The American Dream The Land of Hard Work and Opportunity...

The American Dream: Land of hard work and opportunity? Is the American Dream still alive today? America is dubbed the land of opportunity, but how much opportunity does America really supply to its citizens? Or is it that Americans just don’t have the drive or the perseverance to put themselves out there, to achieve what they certainly want in life? As Marie Curie once said, â€Å"Life is not easy for any of us. But what of that? We must have perseverance and above all confidence in ourselves. We must believe that we are gifted for something and that thing must be attained.† With a little hard work, perseverance, and determination people should not be afraid to fail, and should make opportunities for themselves. Anyone with these traits should†¦show more content†¦Pham went from the complete bottom to the top with a few, very big, risks. (McLaughlin 46) Another good example on how opportunity is part of the American dream is Oscar Carlos Acosta’s story. Acosta was a rather talented baseball player, the problem was that he had immersed himself so far into his baseball career, he didn’t pay attention to his school. He had paved his road to the American Dream or so he thought. Acosta made it to the minor leagues, where he soon tore his rotator cuff. Acosta lost everything he had, his family, his life dream. A second chance soon came his way, a chance to coach in Texas. He soon made a name for himself and rebuilt his life. Today he coaches the Chicago Cubs pitcher. Acosta is living his American Dream due to opportunity. (Rather 43) However, some people may never get the opportunities to achieve their dreams, like the woman in Nickel and dimed. Many of the women in the article were working a dead end, low paying jobs. They worked in terrible conditions and followed strict rules. However, these people may have been hard working, they did not make the opportunities for themselves, they did not risk anything. These woman stayed with their dead end jobs in fear of losing their money lifeline.(Ehrenrich 73) The American Dream is all in how much someone wants to achieve what they want in life. How much determination and perseverance they have is also a factor. A person with the right amount of each of theseShow MoreRelatedThe Dream Of The American Dream1047 Words   |  5 PagesThe American Dream is heralded and aspired to, by immigrants and natives alike. It is a hopeful belief, that although many believe in, very few achieve. This variability of outcomes is due to the American Dream’s dependency on ideals of equality and freedom of opportunity. These two ideals do not institutionally exist in the United States, causing its construction to be inherently unequal, as individuals cannot reach the Dream without systemic privilege and power. Social positions and historic contextRead MoreThe American Dream By Alexis De Tocqueville1566 Words   |  7 PagesThe American Dream is the idea that every United State s citizen has equal opportunity to achieve success through hard work and determination. However, ideas of the dream have evolved throughout time from the 18th century up to present day. The general population’s view and my view of the American Dream both have altered throughout time. My idea of the American Dream has developed from not only today’s views on The Dream, but also from the evolutionary process the meaning has been through. ThroughoutRead MoreImmigrants and the American Dream Essay1631 Words   |  7 Pagescommon, they all had a dream, that dream was the American Dream. In the present day the desire to achieve the dream hasnt changed. However, the idea of the American Dream, brings up a lot of questions. What is the American Dream? Who defines it? Can it be achieved? Lastly, should everyone have a chance to achieve it? What is the American Dream? When this question was asked on the first day of class, there were many different answers as to what makes up the American Dream. Some people said havingRead MoreThe American Dream : The Reality Of America860 Words   |  4 PagesAmerica throughout time has been known as a country for opportunity and freedom, where anyone can come and have a fair chance at living their â€Å"American Dream.† The stereotypical American dream is having a two parent family, with stable income, owning a home with a white picket fence with two children. But the reality of America is that this â€Å"dream† is achieved more easily by white men. Even though America is supposedly â€Å"The land of the free† and provides â€Å"Liberty and Justice for all†, these statementsRead MoreAnalysis Of The Declaration Of Independence By Thomas Jefferson909 Words   |  4 Pagess success? In an American society, there is an idea of dream. Dream is the thing whic h everyone of us need to have. It is our vision. Dream is that what you want to do in future to achieve success in your life. The dream is mainly dependent on settings of one lives and one’s social status. For example, The Declaration of Independence was by Thomas Jefferson. His American Dream, was to make people free from Britishers and to be treated equally. Martin Luther King, gave a dream speech call freedomRead MoreA Raisin Of The Sun By Lorraine Hansberry1581 Words   |  7 Pagesfemale playwright and black activist, spent almost all of her life dealing with American racism, poverty, and lack of social mobility. As a person who witnessed the daily struggles of African Americans, Hansberry wanted to expose the hypocrisy in the idea that America was the land of equal opportunity. As a result, in 1959, Hansberry wrote the play, A Raisin in the Sun, which details the Youngers, an African American family, who experienced racism, poverty, and the lack of social mobility dur ingRead MoreWe All Have the Opportunity to Achieve the American Dream Essay591 Words   |  3 PagesOpportunity is defined in Websters Dictionary as A good position, chance or prospect for achievement; which is easily connected to the idea of The American Dream. After all, isnt America known as The land of opportunity;? Most people came to America, and still come for that matter, in search of a better life through hard work and dedication to their cause. In Chinamans Chance: Reflections on the American Dream; by Eric Liu, it is stated that ...it (the American Dream) does demand the opportunityRead MoreThe American Dream767 Words   |  4 PagesThe American dream is defined as the idea that every American should have an equal opportunity to achieve their goal in life through hard work, determination, and initiative. The novel â€Å"Of Mice and Men† by John Steinbeck explores this idea throughout his story. Through the characters in the story, it shows the many different hard ships of each character trying to pursue their dream. John Steinbeck believes that the American Dream is a goal that every American has in life, but it is impossible to achieveRead MoreThe American Dream1196 Words   |  5 Pagesdifferent interpretations of what the American dream is, but most can agree that it is a concept that provides us with the hope for a better life. To some people, the American dream is about being wealthy, practicing liberty, to believe in any religion, and to have better opportunities in life. Throughout history, many immigrants have migrated to America because they want to begin a new life and achieve the American Dream. Many Americans can debate that the American dream is not realistic because the UnitedRead MoreThe American Dream : The Greatest Country On Earth Essay1627 Words   |  7 Pagessay the contrary. Yet there is no denying America’s greatness and accomplishments, is the American Dream that gives its country the valor and beauty it wea rs actually true? The American Dream serves as the foundation of ideals that cloaks the nation, and inspires the belief that anyone is able to build themselves a better future from the bottom up through hard work and determination by the help of opportunities and instilled equality. The United States of America is looked at as a world power with