american dream topics for an essay

103 American Dream Essay Topics & Examples

If you’re in need of American dream topics for an essay, research paper, or discussion, this article is for you. Our experts have prepared some ideas and writing tips that you will find below.

📃 10 Tips for Writing American Dream Essays

🏆 best american dream essay topics & essay examples, 👍 catchy american dream topics, ❓ american dream research questions.

The American dream is an interesting topic that one can discuss from various perspectives. If you need to write an essay on the American dream, you should understand this concept clearly.

You can choose to present the American dream as a miracle that one cannot reach or depict a free and wealthy nation. In any case, the American dream essay is a good opportunity to reflect on the concept and learn more about it.

There are many topics you can choose from while writing your essay. Here are some examples of the American dream essay topics we can suggest:

• The true meaning of the American dream
• The image of the American dream in the Great Gatsby
• Is the American dream still relevant in today’s society?
• The role of the American dream: Discussion
• Americans’ beliefs and values: The American dream
• Can we achieve the American dream?
• The American dream in today’s world and society

Remember that you do not have to select one of the American dream essay titles and can come up with your own one. Once you have selected the topic, start working on your essay. Here are ten useful tips that will help you to write an outstanding paper:

• Start working on your essay ahead of time. You will need some time to study the issue, write the paper, and correct possible errors.
• Do preliminary research on the issue you want to discuss. The more information you know about the question, the better. We advise you to rely on credible sources exclusively and avoid using Wikipedia or similar websites.
• Check out the American dream essay examples online if you are not sure that the selected problem is relevant. Avoid copying the information you will find and only use it as guidance.
• Write an outline for your essay. Think of how you can organize your paper and choose titles for each of the sections. Remember that you should include an introductory paragraph and a concluding section along with body paragraphs.
• Remember that you should present the American dream essay thesis clearly. You can put it in the last sentence of your introductory paragraph.
• Your essay should be engaging for the audience. Help your reader to know something new about the issue and include some interesting facts that may not know about. Avoid overly complex sentences and structures.
• Make your essay personal, if it is possible. Do not focus on your opinion solely but provide your perspectives on the issue or discuss your concern about it. You can talk about your experiences with the American dream, too.
• Provide statistical data if you can. For example, you can find the results of surveys about people’s perspectives on the American dream.
• The concluding paragraph is an important section of the paper. Present the thesis and all of your arguments once again and provide recommendations, if necessary. Remember that this paragraph should not include new information or in-text citations.
• Do not send your paper to your professor right away. Check it several times to make sure that there are no grammatical mistakes in it. If you have time, you can put the paper away for several days and revise it later with “fresh” eyes.

Feel free to find an essay sample in our collection and get some ideas for your outstanding paper!

