The True Meaning of the American Dream

The American dream has been changing over the past many years with many meaning to many people. One would think that the American Dream is about owning a large house in a quiet suburb with many luxurious automobiles parked in the driveway. Additionally going to vacations and being able to purchase countless items without hesitation has been part of the American dream. However, the American dream is not about materialistic goals only. Although one can achieve whatever they want to through hard work, the American dream is ultimately about being able to work and not be judged by your social class unlike some of the other countries in the world. Furthermore, the American dream has different meanings to different people. As James Truslow Adams states in his book The Epic of America which was written in 1931: “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 according to ability or achievement.

It is a difficult dream for the European upper classes to interpret adequately, and too many of us ourselves have grown weary and mistrustful of it. It is not a dream of motor cars and high wages merely, but a dream of social order in which each man and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature of which they are innately capable, and be recognized by others for what they are, regardless of the fortuitous circumstances of birth or position.” As you can see this has many different meanings to different people. For one person it can mean that the opportunity to achieve an enormous amount of artificial material prosperity is greater in America than the country that they came from. For some other people, they can see the America dream as a place to open a business and work as whatever they feel like or are passionate about without being judged. Many other’s see the American dream as a wonderful country for their children to grow up and receive an outstanding education and a lucrative career path. In addition the American dream is the opportunity to make individual choices without the limitations of class, religion, caste, gender, race, or ethnic group.