because there is so much freedom. The barometer that measures the American dream is “success” and “happiness” and how much of this are you willing to accomplish for yourself. Since success and happiness can mean different things to different people, our ideas of what the ideal life looks like never really seems to match that of someone else’s. What one may think of as the perfect life may not appear so perfect to another. Some people chase joy and happiness while others chase money and success. Which, at times, can be influenced by those closest to us, like family and friends.

The definition of the American Dream still means something different to everyone. If you were to ask someone from the twenty first century how they would define the American they might tell you, “a set of ideals in which freedom includes the opportunity for prosperity and success”, “the ideals of freedom, equality, and opportunity traditionally held to be available to every American.” Or “a life of personal happiness and material comfort as traditionally sought by individuals in the U.S.” (“American” 1). Many American today would like to see everyone experience his or her own American Dream. By being able to have the best life they could imagine and have equal opportunities like the next. With how much society is changing it wouldn’t be long until we’re all living our own versions of the American

According to Merriam Webster, the American dream is defined as “an American social ideal that stresses egalitarianism and especially material prosperity; also :  the prosperity or life that is the realization of this ideal” (Merriam Webster, 2017) Throughout the semester, we have been introduced to a variety of different perspectives on the American Dream by several authors, ranging from F. Scott Fitzgerald’s take on it in The Great Gatsby to Allen Ginsberg’s attempts to derail it in Howl.

The American dream can be viewed in a lot of ways to different people. I view it as a variety of things. When I imagine the American dream I think of having so much money I do not have to imagine twice about buying anything, I could have all the cars I ever wanted. Another thing I imagine is having all the Siberian Huskies I want so I can have a big sled dog team. Then I can save the gas in my cars so I can make less stops at the gas station. The last thing I think about is being able to skydive anytime I want to. However, there are also people who just want to have a proficient education and be able to have a family. The American dream is having an amazing education, having a lot of money and having a exceptional family.

The definition of “The American Dream” is an idea that every U.S citizen should have an equal opportunity to achieve success and prosperity through hard work, determination, and initiative. Though this is the definition of The American Dream, many people think that there are different aspects to it. People grow up in different environments, and they grow up in different ways. Some people have different views, and thoughts than others. The key aspects of the American dream are the ability to put forth effort, to have faith, and to have a family you can love.

“The American Dream is the ideal that the government should protect each person’s opportunity to pursue their own idea of happiness.” In my opinion the American Dream is having the opportunity to have a paying job that you like, friends that surround your life with love, a family that supports you, being free, and being happy. Other people have different perspectives on what the American Dream is. “The American Dream could only thrive if it was not hindered.”

Defining the American Dream is a difficult task, because the dream is different for each person you ask. The stereotypical American Dream is a well-off, middle class family, living in the suburbs of America. However looking at modern day society, that dream has split into multiple different hopes, as middle class has become increasingly large, and coincidently, increasingly vague. It can no longer be defined as just being “middle class” because middle class can mean a family with well-paying jobs, no student loans, good credit, and a decent handicap at the local country club. However it can also mean a family with divorced parents, in a broken home, with multiple entry-level jobs, outstanding loans, no healthcare, and barely making ends

The phrase, “American Dream,” is defined by Dictionary.com as, “the ideals of freedom, equality, and opportunity traditionally held to be available to every American citizen”. Having freedom, opportunity, and equality is how the “American Dream” is defined.

The words “American Dream” elicit many different thoughts in people. Rarely will you find a group who will agree on the true definition of the American Dream. It is subjective and therefore hard to solidify in a unified definition. Most people believe the concept of the American Dream was originally, coined during the Great Depression when James Truslow Adams stated the American Dream “is that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability and achievement, regardless of class or circumstances of birth” (1931). From that many have based their definition to entail that if a person works hard they will achieve their own American Dream. But, to the surprise

Furthermore, the American Dream has many different meanings for everyone, the concept of the American dream started out in the 1930’s and there was a book written about this concept. A good representation of the American dream is stated, in an article entitled American Dream, “The ideals of freedom, equality, and opportunity traditionally held to be available to every American.” (American Dream. dictionary.reference.com page ) Which means to have freedom from their own country where in the older times, Europeans wanted religious freedom, and have an opportunity in the “New World.” However, there are many

What is the American Dream? There are so many answers to what the American Dream is but what actually is the true definition of living the American Dream? We could go on and on to conclude on what we think it means. Everyday people come into the US to start a new life and to do the best for themselves. Should we expect this? The answer is yes, because everyone should have the opportunity to achieve their goal. How would u feel if you wanted to do something that you knew would make your life better but you got declined in doing so? Upset right? Everyone is human and everyone has the right to accomplish their goal. According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, the American Dream is defined as “a happy way of living that is thought of by many Americans as something that can be achieved by anyone in the U.S. especially by working hard and becoming successful”. However, there is no direct or clear definition of the American dream, as it is viewed by people on the basis of their different worldviews. In literature, the American dream is defined as everyone having equal opportunities and achieving their dreams to make their lives more better”. This definition is still relevant today because people strive to achieve their dream to be more successful. Though achieving and being successful is very hard to do, the American dream is in the minds of all Americans daily.