• Essay on the American Dream: Positive and Negative Aspects The American dream is one of the most revered ideals of the nation and it has become a part of the American national identity.
• Michelle Obama American Dream Speech Analysis – Michelle’s purpose was to introduce her husband as man who was more concerned about the common citizens’ concerns and who was willing and able to help everyone to realize his/her American dream because he himself […]
• American Dream: “Fences” by August Wilson The American dream makes it clear through its guarantee of the freedom and equality with the promise of prosperity and success as per the ability or personal achievements of every American citizen.”Fences” reveals the obstacles […]
• The American Dream by Edward Albee Play Analysis The American Dream play is an apologue of how American life has turned awry under the pretext of the American Dream.
• American Dream After World War I People lost vision of what this dream was supposed to mean and it became a dream, not of the vestal and industrious, but of the corrupt coterie, hence corrupting the dream itself.
• American Dream in “The Pursuit of Happiness” Film In America today, there is a general belief that every individual is unique, and should have equal access to the American dream of life “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”.
• The Tortilla Curtain: American Dream – Characters, Summary & Analysis The cultural difference between the two families is introduced by the author as a theme describing the role of gender in the community.
• The American Dream in The Great Gatsby After spending some time in this neighborhood, Nick finally attends Gatsby’s exuberant parties only to realize that Gatsby organizes these parties to impress Daisy, Nick’s cousin, and wife to Tom.
• The American Dream in Arthur Miller’s Plays Willy has a distorted vision of the American Dream, and he has such blind faith in this inaccurate vision that it leads to his mental disturbance when he is not able to accept how the […]
• Portrayal of the American Dream in the 20th Century Theatre However, different analysts criticized the use of the amelting pot’ in the play to show the pursuit of the American dream terming it as unrealistic in the sense that the term amelting’ creates a picture […]
• Femininity and the American Dream in Works of Chopin, Gilman, and Williams Even though the general understanding of the American dream was advertised to everyone, the idea was more applicable to the male members of the American society, which is reflected in Chopin’s “The Story of an […]
• Is the American Dream Still Alive? The American Dream can be defined as a summation of national values entrenched in the culture of the United States. In this regard, the minority groups in the United States are often on the receiving […]
• Meritocracy and the American Dream In the perception of such people, the American Dream is directly connected to meritocracy, i.e.a judgment on people on their individual abilities rather than the connections of the families, and in that regard such perception […]
• American Dream and Socialism in the Book “The Jungle” by Sinclair The main idea of the book lies in upholding the Marxist belief of the inevitable collapse of capitalism and the accession of the proletariat, or industrial working class.
• Social Status Anxiety and the American Dream The pain of a loss and the status anxiety that came with being inferior to other students at Harvard instigated the urge to revenge and brought a desire to achieve success.
• Park Avenue: Money, Power and the American Dream – Movie Analysis It can be taken as the national ethos of the citizens of the USA. The basis of the American society is broken and it is not united anymore.
• Music Talent Shows and the American Dream Talent search shows, like American Idol and The Voice, have suffered a lot of criticism for different reasons. Stanley says the main reason for this cynicism is the failure of such shows to focus on […]
• In Pursuit of the American Dream: An Analysis of Willa Cather’s O Pioneers The experiences of the characters in the novel portray the endeavors of the early immigrants’ pursuit of the American dream. The instinct to forgo the comforts, which a home country offers by default and then […]
• Willy Loman and the American Dream As a result of his boasting, a great deal of what his family knows about Willy is based upon the image he feels he must portray of himself in order to bring himself in line […]
• Whitman, Hughes, and the American Dream Walt Whitman and Langston Hughes, two prominent figures of American poetry of the past, are of them.”I Hear America Singing,” “I, Too,” “Harlem,” and “The Negro Speaks of Rivers” are the emotional responses to the […]
• The Dilemmas of the American Dream in The Great Gatsby The Great Gatsby is a story of a young man in the early twentieth century who seems to know what he wants in the way of that dream and what to do to achieve it.
• The American Dream, Social Status and Hierarchies The persistence of social status and hierarchies in modern-day America undermines the possibility of realizing Winthrop’s ideal community as a goal for the current American Dream, considering his argument of wouldivinely ordained’ holds no traction […]
• The American Dream and Its Roots The tension between the ideals of the American Dream as espoused by the Puritans and the realities of American life has been a recurrent theme in American history.
• Tensions in the American Dream The imbalance can lead to debates and discussions about the meaning and purpose of the American Dream, as well as a conflict between the ideals of freedom and agency and the desire for a more […]
• Support of the American Dream Act of 2001 In contrast to many supporters of the American Dream Act, some individuals claim that the policy promotes the entrance of illegal immigrants.
• The Possibility of Realizing the American Dream Thus, according to the author, the American dream is only a fantasy. Returning to the ideas of Krugman, Cox and Alm, and Dalmia, it seems necessary to highlight some aspects.
• The American Dream: Meaning and Myth Initially, the existence of this myth set a very high pace and performance for the American economy because it was the only way to achieve the desired level of prosperity.
• Reflection on the American Dream Concept The vision of the American Dream can be different for individuals, and people create their interpretations according to their specific experiences.
• Reaching the American Dream From Scratch For example, the experience of a person coming to the United States from Haiti is one of poverty, under-resourced communities, and a complete disillusion with the promise of a good life.
• The American Dream Based on “Re Jane” by Patricia Park The main difference is that Jane had a chance to live her dreams in New York than in Seoul. Nina is an example of Jane’s friends who want her to succeed and understand the flaws […]
• The American Dream in Boyle’s The Tortilla Curtain The personal experience of the characters can be explained by their varying life conditions and, hence, are linked to the notion of the American Dream, which can be achieved by everyone while the efforts differ.
• The Corrupted American Dream and Its Significance in “The Great Gatsby” The development of the American dream and its impact on the society of the United States is a pertinent topic of discussion for various authors.
• Fitzgerald’s ‘The Great Gatsby’, Steinbeck’s ‘Of Mice and Men’ and the American Dream “The America Dream’ is a longstanding common belief of the American population that in the United States, people are free to realize the full potential of their labor and their talents and every person in […]
• Color Adjustment: False Image of American Dream The documentary tells the story of white, well-dressed people advertising the American dream, completely ignoring that the U.S.is not only a country of the white race.
• The American Dream: Franklin’s and Douglass’s Perception The objective of this paper, therefore, is to discuss the topic of the American dream and how both Franklin and Douglass, each exemplify this dream.
• The American Dream and Success One of the most pertinent topics associated with the American Dream is taking the courage to act and seize the opportunity.
• The Concept of American Dream: Examples of Columbus and Bradstreet Bradstreet’s other dream was to be able to secure a position in the ‘New world’ and still be seen as a woman who cares for her family.
• Racial Wealth Gap and the American Dream The speaker evaluates the accumulative wealth of Blacks, Hispanics, and Whites in America and arrives to the conclusion that race plays a role in financial burdens that many people of color experience.
• American Dreams: The United States Since 1945 Although the major idea of the book is a critical one, the author’s intention does not concern analyzing approaches to the American social evolution in order to define the most adequate one.
• History of Achieving the American Dream James Truslow Adams who wrote the book “The Epic of America” defined the American dream as “that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity […]
