Topic: The Corruption of the American Dream

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Since the beginning, the American dream has been a part of many American pieces of literature. On his path to the top, the dreamer typically desires to soar from rags – to – riches, collecting love, high prestige, prosperity, and power. The dream has evolved, but it is based primarily on values of freedom, consciousness, and an eagerness for something great. The meaning of the American Dream can be defined in various ways, and it has undoubtedly evolved. Whether they dream of material wealth, professional success, or simply a new sense of joy, it all comes back to the American Dream (Lin, 2020). Consequently, many immigrants find sidetracked by contradictory ambitions while pursuing their treasured Dream.

“Rags to riches” seems to have been a catchphrase at the epoch, but how many individuals attained the wealth that would offer them ultimate happiness and contentment that the American Dream promised? In another perspective, the American dream was that democracy and freedom constituted their greatest desires, and even when regarded in this light, it was not always realized. At the time, women, individuals of other ethnicities, and even people of different sexual orientations did not have equal rights. Individuals were forced to work in garment factories and live in hovels (Hochschild & Scovronick, 2018). Are we truly attaining any progress if this is the case?

More or less, everything has transformed since the early 1900s, including clothing, entertainment, jobs, and even how individuals are reared. And, like everything else in the world, the American Dream has evolved. To most people today, the American Dream would have to exclude the quest for liberty and instead focus solely on the goal of more money. Although an important piece of the American Dream is that it is more of an individualistic thing these days, it can have a deleterious effect on everyone else if only a few people achieve extraordinary success.

If only one individual benefits, they have a significant advantage. The same gains, on the other hand, are harmful to society. Get an employment, fall in love, marry, purchase a small house, have children, raise them well, and be happy used to be the American dream. Today, Hochschild & Scovronick, (2018), it appears that individuals only desire their own money if they are working for it, not so they may succeed, but so they can spend it on the items that they have been trained to believe will make them happy. So, while the American Dream remains the same concept, it has been severely contaminated.

Not Quite Dreamy Thousands of immigrants from all over the globe were drawn to the United States by the “American Dream,” which promised prosperity and happiness well beyond anything they could find in their native countries. In recent years, the American Dream has been distorted into a dream in which an individual achieves tremendous power and money, regardless of the means through which things are attained. The American Dream still seems to be alive and well today, but it is no longer what it once was. There are many different interpretations of the American Dream, and the concept has undoubtedly altered over time (Lawrence, 2018).

According to Lawrence (2018), At the time, women, individuals of other ethnicities, and even people of different sexual orientations did not have equal rights. Individuals were forced to work in sweatshops and live in hovels. Is this the reality, and are we succeeding? Almost everything has changed since the early 1900s, including clothing, music, jobs, and even how people are raised. And, like everything else in the world, the American Dream has evolved. To many people today, the American Dream is a pipe dream.

In some ways, it still exudes the same sense of opportunity and promises that it once did, albeit in its most basic form. Nowadays, it appears that individuals only desire their own money if they are working for it, not so they may achieve, but so they can spend it on material items that they believe will make them happy. Some people prefer to work hard for their money, which is the purest form of the American Dream still left. Still, cheating and exploiting things like popularity to achieve wealth and happiness runs against the foundations (Lawrence, 2018).

Through the old traditional form of the American Dream, American popular culture has lost sight of the significant, albeit mundane, experiences life offers. In recent years, the American Dream has been distorted into a dream in which an individual achieves tremendous power and money, regardless of how these things are attained. The American Dream is still alive and well today, but it is barely clinging to its former glory.

References

Hochschild, J. L., & Scovronick, N. (2018). Challenging the American dream. https://doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780195152784.003.0011Lawrence, I. (2018). undefined. Soccer and the American Dream, 15-30. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315519098-2Lin, T. T. (2020). Changed by the dream. Prosperity Gospel Latinos and Their American Dream, 98-120. https://doi.org/10.5149/northcarolina/9781469658957.003.0004