The American Dream is a concept that is constantly changing and it’s meaning varies depending on who is asked. As well as everyone having their own definition of the American Dream, there is a also a global understanding of what the American Dream is. There are multiple factors that go into figuring out what the American Dream actually is, so how can one come up with a single universal definition? Although it may be impossible to create one definition that satisfies everyone’s idea of the American Dream, one can look at the different parts that go into defining it to come up with a general understanding of what the American Dream actually is. As stated, this all depends on who you are. One’s race, class, economic status, and personality can …show more content…
Everyone wants to live a successful life, and for this to become viable for most they must receive a good education. Because of this it is not a shock that a lot of people view the American Dream as being well educated. One example of this is in an article by Isabel Wilkerson in the New York Times article titled “Angela Whitiker’s Climb” which depicts just that, “She had only recently become the first woman in her family with a college degree and, if everything went well this day, would be the first nurse anybody in her family knew personally.” Angela Whitiker has fought to do what no one in her family had done before her, get a college degree. Her dream is to get the education she needs to become a nurse. Even though she dreams to receive an education, this is really just a short term goal towards a longer term goal of success. Her long term American Dream is to be successful but for her to be able to do this she needs to get a good education. Her long term dream is success, but her short term dream is a quality education. This is the case for most people. They dream to be successful and live a fulfilling life and the way they make that happen is by setting short term goals. This is a key element of the American Dream. Success. Everyone dreams to be successful so the American Dream for every individual person is rooted in success. The way the American Dream differs from …show more content…
Everyone wishes to be wealthy, in fact when the concept of the American Dream was initially introduced this was a major view on it. Although this concept was introduced a long time ago it is still a key element of the American Dream. This idea of the American Dream is also tied in closely with education. These two ideas go hand in hand, the wealthier one is the better the education they will probably get. An article by Brookings titled “13: Social Mobility and Education” states, “College graduation rates have increased dramatically over the past few decades, but most of those increases have been achieved by high-income Americans.” There is a direct correlation between education and wealth so these ideas, while different, seem to be the same. The wealthier a person is the more access they have to education. Despite this, a lot of people view the American Dream as wealth rather than education because education seems to be a stepping stone towards wealth. The number of people that view the American Dream as wealth is fairly high. According to an article titled “What Happens to the American Dream in a Recession?” in the New York Times, “Four years ago, 19 percent of those surveyed supplied answers that related to financial security and a steady job, and 20 percent gave answers that related to freedom and opportunity.” This is referring to how people view the American Dream. A large portion of those surveyed view the American Dream as