• The American Dream in the 21st Century It is the labor of these people that allowed the country to afford to build its industry and set up a base for fulfilling the American Dream.
• American Dream of Early Settlers He did not tell the settlers of the difficulties they were going to face in moving from Europe to the land of honey that is America.
• The American Dream: Defining the Great Society For instance, the Medicare bill was for the elderly and the poor, human rights for the oppressed, and antipoverty laws that set a stage for growth in the society.
• American Literature and the American Dream The difference in how the dream is defined lies in how one sees the shape and color of the concoction, whether the texture is just right for the shape of the taste buds assessing the […]
• American Dream and Reality for Minorities The topic of our concern is the reality that is faced by women, blacks, and war veterans who are associated with the American army.
• Richard Rodriguez’s Opinion on Migration and the American Dream American seems to refer only to the citizen of the United States and does not include the rest of the people in the continent!
• American Dream Is Not a Myth The paper is based on the argument, a simplified definition of the American dream: the American dream can be defined as “the achievement of economic and social advancement through hard work and determination”.
• The Immigrant Experience and the Failure of the American Dream The fates of the heroes of the book amaze with their tragedy, and this is the story of slaves of wage labor.
• Tycoons and Their American Dream The American Dream as Rockefeller, Carnegie, Morgan, and others saw it and forged it to be seen by others contributed meaningfully to the values of the American people and the priorities of a nation.
• Theater Exam: American Dream and Family Legacy To start the discussion on the concept of American Dream, I would like to focus on Willy, the main character of the Death of a Salesman.
• Is the American Dream Still Alive? The topic of discussion in this setting would be the American dream and the factors associated with the quest. They would talk about the cost of living, the cost of education, and the fact that […]
• American Dream in Miller’s “Death of a Salesman” The play Death of a salesman is indeed an anatomy of the American dream especially because the plot of the story revolves around some of the basic material gains that individuals in the American society […]
• “American Dream” of English and Chinese Immigrants My family decided to move to the US from England because of the low wages in our town. My intentions were to explore the new opportunities of the West and to earn more money than […]
• The American Dream and Working Conditions In fact, it might be said that it is due to their efforts that the American Dream still exists as a piece of reality.
• American Dream and Equity of Outcome and Opportunity The American dream is one of the most famous declarations of the world and the American subsequent governments have kept the dream alive for the last hundred years.
• Park Avenue: Money, Power and the American Dream This is one of the drawbacks that should be taken into account by the viewers who want to get a better idea about the causes of the problems described in the movie.
• American Dream in Hansberry’s and Miller’s Tragedies Hansberry’s “A Raisin in the Sun” and Miller’s “Death of a Salesman” tell the stories about how people can perceive and be affected by the idea of the American Dream, how they choose wrong dreams […]
• Michelle Obama’s Remarks on American Dream She added that the main goal was to secure the blessings of liberty and to bring about the fulfillment of the promise of equality.
• The American Dream’s Concept The American economy is also likely to improve as a result of realizing the American dream 2013 since most of the residents are likely to indulge in productive activities as stipulated in the American dream […]
• The Concept of Progress or the Pursuit of the American Dream The concept of progress or the pursuit of the American Dream since 1930s has been a matter of concern for many immigrants who believe that they can achieve much in the US than in their […]
• The Book American Dream by Jason DeParle From the name of the book, it is clear that the cardinal theme of the book is the American dream. This is contrary to the fact that she was pregnant and in a crack house.
• The Definition of the Great American Dream: Hearing Opportunity Knock Although the concept of the American Dream is very recognizable, its essence is very hard to nail down, since it incorporates a number of social, economical and financial principles; largely, the American Dream is the […]
• The American Dream Negative Sides and Benefits The United States is thought of as the land of opportunity and there are many people who want to live “The American Dream”.
• Role of Money in the American Dream’s Concept Many people lack the meaning of the American dream because they are always looking forward to find opportunity and fail to realize that the opportunity to succeed is always around them in the work they […]
• The Reality of American Dream The government encouraged the immigration of the population whose labor and skills were required in the United States. The housing in the urban was overcrowded with very unsanitary conditions, and some of the immigrants did […]
• Francis Scott Fitzgerald & His American Dream In the novel “Tender is the Night,” Fitzgerald describes the society in Riviera where he and his family had moved to live after his misfortune of late inheritance.
• American Dream: Is It Still There? It is a dream for immigrants from the Middle East to be in America; a country where discrimination is history and where no one will prevent them from achieving their dreams in life.
• The American Dream: Walt Disney’s Cinderella and Ron Howard’s Cinderella Man This is attributed to the fact that the original ideas and the fundamental principals that founded the dream are quickly fading away given the changing fortunes of the average American.
• The Death of the American Dream It is the moral decay that leads to the loss of freedom, the very essence of the founding of the American dream.
• American Dream and Unfulfilling Reality Living the American dream is the ultimate dream for most of the American citizens and those aspiring to acquire American citizenship.
• Inequality and the American Dream It is only after the poor workers are assured of their jobs that the American model can be said to be successful.
• A Response to the Article “Inequality and the American Dream” It has drawn my attention that other world countries embrace the “American model” since the super power has enormous wealth and its economic development is marked by up-to-date juggernauts of globalization and technology.
• Fitzgerald’s American Dream in The Great Gatsby & Winter Dreams To my mind, Winter Dream is a perfect example of the American Dream, since the main hero, Dexter, implemented each point of it, he was persistent and very hard-working, he was a very sensible and […]
• How Did Ben Franklin Exemplify the American Dream?
• Does Fitzgerald Condemn the American Dream in “The Great Gatsby”?
• How Do Benjamin Franklin and Frederick Douglass Represent the American Dream?
• Has America Lost Its Potential to Achieve the American Dream?
• How Has Disney’s Social Power Influenced the Vision of the American Dream?
• Does the American Dream Really Exist?
• How Does the Great Gatsby Portray the Death of the American Dream?
• What Does “The Great Gatsby” Have to Say About the Condition of the American Dream in the 1920s?
• How Does One Achieve the American Dream?
• What Are the Greatest Obstacles of Full Access to the American Dream?
• How Has the American Dream Been Translated Into Popular Film?
• What Does the American Dream Mean to an Immigrant?
• How Does Arthur Miller Through “Death of a Salesman” Deal With the Theme of the American Dream?
• What Must Everyone Know About the American Dream?
• How Has the American Dream Changed Over Time?
• What Is Infamous About the American Dream?
• How Does Millar Portray His Views of the American Dream Using Willy Loman?
• When Did American Dream Start?
• How Has the Media Changed the American Dream?
• Who Would Think the American Dream Isn’t Possible?
• How Does Steinbeck Present the American Dream in “Of Mice and Men”?
• Why Will Equal Pay Help Women Achieve the American Dream?
• How Might the Disadvantage of Immigration Affect the Chances of Having That American Dream?
• Why Is the American Dream Equally Given and Registered To All Citizens?
• How Does Extreme Inequality Make the American Dream Inaccessible?
• Why Is the American Dream Still Alive in the United States?
• How Are Millennials Redefining the American Dream?
• Why Is the American Dream Unattainable?
• How Does Society Influence the Idea of the American Dream?
• Why Must the United States Renew Opportunities to Achieve the American Dream to Reform Immigration Policy?
• Success Ideas
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• Wealth Research Topics
• Inequality Titles
• Materialism Topics
• Declaration of Independence Paper Topics
• Happiness Research Ideas
• US History Topics
• Chicago (A-D)
• Chicago (N-B)

