The American Dream In James Adams's The Epic Of America

“The American Dream”, a phrase that portrays life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for American citizens. In 1931, the American Dream was first publicly defined. “Historian James Truslow Adams used the phrase in his book Epic of America. Adams' often-repeated quote is, "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 per ability or achievement." (https://www.thebalance.com/what-is-the-american-dream-quotes-and-history-3306009).

The perfect definition of the American dream differs from person to person. However , it is seen that the mostly used concept of this term by the people is that of having a decent homely life with two children, an ideal spouse and a house which provides them with comfort and satisfaction. But this concept of the American dream varies from it’s true meaning. James Truslow Adams wrote a book “ The Epic of America” in the year 1931 and came up with an idea of the true meaning of American dream.

America has been built on the foundations of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, but how have those words help to define what our country is as a whole? America could not have become what it is without the foundations created by our founding fathers. With the unalienable rights established by our founding fathers, we, as citizens, are blessed to live a prosperous life in which our future is determined by our actions. America is a country where a man can have a dream and accomplish it, become one with his fellow citizens, and discover new innovations daily. Being an American gives citizens the right the live the American dream, cultivate the world’s melting pot, and strive to innovate new ideas.

In James Truslow Adams book, The Epic of America, he claims that this country is, “a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement … regardless of fortuitous circumstances of birth or position.” (Froger 1). The country was founded upon those principles to serve as a peaceful place. Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s (FDR’s) New Deal programs promised safe, healthy futures for every American which led to a new understanding of the American Dream: “freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom from want, and freedom from fear.”

In more understandable words, the American Dream is the ability for anyone to come to America and achieve anything they put their minds to. America offers people so many opportunities that they would not be able to find somewhere else. For example, The United

The American Dream has always been referenced through popular media, culture, and literature. But what does the dream mean, or how it is used in today’s society? In the past, the American Dream was a dream that everyone wanted to achieve, but now the dream is unknown by most people in America. The Dream is different in many ways, but those who seek it will find all they need to live happily in America.

Great Gatsby Close Reading America is known as the land of opportunities and achieving dreams. People have been migrating to America ever since it was discovered, however, the major wave of immigration occurred from the 1880s to 1920. The American dream is the belief that if someone tries hard enough, then they can reach their dream and attain their own version of success in society, it is achieved through sacrifice, risk-taking and hard work. However, this is not always the case. In 1925 the famous American author F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote the novel the great Gatsby, which illustrates the corruption of the American Dream.

Dream come true for any family from third world country, to be a Permanent Resident of United States of America, to achieve better living standards, having an access to quality education, first class infrastructure, hospitals, homes, good neighborhood and most importantly to live an American Dream. “The American Dream is attainable, and everyone can succeed with hard work and determination. John Winthrop also wrote about this term called, American Exceptionalism. This ideology refers to the idea that Americans are the chosen ones, and that they are the light.”

The ‘American Dream’ is the idea that an one is able to achieve whatever he or she dreams of by living and working in the United States. The idea has spread to be known worldwide. In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, one of the many themes is this concept of the American Dream. In addition to Gatsby’s love story, the book can be seen as a satire of the privileged and wealthy. Although the book contains parts that support the American Dream, a lot of it can portrayed to come off to support the reasons why the American Dream is not a realistic and is merely a delusion.

Fighting for the American Dream “When I asked my dad why he brought us here, he always answered, ‘for a better opportunity of course!’” (Miglani 1) For years, the United States of America was looked at by foreigners as a land of promise and opportunity like this quote from Bob Miglani article called “Is the American Dream Still Alive”. The opportunities seemed endless in America for those overseas. They would leave their homes and loved ones to travel across the world to become an immigrant in America to begin their own American Dream. Although America was not always what it seemed like it would be, hundreds of immigrants were able to make something of themselves and make those around them proud through this idea of an American Dream.

The Great Gatsby, by a F. Scott Fitzgerald, is a novel that goes way back to the roaring twenties in New York right before The Great Depression. The roaring twenties was a time of much excitement and much fun as America was leaning toward becoming even greater. Those days were so much different compared to today because of what was going on and how people were able to live. The concept of “The American Dream” has always been around as citizens who were born on U.S. soil and immigrants from other nations coming to the U.S. looking for a fresh start and a better life with more opportunities. Everybody wanted “The American Dream” so that his or her families would be able to pass it on to future generations.

Does the American Dream exist? The American Dream has been questioned on its legitimacy in whether it is fact or fiction. Writers have pondered this idea in many forms in their writing, poems, songs, and essays. The American Dream seems to be a complex phenomenon that cannot be explained yet so many long to achieve it.

Prospect of the better life and better reality has chased humanity since beginning of time. In United States this concept particularly holds true. We as a nation believe that we can be anyone we want and anything is possible as long as we work hard we will eventually obtain it. This we call the American Dream. Today the quest for American Dream is more challenging than ever from increasing need for higher education due to globalization and cost increases in education due to it to security concerns in Middle East, Africa and South East Asia.

Over the years, a dream that changed the way the world saw the U.S. was created and it is the American Dream. As the years passed and the U.S. was developing the American Dream as well developed or as many say changed. The American Dream is a term that was introduced in 1931 by James Truslow Adams in his book The Epic of America (Kamp 2). The term “American Dream” started with a meaning that was reachable: “a better, richer and happier life for all citizens of every rank”(3). Throughout the years the term`s meaning changed dramatically.

According to an article from Gale Student Resources titled “How the American dream has changed overtime”, the start of the American Dream has been traced to the Founding Fathers. The Founding Fathers believed people inherently possessed the rights to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Therefore, they created a country where people could break free from class restrictions and pursue a life that they chose despite where they came from. The Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines the American dream 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, I believe that it is much more than that.