American Dream

The Origins of the American Dream

The American Dream is the commonly held ideology that in the United States, one can become prosperous with hard work and a strong will and determination. The concept of American Dream was said to have started with the early wave of Europeans who settled in America in search of a better life. From generation to generation, the idea of the American Dream passed on.

The 1931 book "The Epics of the American' by James Truslow Adams is where the term "American Dream" first appeared. It was said to have originated from the concept of change away from the old models of government and economy. Additionally, the American Dream originated during the time when many of America's land resources were yet unclaimed, offering the promise of ownership of land to many immigrants. This opportunity, along with the Industrial Revolution, created many possibilities of prosperity. Hence, there were many rags-to-riches stories that further strengthened the American Dream.

In contrast, life in Europe was difficult and so thousands of immigrants - Irish, Scottish, Italians and other Europeans- dreamed of going to America to make their fortune and many of them, indeed, succeeded. America held out a great promise of a better life for those immigrants and up to this day, the idea of the American Dream is strong in many third-world countries.

Critics of the American Dream say that it is a myth and that only a few people succeeded in making their dreams of prosperity come true and they were only lucky. But the success stories of people like the oil business giant John Rockefeller who came from a poor family and started worked as an apprentice bookkeeper but with talent and great diligence and hard work, he was able to start his own company to become the world's first billionaire. Such inspiring stories led many to believe in the virtues of the American Dream.

However, more and more people are examining this ideology and enumerating the many problems that surround the achievement of the American Dream such as high-paying jobs that require college education that in turn requires steep tuition fees. Many critics also reject the materialism that is associated with the American Dream because for many its basic idea really comes down to home/property or car ownership. Today, with the problems that beset the American society from national security to healthcare, many people believe that the American Dream has gone farther from their reach.