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124 American Dream Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

Inside This Article

The American Dream is a concept deeply rooted in the American ethos, representing the belief that anyone, regardless of their background or circumstances, can achieve success and prosperity through hard work and determination. This idea has been a source of inspiration for countless individuals and has shaped the nation's history and identity. If you are tasked with writing an essay on the American Dream, here are 124 topic ideas and examples to help you get started:

• The evolution of the American Dream throughout history.
• The impact of the American Dream on immigration patterns.
• The portrayal of the American Dream in literature and film.
• The role of education in achieving the American Dream.
• The American Dream and socioeconomic mobility.
• The American Dream in the context of racial and gender equality.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of happiness.
• The influence of the American Dream on consumer culture.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of homeownership.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of higher education.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of entrepreneurship.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of fame and fortune.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a better life for future generations.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of freedom and democracy.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of equal opportunities.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of social justice.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a healthy and fulfilling lifestyle.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of personal growth and self-improvement.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of financial security.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong work ethic.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of individualism.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of technological advancement.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a better environment.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of cultural diversity.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of religious freedom.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of political power.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of social mobility.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of community engagement.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of personal happiness.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a balanced lifestyle.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of creativity and innovation.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of equal rights and opportunities for all.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong family unit.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of volunteerism and philanthropy.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a fair and just society.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong healthcare system.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a secure retirement.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a sustainable future.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of personal freedom and liberty.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong national identity.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of technological innovation.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of social equality.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong economy.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a diverse and inclusive society.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong education system.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong justice system.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong military.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong infrastructure.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong environmental policy.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong social safety net.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong democracy.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong international presence.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong cultural identity.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong work-life balance.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of community.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong national pride.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of belonging.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of purpose.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of justice.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of equality.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of opportunity.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of achievement.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of ambition.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of success.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of fulfillment.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of contentment.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of peace.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of optimism.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of resilience.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of determination.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of perseverance.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of endurance.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of hope.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of courage.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of empathy.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of compassion.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of integrity.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of honesty.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of trust.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of responsibility.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of accountability.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of transparency.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of fairness.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of freedom.
• The American Dream and the pursuit of a strong sense of democracy.

These topic ideas and examples should give you a starting point for your essay on the American Dream. Remember to use critical thinking, research, and personal insights to develop a compelling and thought-provoking piece that explores the complexities and nuances of this enduring concept.

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113 American Dream Essay Topics

🏆 best american dream essay titles, ✍️ american dream essay topics for college, 🎓 interesting american dream topics for research papers, 💡 simple american dream titles for essays, ❓ research questions about the american dream, ✨ good american dream argumentative essay topics.

