The story of Gatsby is repeated over and over in the lives of many Americans who strive to make their own identity. America is truly a land of opportunity, but the wealth and resources found in America must be used in accordance with human nature. Just because the opportunity is available for a man to abandon his family and social roots and make his own life on the opposite side of the country, does not mean that this will lead to fulfillment and happiness. Americans must discover their own connectedness to others around them. They must learn that human nature is not something to be fabricated by each individual, but is something common to all men which binds them together.
Oppressed and “poor” citizens would have the opportunity to succeed. Since the English colonists and founding fathers pushed for independence and self-reliance, they could then make a statement of unity, taking ownership of land and property, a majority of citizens profiting and political power. Another advantage of creating a nation is developing social harmony. They urged for a “middle” social class, as opposed to a majority of “poor” citizens and a few wealthy citizens, who have all of the power and control. Zinn pays tribute to the founding fathers by stating how effective their intentions were to start the American Revolution.
4, 193). Just as Roosevelt had given America hope for a better tomorrow, Johnson hoped to fulfill that dream with an even greater plan. The Great Society was based on the premise that people should be equal in all realms of society and that one day people would come to America “not only to live but to live the good life” (doc. 4, 194). Although the status of the country was far different for Johnson that it was for Roosevelt, the principles each of them based their national plans on were parallel.
In 1931, James Truslow, author and historian, defined the American Dream, saying “life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement regardless of social class or circumstances of birth.” The concept of the ‘American Dream’ is so ingrained deeply within the United States, that their Declaration of Independence states "all men are created equal" and are "endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights" such as "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." Though death and justice are the primary concerns of Truman Capote’s ‘In Cold Blood’, the author uses these ideas to accentuate the illusion that is the American Dream. Through the Clutter family’s life and death, the intrinsic fragility of this aspiration is exposed. The killers, so bent on pursuing their own vision of the dream, ultimately destroy not only a rare semblance of the dream in the Clutters, but also any chance either stood at attaining life, liberty or happiness. Living peacefully in Holcomb, Herb Clutter epitomised the concept of a ‘self-made man’- he begun humbly and worked his way to a prosperous ranch owner respected and revered amongst his friends and associates.
This was the belief that the land and resources in North America were both decidedly limitless and were meant for settlers to use freely. Filson suggests that the good trade routes of the then largely unsettled territory of Kentucke were created by nature “principally to promote the happiness and benefit of mankind” largely by allowing man to transport produce from the fertile lands of Kentucke (Course Reader, 3). One writer in 1782 discussed North America as a massive land of “unknown bounds” where untold millions of people could be supported and fed (Course Reader, 12). During this time, it was the belief of many settlers that land and resources had been specifically provided in order to further them in their endeavors of trade and commerce. These beliefs led to a system where land was often degraded at a swift rate because people believed that they could always find more land to settle and exploit.
He points out that while his population of supporters had the resources and knowledge to run the government, the lower classes basically had small or no resources at all. Hamilton also expresses the future of the nation by emphasizing the necessity of manufacturing. His plan would’ve been a success due to the business and industry becoming a major importance during the 18th-19th century. (B) He stresses not only that the rich are responsible for the prosperity of manufacturing, but also the outcome of this nation. Hamilton also presents that nations should be responsible for these basic supply, and would result in various means of survival for the nation.
Page1 Justin Canada Professor Shain US History 1 Essay #4 12/19/12 Expansion The need and want for land has always been a priority for people ever since the beginning of time. It showed power, wealth, and also stability something that we all hold as a necessity in our lives. The decision to expand westward was meant to make us stronger as a whole, and in fact that’s exactly what it did. Our economy and overall power benefitted greatly from the expansion of America, even though later inner conflicts such as Texas revolution, Mexican American war and the civil war did have a negative impact on our country. Manifest Destiny is a term referring to the United States, it basically meant that the United States not only could,
Literature, just as Douglass’s, assists the people to see the most important action of the ancient times. Douglass talks about his conviction that America can be observed like a fraud, which celebrates in its own liberty while others are strained to reside as slaves. In his literature piece, he says the following, “Your high independence, only reveals the immeasurable distance between us. The blessings in which you this day rejoice, are not enjoyed in common. The rich inheritance of justice, liberty, prosperity, and independence, bequeathed by your fathers, is shared by you, not by me.” By him saying this remark in this passage, he introduces the point that slaves were not recognized like “normal” human beings but were seen as human beings that were born to simply help people superior to them succeed in life.
Everyone has their own understanding of the American Dream, the dream of materialistic success, but in the end, the American Dream is only defined as the desire to start and thrive in a completely new life, usually by moving west. Fitzgerald in The Great Gatsby represents the implications of this on the people and the decay of it through Gatsby, George and Nick. What Gatsby claims as his own history is much far from the reality in his younger days. Born from poor farmers, he could only dream of becoming rich, and thus his American Dream is a pure desire for success, as shown through his “Book of Resolves.” He attends college but is not able to fund for it and leaves for the army. This is how he meets Daisy, a figure that symbolises all he
Brian Redman English 101 Essay 3 August 8, 2012 American Dream The “American Dream”: ethos for the United States. It is a set of ideas in which freedom includes the opportunity for prosperity and success, and an upward mobility achieved through hard work. (Wikipedia) Our founding fathers may have planted the roots for it by saying, “all men are created equal” and we will base our ideas on, “Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.” Wow, those words really did strike a chord when I was a young boy. I always believed that America looked out for everyone’s best interest. I slowly started to realize that America may not be living up to those standards that the constitution was based on.