Inequality In The American Dream

To begin with, for majority of the people it is an idea that every U.S citizen should have an equal opportunity to succeed and achieve through positive outcome such as hard work, determination, and initiative. What it means to me is everybody flourishing on the dreams they have in mind and living the life they want. For instance, the author, Adam Shepard, of the book “Scratch Beginning” had succeed on the american dream through positive outcomes when facing many adversity such as living in poverty. On the other hand, there are those who do not believe the american dream is achievable. Others would say it is not achievable when achieving the american dream because of laziness, unfairness of

America’s wealth gap between middle class and upper class income is at its highest level in decades. According to Pew Research Center’s article “America’s Wealth Gap,” they report in 2010, the median wealth of upper-income families was 6.2 times the median wealth of middle-income families and by 2013, that wealth ratio grew to 6.6. This makes the American Dream a very difficult thing to accomplish, especially for the lower class. The American Dream means that all people have the equal opportunity to achieve success of rising in their social ladder through hard work, determination, and initiative. Some argue that the American Dreams is available and achievable by all. However, while the American Dream is available to all, it is not achievable by all because there are issues due to health, ethnicity, location, and opportunities.

The opportunity for access to education, study hard, find jobs, and work hard, known as the American Dream, has been greatly impacted by income inequality (Graff, Birkenstein, and Durst 539).

Jennifer L. Hochschild describes the American dream as “the soul of the nation.” She clearly illustrates the importance of the dream to American culture. So, what is the American dream according to Hochschild? She was referring to John Locke and his fantasy, then said “But the sentence evokes the unsullied newness, infinite possibility, limitless resources that are commonly understood to be the essences of the “American dream.” She also pointed out the flaws in the American dream and how at times the pursuit of it can lead to counterproductive outcomes not just for the individual but society as a whole. Moving on, into how exactly she described the dream. She pointed out that there was definite division between the way the whites and blacks

Conflict theory has been used to describe the discrepancies in power and distribution of resources among the dominate group and the subordinate groups. Racial inequalities and racism among the groups has played a big role in the concept of conflict theory. Conflict theory examines the rising conflict between the dominate group, or white ruling class, and racial minorities, such as African Americans. This conflict and inequality among the races may be a reason why 20.2 percent of African American males die by homicide. In fact, African Americans are six times as likely as whites to be killed by homicide. (O’Flaherty and Sethi, 2010.)

The meaning of the American Dream can be seen as ”A uniquely American vision of the country consisting of three central ideas. The American dream consists of a belief in America as the new Eden- a land of beauty, bounty, and unlimited promise; a feeling of optimism, created by ever expanding opportunity; and a confidence in the triumph of the individual.” Using this definition of the so called “American dream”, it seems to be a great representation of it at first, until you realize it includes everyone as the individual. From the beginning of the Civil war to the end of the War to End All Wars, the American Dream wasn’t possible due to the treatment of the Native Americans, the inequality between women and men, and the false promises given to the immigrants coming to our country in their time of need.

No matter who you are or where you have come from, you have undoubtedly heard of the American Dream. The idea that no matter who you are or where you have come from, you can do whatever it is you desire in America. What was once one the main driving forces for immigrants to flock to the new world, has slowly changed over the years, but still holds its value in the eyes of those who are looking for a promising new place to live. The American dream might not hold the same awe inspiring sound that it once did, but for many generations before ours it was a beacon of hope that helped build the foundation that the United States was built on. And, still, today the American dream might not be as achievable as it once was, but it is still an important

Today many Americans have derived their own American dream, whether it be having money in the bank, or having a loving family. Today, According to “The Balance” they have decided that the American dream is, “The pursuit of happiness became the driver of entrepreneurial spirit that defines the free American market economy” (Amadeo 1).

The American Dream is a set of ideas which includes each person’s opportunity to follow their dream of achieving a future and own happiness. The meaning of success in one or other way is to be rich. Everyone wants to improve their future, America is where everyone can equally get opportunities to improve ones’ future. America gives people an opportunity to dream of bettering their lives. Many people move to America dreaming of a better future, because no matter the race, everyone is given equal opportunities. But there are many people who dream of coming to America never gets a chance. In Bradon King 2011 book, “The American Dream: Dead, Alive, or on Hold? he states that there are people who say American dead or alive, but this depends on every

Accordingly, the ideals of America used to be we were many ethnicities, all blended into one, but now we are a bunch of discordant ethnicities living in one country under one name just with different groups. Two essays on this topic are A Quilt of a Country by Anna Quindlen and The Immigrant Contribution by John F. Kennedy. JFK regarded that “everybody is an immigrant or the descendant of an immigrant” (JFK page 23). Quindlen characterized that “America was held together by a notion that all men are created equal and that America is made up of bits and pieces” (Quindlen page 13-14). America transpired a unique nation made up of different parts.

The United States has always had a lot to be proud of. With features like beautiful landscapes from deserts and forests to mountains and snow, the infamous title of ‘land of the free,’ and of course there hard won independence-which they have always found worth celebrating. The United States serves as the world’s melting pot, where the traditions of different races, cultures, genders, social classes, and any other difference can all be found in one place, though maybe living their lives in many different ways.

For numerous reasons, I don’t believe that America still provides access to the American Dream because the American Dream is for everyone to be successful and fortunate, and since everything is so pricey and some people are just not fit for it, it is hard to be successful. Some people may agree because they feel that America still provides access to the American Dream. However, I do believe that if it gave access enormously of us would be wealthier. Also, we would probably be living better. Therefore, I will challenge this claim that America provides access to the American Dream.

Immigration, overall, is a critical factor in the creation of nations and cultures. The United States, for example, was founded by immigrants seeking to escape the oppression imposed by the British Empire. Since then, the United States has been described as a “melting pot” of all cultures, as immigrants continue to shape the comprehensive American culture. Yet, despite all the positives of immigration, it is not a human right, but rather a privilege. This is not to advocate for a ban on immigration, but rather to support the sovereignty of

Cohen, M. (2014, April 26). The American Dream is now just that for its middle classes – a dream. The Guardian, p. 00.

Terror. For many Americans, all of their hard achievments were in the garbage; many also felt that their dignity went down the drain. In our minds, we always percieve distrought, poor Americans, however this is an ignorant conclusion. Brilliant lawyers could be seen in food line-ups, astounding doctors were in the mist of looking for another job; the term "survival of the fidest' was very prevelent during this time. Everyone was vulgar to fight for themselves and their families. Immigrants stopped in their tracks, only to ask the question: What am I doing here? Where is the "real" American Dream?