• Gran Torino Essay – Clint Eastwood’s Film Analysis
• “Paper Moon” as a Symbol of the American Dream
• The American Dream Theme in Ginsberg’s “America”
• The Concept of American Dream in Plays
• The Downside of the American Dream
• Stratification and Social Mobility and its Impact on the American Dream
• American Dream vs. Reality Throughout History
• The Concept of the American Dream The purpose of this paper is to explore the concept of the American Dream and discuss how Americans of European descent utilized the land and labor of others to realize it.
• “Watchmen” Film in Relation to the American Dream Watchmen’s “American Dream” depicts the “gritty reality” within the realm of comic books; the “American Dream” has been distorted.
• American Dream as a Symbol of Hopelessness in Gothic Fiction This paper aims to provide evidence that the characters of Lutie Johnson and Robin both failed to fulfill the American Dream.
• The Challenge of the American Dream in Cinematography “Midnight Cowboy” and “McCabe & Mrs. Miller” are similar in challenging the idea of success presented in the conventional context of the American Dream.
• Concepts of American Dreams Historically Americans have been seeking to achieve the American dream of fame, success and immense wealth through changes and much effort.
• The American Dream as a Way of Crossing the Frame of Consciousness The American Dream is a concept that describes the ideal life to which the population of the United States aspired in the 30s and 40s.
• Failure of American Dream: “The Great Gatsby” by Fitzgerald Review Despite the seeming glamor and wealth, the character of Great Gatsby by Fitzgerald is deeply and inherently tragic.
• The Problems of American Dream and Race For a long time, many people have been coming to the United States to realize their goals. The cultural and social phenomenon of the American dream was formed.
• Comparing American Dream Collapsing and the Fading American Dreams The first article is American dream collapsing done by Jim Tankersley in 2016. The author is writing about the decline in several children earning more than their parents.
• Changing the American Dream of Immigrants and African Americans The position of African Americans and other immigrants was not the same throughout US history, denoting that they had different dreams during various periods.
• Cruel Optimism: Karl Marx’s Ideas and the American Dream The work provides a summary and an analysis of the work of Berlant L. “Cruel optimism: On Marx, loss and the senses” in regard to Karl Marx’s ideas and the American Dream.
• American Dream and Poverty in the United States The concept of the American dream and its component has changed over the years and remains different for different people.
• Homeownership as the American Dream The paper identifies the current and previous asking prices, the seller’s investment yield, down payment, and other necessary costs.
• Ideals of the American Dream Even though working may not be fun all the time, there is still a reasonable number of opportunities provided: financial independence and a clearer perspective on one’s future.
• The American Dream: Values and Hopes The American Dream is a set of national values that can be traced back to 1620 when the Plymouth Colony was established.
• Crumbling American Dream: The Thrive of Capitalism The notion of the American dream has now become a universal matter. The thrive of capitalism has made the American dream a desirable state of things unachievable in the near future.
• The American Dream and Social Disorganization American Dream is the belief that everyone in the state can attain success due to the uniqueness of the U.S society and environment.
• Recession and the American Dream for Education This paper analyses the ill effects of the recent recession which has occurred and the terrible consequence which families, students, and children in America are currently facing.
• Fleeing to U.S., the American Dream for Cubans From time immemorial Cubans have been moving to America in search for greener pastures. This eventually worked for the formation of American-Cuban connections around the United States.
• Youthful View of the American Dream During Uncertain Economic Times The American Dream for youth is now all about helping the country reclaim it’s rightful place of leadership in the world.
• American Dream in the XXI Century The understanding of the concept of the American dream today and several decades or even centuries ago is quite different.
• Conception of “The American Dream” in US “The American Dream” means living a better life. Americans have different opinions on describing this better life. Though some may express this issue as an illusion, it can become real.
• The American Dream: Civil Rights and Opportunities Civil rights have much to do with citizens having an opportunity to achieve the American dream. Discrimination is a massive obstacle that prevents the country from economic growth.
• American Dream, Religions and Sikhism The USA represent a unique cultural phenomenon. On the one hand, it is a country of many cultures, nationalities, and religions co-existing in the same area.
• Social Studies: The American Dream’s Concept The American dream focuses on making life better for its citizens and immigrants. It entails the aggressiveness instilled in the residents of America.
• Wealth and the American Dream in the Great Gatsby
• Choosing the Right Path Toward the American Dream
• American Liberalism and the Democratic Dream: Transcending the American Dream
• How Does Gatsby Represent the American Dream?
• Adam Smith’s American Dream
• Democracy and the American Dream
• Work Ethic and Ethical Work: Distortions in the American Dream
• Women and the American Dream
• Black Identity and the American Dream
• Depression and the American Dream
• Ben Franklin and the Definition of the American Dream
• How Are Millennials Redefining the American Dream?
• Disillusionment and the American Dream
• Debunking the American Dream
• Factors Influencing the American Dream
• American Tragedy and the Futility of the American Dream
• Westward Expansion and the American Dream
• Capitalism, Drug Abuse, and the American Dream
• British Colonization and the American Dream
• Exploring the American Dream in Great Gatsby and Grapes of Wrath
• Asian Americans and the American Dream
• Does Income Inequality Affect the American Dream Of Upward?
• American Dream and Ben Franklin
• Corporate Scandals: How Greed Consumed The American Dream
• Inequality and the American Dream
• How Has the American Dream Changed Over Time?
• African Americans Must Work to Achieve the American Dream
• American Dream America Immigrants British
• Albee and Twain: Demystifying an American Dream
• Deconstructing the American Dream
• American Dream: Accessibility vs. Achievability
• Crime and the American Dream With Regards to Sociology
• African Americans and the American Dream
• Dramatizing the American Dream
• Commercialism Deteriorates the American Dream
• American Exceptionalism and the American Dream
• How Long Has the American Dream Been Around?
• Understanding the Real Meaning of the American Dream
• American Dream Delayed: Shifting Determinants of Homeownership
• All Men and Women Have the Right to the American Dream
• How Social Stratification Dictates the American Dream, It Is?
• Abraham Lincoln and the American Dream
• Willy Loman’s Idealistic American Dream
• Can Everyone Achieve the American Dream?
• How Can Money Affect the American Dream?
• What Is the True Cost of the American Dream?
• How Does Poverty Affect the American Dream?
• Is the American Dream More About Money or Happiness?
• What Are the Advantages and Disadvantages of the American Dream?
• How Does the American Dream Reinforce Socioeconomic Barriers?
• Do You Need Money for the American Dream?
• Was Walt Disney the Prisoner of the American Dream?
• How Does Social Class Affect the American Dream?
• What Is at the Heart of the American Dream?
• Is the American Dream Still Alive Today?
• What Is Success in the American Dream?
• Does the Growing Economic Threat to Individuals and the American Dream?
• How Expensive Is the American Dream?
• What Was the First American Dream and What Was the Result?
• Is the American Dream a Fallacy?
• Who Does the American Dream Exclude?
• How Does the Rising Cost of Education Affect the American Dream?
• Why Is the American Dream Harder Today?
• How Realistic Is the American Dream?
• What Is the Biggest Obstacle to Reaching the American Dream?
• Is the American Dream Real or Purely Imaginary?
• How Does Great Gatsby Represent the American Dream?
• Has Gatsby Achieved the American Dream?
• Keeping the Dream Alive: Perpetuating the American Dream in Changing Times
• Reimagining the American Dream: Cultural Pluralism and Identity
• The American Dream and Economic Inequality: Bridge or Divide?
• The Dream Project: Assessing the Impact of Public Policies on Achieving the American Dream
• Healthcare Accessibility and the American Dream: Health vs. Wealth
• The Illusion of Meritocracy: Challenging the Attainability of the Dream
• Is the American Dream Still Achievable?
• Consumerism and the American Dream
• The Shifting Landscape of the American Dream in the 21st Century
• Environmental Sustainability and the Future of the American Dream
• Addressing the Counterclaim: Crafting a Roadmap to Ensure Equality in Dream Attainment
• Perspectives on the American Dream Across Age Groups and Generation Gap

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These essay examples and topics on American Dream were carefully selected by the StudyCorgi editorial team. They meet our highest standards in terms of grammar, punctuation, style, and fact accuracy. Please ensure you properly reference the materials if you’re using them to write your assignment.

This essay topic collection was updated on December 26, 2023 .

Essays About The American Dream: 7 Interesting Topics to Discuss

American Dream has main themes: hard work and equal opportunity create a better life over time. Discover essays about the American dream topics in this article.

The concept of the American dream includes many ideas, including those outlined in the Declaration of Independence: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. Professional writers, high school students, and many people have worked to outline the meaning of the American dream in essays and research papers.

Many United States citizens operate under the assumption that working hard can elevate their financial and social status. Many people in American society grapple with whether the idea of the American dream is an attainable reality for those born into less-fortunate circumstances. While some argue that social mobility—meaning changes in social class based on effort and hard work—are at the core of the American dream, others argue that those who are born into a preferable situation may have an easier time achieving the dream, disputing the notion of an equal playing field.

Here, we’ll discuss 7 interesting essay topics on the American Dream that you can use in your next essay.

For help with your essays, check out our round-up of the best essay checkers

1. Is The American Dream Still Alive?

2. the american dream is still alive: these people are proof, 3. the american dream defined, 4. the american dream in literature, 5. what does the american dream look like for immigrants, 6. how has the american dream changed over time, the final word on essays about the american dream, what literary works discuss the american dream, what should be considered when writing an essay on the american dream’s existence.

