The American Dream for generations has been promoting immigrants to come to America from near and far. The imagery of America is of a city on a golden hill where everyone has the opportunity to succeed. Still, as shown in The Tortilla Curtain, not all that glitters is gold--America isn't all its cracked up to be. This idea of the American Dream is prevalent throughout various pieces of literature and in every day life. The question is: Is there a dream or is it time for everyone to wake up?
(This person follows Mike Hong's belief: The Dream is dead!"
To start here are some opinions on the American Dream:
"The American Dream is a myth."
-Mike Hong
"It's the dollar bill attached to the end of the string... it lures in immigrants for jobs."
-Jake Eisensmith
"Dolla, Dolla Bill Ya'll."
-Wyclef ft. Akon and Lil Wayne
These three quotes explain the different takes on the American Dream.
The first take is the pessimistic belief:
*The Dream is dead... it's a myth. This ideology is that of broken hopes and basically suggests that one has been tampered by harsh relatives of life. Mike Hong believes that it was never real and that we've all been tricked. A very pessimistic point of view that thinks that thinks that the whole "idea" of America is a complete lie.
The second quote is the intellectual belief:
*The American Dream has to exist to entice people to come. It plays a part in creating the aura of America and keeps workers traveling to America. Jake's line of thought is that the dream is a necessary evil.
The third is the economic belief:
*The Dream is the Dollar. Money allows some to transform their lives and fulfill their dreams. As shown by "Dolla, Dolla Bill, Ya'll" this line of thought is that money is the means to an end. The Great Gatsby falls in line with this as Gatsby uses money in an attempt to reach his goal of achieving love through financial means.
(Gatsby uses money as an ends to a means. He doesn't end up doing too well)
Are these various beliefs possible? Well... yes. It's all about how you look at the dream. The definition of dream is many but these two definitions are closely linked:
6. an aspiration; goal; aim: A trip to Europe is his dream.
7. a wild or vain fancy.
(Source: Dicationary.com)
The American Dream can be a goal or just a wild and vain "fancy"--something that does not necessarily exist in reality. It's all about interpretation. If enough people will the American Dream to exist, then it will. If they choose to follow one of the aforementioned lines of belief then that is what the American Dream will be. Most likely, there will be many interpretations of the same dream. And thus the American Dream is like any other dream: real in the heart and mind if you wish it but when you wake up the only impact is that you've seen something better in your head.
Economics and the Dream
I think that the current economic crisis has caused a large issue for those wishing to purpose the "dream" in the form of money. Like I stated above, the key to this belief is that one must attain dollars in order to render their wishes true. In an economic crisis, not only are you not bringing in a great amount of income, you have taken a huge lose. This feeling will lead people to be more "depressed". (Note the name Depression for example). It is already a fact that in times like these more gun violence occurs and more civil unrest--today there are a bunch of "tea parties"--and that the only way to cure this dissatisfaction is... cure an economy. Living off the dollar is a dangerous habit as your dreams will flux and flow with the movement of the markets.
