American Dream

Essay by Rendina13High School, 12th gradeA, June 2014

download word file, 5 pages 0.0

Rendina5

Jacob Rendina . Greger

English, P.2

21 May 2014

The National Illusion: How Unobtainable is The Dream?

Almost one-hundred and fifty years ago, Michel Guillaume Jean de Crèvecœur explained, "The American is a new man, who acts upon new principles; he must, therefore, entertain new ideals and form new opinions". Crèvecœur, a French writer baffled by the freedom and social mobility of Americans, captured the revolutionary lifestyle through immigrants' eyes. This American Dream has influenced the overall motivations of the nation since its origin in 1782 when Crèvecœur first recognized the idea. In today's modern society, every citizen possesses their own unique interpretation and opinion on the existence of the American Dream; however, there are common goals such as earning money, raising a family, owning a home, and other capitalistic ideals. By observing the recent changes in social mobility and distribution of wealth in America, it is clear that The Dream has progressively grown weaker to this day where it is almost utterly impossible to achieve.

The Great Gatsby, a novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald, presents an exquisite example of how unavailable the American Dream is in America. The mysterious main character, Jay Gatsby, had every piece of material wealth that a rich man can think of including a super car, thousands of silk shirts, a boat, and a mansion that dwarfs the White House. Gatsby was only missing one thing, a rich girl named Daisy whom he abandoned to earn more money to give her the life she deserved. Gatsby, now rich enough to support Daisy, gave numerous hours and masses of money just to win her attention. Regardless of his determination and desire for Daisy, he fails to gain her as his wife and ultimately loses her altogether. After a chain of unfortunate events, Gatsby is...