A topic of much debate, it can be tough to figure out whether the American Dream continues to exist as it did half a century ago. Many people question whether the American Dream is a reality for that outside of the American family depicted in 1950s television and print ads—largely white, upper-middle-class families.

Suppose you decide to write about whether the American Dream still exists. In that case, you’ll want to consider the inflation of the cost of a college education that has made it impossible for many students to work and pay their way through college, resulting in debt that feels impossible upon graduation. Rather than a fresh start in life, many graduates face low-paying jobs that make it difficult to handle daily living costs while also paying back high-interest student loans.

As you write about why the American Dream is currently a struggle for many, include success stories that show how the American Dream is still being achieved by many. You may want to touch on how the traditional idea of the American dream is changing with time. You can do this by highlighting studies that explain how successful Americans today feel regarding the American Dream and how the tenants of a successful life are changing for many people. 

Want to show your audience that the American Dream is still alive and well? Highlighting the stories of people who have achieved success in their lives can be a great way to convey proof of the existence of the American Dream to others. 

As you write your essay, it’s important to share how the definition of the American dream has changed over time. Today, many people feel that the American dream has more to do with a sense of belonging and community than making a certain amount of money or living in a certain type of home. Research shows that across the United States of America, people generally shared a positive feeling about the possibility of achieving the American dream. Most felt that they either had achieved the dream or were on their way to achieving it.

As you write your essay on proof of the existence of the American Dream, be sure to highlight people from different backgrounds, sharing the different challenges they’ve faced throughout their lives. You’ll want to show how Americans achieve success despite challenges and different starting points and how they’ve enjoyed their success (despite having different definitions of what it means to achieve the American Dream).

In years past, the definition of the American Dream was clear: rising above circumstances, developing a successful financial portfolio, owning a home, and having kids in a successful marriage. Today, however, many people define the American Dream differently. In an essay on defining the American dream, it’s important to consider viewpoints from different cultures and how a person’s socioeconomic starting point affects their view of what it means to have “made it” in America. 

When defining the American Dream, you may want to touch on how social and economic issues in America have made the American Dream a more realistic possibility for some groups than others. Social programs, discrimination, and civil rights issues have made it tougher for some minority groups to climb above the standing they were born into, making it harder to achieve financial stability and other aspects of the American dream.

In your essay about defining the American Dream, you may also want to touch on the importance of being able to take risks. This can be easier for people whose parents and other relatives can provide a safety net. People who are dependent on their savings to support new business ventures may find it harder to take risks, making it more difficult to achieve the American dream. 

When defining the American Dream, be sure to touch on how the Dream can be different for different people and how one person’s financial stability might not be the same as someone else’s. If possible, include anecdotal quotes and stories to help your reader connect to the way you’re defining the American Dream.

Many pieces of classic American literature work to show what the American Dream means to various groups of people. In writing an essay about the American Dream in literature, you’ll want to discuss several different classic works, including The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath, and Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas by Hunter S. Thompson. 

When discussing the theme of the American Dream in literature, there are a few different approaches that you can take to show your readers how the American Dream has changed in novels over time. You may want to work through a timeline showing how the American Dream has changed or talk about how real-life social and economic issues have been reflected in the way that authors discuss the American Dream. 

When writing about the American Dream, you may also want to touch on how each author’s social standing affected their view of the American Dream and whether the achievement of the Dream was feasible at the time. Authors born into difficult circumstances may have a different view of the American Dream than authors born into a more affluent lifestyle. 

Growing student debt, a lack of high-paying jobs, and increasing living costs have made it difficult for people to keep their faith in the American dream. Economic research shows that many first- and second-generation Americans experience economic mobility upward in immigrant families, but this mobility eventually stalls in future generations. According to some researchers, t’s possible that first- and second-generation immigrants feel more of a push to be a success story in an attempt to erase the negative connotations that some American citizens have with the word “immigrant.”

People who are new to the United States face different challenges than people who have lived in the country for their entire lives. Writing an essay about how the American Dream is different for people born in other countries can enlighten many of your readers about how the Dream is different for people in different circumstances.

The American Dream has not remained stagnant over the years, and what people once believed to be the American Dream is something that many Americans no longer want. Writing an essay about how the American dream has changed over time can be an interesting way to explore how the ideals of America have changed over the years. 

The wealth gap has changed over time in the United States, making it increasingly difficult for people born into a lower socioeconomic status to build their wealth and achieve the American dream. Research shows that more than 40% of people born into the lowest part of the income ladder in the United States stay there as adults. Talking about how economic challenges in the United States have made it difficult for many people to go through college or start businesses can be a jumping-off point to discussing changes in the American Dream. 

For many people, the ideals associated with the American dream—marriage, family, kids, a job that provides financial stability—are no longer as desirable. Some people don’t desire to get married, and it’s more acceptable in society to stay single. Some people have no desire to have kids, and some people prefer to work in the gig economy rather than going to a 9-5 job every day. Discussing these changes in American society and how they relate to changes in the American Dream can help your reader see how the Dream has changed over time.

In the eyes of many, the American dream is often associated with homeownership. Skyrocketing mortgage rates in the U.S. make it hard for many people to afford a home, relegating them to rent or living with family members. If you decide to talk about the difficulties of becoming a homeowner in today’s economy, do your research on the latest mortgage news. Many people who once qualified for mortgages struggle to get approved due to skyrocketing interest rates. Including recent financial news can help help your readers connect recent events with the reality of the American Dream.

Opinions on the American dream differ, and when writing about the topic, it’s important to keep your audience in mind. While some people have experienced at least part of the American dream, others have struggled despite hard work due to an unequal playing field from the start.

FAQs About Essays About The American Dream

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald and Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller is well-known for their takes on the American dream.

