The American Dream

English 1102-33
Mrs Ludewig
Jason Baudendistel
                                                          The American Dream Fantasy Or Reality?
The American dream has many meanings to many different people. However some common ties
do exist. These many aspects lead to many different interpretations as well as countless questions
among them are what is the American dream really and in today’s modern world of stagnating wages
and corporate corruption is it even still alive? This essay will seek to answer these questions and many
more as we take a journey into the American dream and discover the stories it has to share.
There are countless versions of what we see the American dream such as from the story in
American Beauty a seemingly happy wealthy American family with a nice lifestyle and plenty of nice
things. You never see the dark side coming but it is there like always. The father it turns out is deeply
jaded . The mother is having an affair and the daughter has self esteem issues yet the perception of
perfection is still present for their neighbors. Further examples include Rocky the unknown boxer who
fights his way to the top and becomes world champion. Rudy the kid who was two small and weak to
play football at Notre Dame but still played anyway as well as Warren Buffett from a middle class
Nebraskan family becoming one of the world’s greatest stock pickers, a successful businessman and a
multi billionaire. There are many stories and many examples of what we believe the American dream to
be but the purpose of this piece is to take their opinions and mine and as to how they relate and give
you my thoughts on what I believe is the American dream, how it is achieved and why we all strive to
achieve it. It will be a lengthy journey but a fascinating one none of the less.
When we think of the American dream we think of Home ownership and of a yard full of nice
possessions and of untold wealth and fame. For years American’s...