American Dream

What is the American dream?

A unitary definition does not exist–the American dream probably has a different meaning to every US citizen. For some it is the dream of freedom and equality, for others it is the dream of a fulfilled life or even the dream of fame and wealth.

In general, the American dream can be defined as being the opportunity and freedom for all citizens to achieve their goals and become rich and famous if only they work hard enough.

History of the American dream

The first settlers hoped for freedom of religion; in their home countries they had been persecuted because of their religious and political views. Bad living conditions in Europe and the hope for better living standards in America attracted more and more settlers to migrate to the new world. The booming US industry during the first half of the 20th century caused the myth “from rags to riches”.

The American dream today

Today’s role of the American dream is a matter of discussion. Some think that the American dream is still a viable element today, for others it is only an illusion.

The American dream focusses on the success of the individuum (not the wellbeing of the whole population). On the one hand, this has advantages, e.g. lower taxes, little interference of the state. On the other hand, the same advantages are disadvantageous for society: there is no social fond for the poor and there is no serious interest in important issues like environmental protection etc.

The American Dream is a phrase referring to the freedom that allows all citizens and most residents[1] of the United States to pursue their goals in life through hard work and free choice (see Immigration to the United States).

The phrase's meaning has evolved over the course of American history. The Founding Fathers used the phrase, "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness." Is like Butters life. It began as the opportunity to achieve greater material prosperity than was possible in their countries of origin. For others it is the opportunity for their children to grow up and receive an education and its consequent career opportunities. It is the opportunity to make individual choices without the restrictions of class, caste, religion, race, or ethnic group.

The safest thing to say about the American dream is that it is "one of the motivating forces of American civilization" (Carpenter, p. 5). Whether it was considered an inspiration, a vision, an illusion, a delusion or a nightmare has always depended upon what was thought to be its essential element, and how in every individual case reality came up to the ideal. It would be most surprising if these attitudes did not widely differ according to origin, education, experience, age and other factors which determine people's lives and distinguish them from those of others.

Salad Bowl

The salad bowl concept suggests that the integration of the many different cultures of United States residents combine like a salad, as opposed to the more prolific notion of a cultural melting pot. In Canada this concept is more commonly known as the cultural mosaic. In the salad bowl model, various American cultures are juxtaposed — like salad ingredients — but do not merge together into a single homogeneous culture. Each culture keeps its own distinct qualities. This idea proposes a society of many individual, "pure" cultures, and the term has become more politically correct than melting pot, since the latter suggests that ethnic groups may be unable to preserve their cultures. The salad bowl has been accused of being a communitarianist model, while supporters of it speak of multiculturalism.

Melting Pot

The melting pot is an analogy for the way in which heterogeneous societies become more homogeneous, in which the ingredients in the pot (people of different cultures, races and religions) are combined so as to develop a multi-ethnic society. The term, which originates from the United States, is often used to describe societies experiencing large scale immigration from many different countries.

Martin Luther King

American clergyman, activist and prominent leader in the African-American civil rights movement. His main legacy was to secure progress on civil rights in the United States and he is frequently referenced as a human rights icon today.

A Baptist minister, King became a civil rights activist early in his career. He led the 1955 Montgomery Bus Boycott and helped found the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in 1957, serving as its first president.

King's efforts led to the 1963 March on Washington, where King delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech. There, he raised public consciousness of the civil rights movement and established himself as one of the greatest orators in U.S. history.

In 1964, King became the youngest person to receive the Nobel Peace Prize for his work to end racial segregation and racial discrimination through civil disobedience and other non-violent means. By the time of his death in 1968, he had refocused his efforts on ending poverty and opposing the Vietnam War, both from a religious perspective.

King was assassinated on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tennessee. He was posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1977 and Congressional Gold Medal in 2004; Martin Luther King, Jr. Day was established as a U.S. national holiday in 1986.