When writing a persuasive or argumentive essay on the American dream, it’s important to consider social mobility, interest rates, homeownership rates, the cost of education, and other factors that contribute to creating a lucrative financial life.

If you’re still stuck, check out our general resource of essay writing topics .

Amanda has an M.S.Ed degree from the University of Pennsylvania in School and Mental Health Counseling and is a National Academy of Sports Medicine Certified Personal Trainer. She has experience writing magazine articles, newspaper articles, SEO-friendly web copy, and blog posts.

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American Dream Essay: Structure, Outline, Sample, and Topics

• Icon Calendar 19 May 2024
• Icon Page 2252 words
• Icon Clock 11 min read

The American Dream is a recurring controversial topic in modern society. Individuals have developed different arguments to deconstruct what is the American Dream essay in the context of day-to-day life. In the academic setting, learners that engage in this discourse hold the weight of the proper expression of their arguments. A structured essay is analyzed with a focus on the introduction, main body, and conclusion of the five-paragraph essay. The process of topic selection, outline development, and structured writing is exemplified using an essay titled, “The Promise of the American Dream.” Recommendations for narrow scoped topics for exploring the concept are provided as a starting point for students.

In contemporary discourse, there is much controversy over the meaning of the American Dream. Basically, people hold different positions on multiple aspects of the concept in their essays and research papers. During the schooling years, it is important to acquire knowledge. Also, young minds benefit significantly from reflecting on the influence of their recently acquired knowledge on their position regarding controversial topics. Upon completing the reflection essay process, the expression of one’s newly defined position is the next step. An essay on the American Dream is presented to introduce the readers to the basic principles behind the concept. Moreover, the structure of a five-paragraph essay is explored with the support of an outline and a sample essay.

What Is the American Dream Essay?

1. general description.

The American Dream is a widely known concept, but there is no definition that can be identified as a correct, comprehensive, and precise. Basically, freedom and opportunity are the most critical aspects of the essay on the American Dream. In this case, freedoms are essential to the idea of achieving goals. It because these freedoms provide an individual with the space to live freely without any oppression from their peers or the government. Moreover, equal access to opportunity allows each individual to pursue happiness and prosperity regardless of the social class, gender, race, and other social or cultural factors that stratify society. Therefore, this concept may be defined as a set of beliefs that explain the experience of life that many people are expected to have in an ideal situation, where their freedoms are protected, and no opportunity barriers exist.

2. Unique Experiences

People are born into families that provide them with a unique starting point for their pursuit of desired goals. For example, the financial capability, level of education, and cultural beliefs of an individual’s parents define the foundation on which a person begins to achieve desired goals. As a result, all people may be pursuing the same ideas when writing essays. In turn, it is not a level playing field because some individuals may find themselves in better circumstances than others. Furthermore, it is differentiated at a personal level because individuals with relatively similar starting points may have distinct outcomes. Based on this perspective, it is highly unlikely that any two individuals can attest to going through identical experiences when writing an essay.

3. Belief Systems

Besides the circumstances of the starting points, an individual’s belief system plays a significant role in their strategy of achieving desired goals. For instance, happiness and prosperity are broad terms that have contrasting meanings for individuals because there is no standardized scale for measuring happiness or prosperity. Moreover, one person may consider owning a car and house to be a sign of prosperity. In contrast, another person may believe that providing his or her children with a college education to be prosperity. Hence, these beliefs are imposed on desires goals, which results in variations in the meaning of the concept for each individual to be covered in an essay. In turn, desires goals affected to a large extent by an individual’s beliefs regarding the things that make them happy or prosperous.

Topic Selection for American Dream Essays

1. challenges of topic selection.

The American Dream is a concept that people can examine from a variety of perspectives, which makes the selection of an essay topic for an American Dream paper quite challenging. During the selection of an essay topic, it is essential to remember that no point of view is more superior or correct than another. In this case, the weight of the claim proposed in the American Dream argumentative essay is dependent on the writer’s ability to explain a position logically and convincingly. Moreover, in the presentation of the argument in the essay, it is important to adequately consider competing counterarguments that may arise in the audience’s minds when writing essays. In turn, the failure to evaluate counterarguments critically may undercut the authority of the author, especially when writing for an academic audience.

2. Solution

Equally important, writers should select a topic that has a link with their personal experiences. For instance, an argument concerning the essay about the American Dream gains a sense of authenticity when writers discuss an issue that resonates with their beliefs. It is essential because some passion is embedded in the essay. In this case, as a starting point for identifying the essay topic, writers may identify a “main concept” under review, for example, equal opportunity. Based on the main concept, writers can think through their life experiences and single out events that they consider invaluable in the position taken concerning the main concept (see the example of a simple brainstorming template). Finally, writers should settle on the essay topic that is specific and can be argued out entirely within the constraints of the essay requirements.

3. Example of a Simple Brainstorming Template

• State the main concept.
• How has it affected you?
• How has it affected other people in your life?
• Do you think the events mentioned above are in line with the American Dream?
• Specify the issue.
• Describe the ideal situation.
• Can the situation be improved?

American Dream Essay Outline

Introduction (approximately 10% of the word count).

• It is the first statement in the introductory paragraph.
• The statement should capture the attention of the reader, for example, a unique fact about the topic.

2. Overview of the Topic

• It comprises of two or more sentences.
• The statements should contain adequate detail for the reader to understand the thesis statement.

3. Thesis Statement

• It is a single statement that appears at the end of the introductory paragraph.
• The statement provides an answer to the essay prompt in the form of a single argument, which summarises the main evidence or rationale presented in the main body.

Main Body (Approximately 80% of the Word Count)

The creation of paragraphs in this section is based on the separation of ideas to ensure that each paragraph presents one original idea. In this case, each paragraph in this section must follow the sandwich rule, which dictates the organization of paragraph elements:

• Topic sentence – States the main idea for that paragraph.
• Evidence – Provides the information that is crucial to the paragraph’s idea.
• Evaluation of evidence – Explains the relevance of the evidence and offers an interpretation of the evidence.
• Transition statement – Summarises the paragraph and links it to the thesis statement or the next paragraph.

Conclusion (Approximately 10% of the Word Count)

1. Restating the Main Argument

• The first statement in the paragraph should repeat the main argument presented in the thesis statement.
• It should not contain the same words as the thesis statement, but keywords can be reused.
• Provide a detailed overview of the main points of the essay logically.
• Demonstrate the value of the main points in answering the essay prompt.

Five-Paragraph American Dream Essay Outline Sample

Introduction/Paragraph 1

Hook: Besides the differences in the American populations, they are similar because they pursue the same dream.

Overview of the topic: Outline some of the differences in the American population.

Thesis statement: Creating equal opportunities allows individuals to achieve upward mobility.

Paragraph 2 :

Topic sentence: Breaking down social mobility and its quantification.

Evidence: Definition and measures of social mobility.

Evaluation of evidence: Illustrate how upward social mobility is achieved while referring to the measures.

Transition statement: Introduces the need for self-improvement for social mobility to occur.

Paragraph 3 :

Topic sentence: Opportunity is a requirement for social mobility.

Evidence: The role of education in equipping an individual to utilize opportunities.

Evaluation of evidence: Demonstrate the link between education, access to jobs, and the ability to improve an individual’s quality of life.

Transition statement: Recognise that there are socially constructed limitations on the accessibility of opportunities.

Paragraph 4 :

Topic sentence: Discriminative practices affect an individual’s access to opportunities for social mobility.

Evidence: Identify some forms of discrimination and explain the occurrence of discriminative practices.

Evaluation of evidence: Describe the value of government and organization’s role in managing discriminative practices using policies that uphold equality.

Transition statement: Stress the centrality of equality in the argument for opportunity access and upward mobility.

Conclusion/Paragraph 5 :

Restating the main argument: Emphasise the importance of equality in securing opportunities for upward mobility and the attainment of the American Dream.

Summary: Allude to the measures of social mobility, the interaction between discriminative practices and opportunities, and the relief provided by policies on equality.

Sample of Five-Paragraph American Dream Essay

Topic: The Promise of the American Dream

Introduction

Although we are different, we share a single dream. In this case, the American population is composed of people of different genders, races, education levels, religions, and disability statuses. Nonetheless, each American is entitled to the opportunity to make themselves better regardless of the underlying differences. Thus, the American Dream thesis statement is that it is founded on the promise of equal opportunity for upward social mobility.

Social Mobility

Social mobility is a multidimensional concept. It can be assessed using a variety of measures that attempt to quantify the change occurring in an individual’s life. For example, the ability of an individual to move along the social hierarchy may be described as social mobility. In turn, there are different measures of social mobility. However, each one is focused on a specific aspect of average Americans’ livelihood:

• health status – the susceptibility of an individual to diseases,
• education – an individual’s highest level of education,
• homeownership – the capability of an individual to acquire permanent housing.

Upward social mobility implies that an individual can improve their position in the social hierarchy through improving their performance on any of the measures of social mobility. Therefore, upward social mobility is the desired outcome of a successful pursuit of desired goals because it suggests some form of self-improvement.

Opportunity

The opportunity for upward mobility is vital in pursuing the desired goals. Basically, access to opportunity is facilitated by some factors, for example, access to quality education. In this case, an individual that has attended school and acquired the necessary skills has a higher likelihood of securing a job. If individuals acquire jobs, it becomes easier to secure health insurance, buy homes, and improve the quality of life for their families. Moreover, individuals can only attain what they want if they are provided access to basic education, which prepares them to maximize any opportunities. However, it is difficult for an average individual to pursue opportunities without the government’s efforts to increase the ease of access to basic needs.

Equality Policies

Many barriers affect an average American’s ability to access positive opportunities, and it manifests in the form of discriminative practices in society. In this case, discrimination in society may occur based on a variety of issues, for example, gender, disability, religion, and race. Basically, personal biases create ideological differences regarding superiority in the social hierarchy. It pushes individuals to deny others access to opportunities and the necessary skills to exploit those opportunities. Moreover, state and organizational policies against discrimination are created and enforced to maintain equality among Americans. These laws serve to eliminate the barriers that exist between hardworking people and the American Dream. Consequently, equality among individuals ensures that all individuals can take advantage of opportunities regardless of their gender, disability status, religion, race, and other social differences that tend to create boundaries between social groups.

Equality is crucial in the pursuit of the American Dream because it provides each individual with the opportunity to move up the social hierarchy. In this case, people can access upward social mobility by using various measures, which quantify an individual’s quality of life. Moreover, opportunities may exist, but individuals need to be assisted in developing themselves to a level where they can utilize the available opportunities. Hence, equality policies are useful in curtailing the power of discriminative practices in reinforcing social mobility barriers.

American Dream Essay Topics

• The origin of the American Dream.
• Intergenerational differences in the definition of the American Dream.
• The American Dream in contemporary music.
• Does society still believe in the American Dream?
• Defining the American Dream through the racial lens.
• Individualism and the American Dream.
• The influence of unrestricted surveillance on the American Dream.
• Health care policies and the American Dream.
• The impacts of globalization on the American Dream.
• The rise of right-wing populism and the future of the American Dream.

Summing up on the American Dream Essay

The capacity of a person to participate in the discourse on the controversial essay topic nurtured through the continuous practice of structured essay writing. Basically, the concept may be approached from a different perspective, depending on the individual’s beliefs and personal experiences. Nonetheless, the written presentation of these points of view is achieved through the use of structured essays. The five-paragraph American Dream essay examined in this paper is a useful tool for the expression of any argument on the topic.

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The American Dream Essay: Best Topics and Controversies to Consider

The concept of the American Dream has been deeply ingrained in the nation’s history, serving as a beacon of hope and opportunity for countless generations. But have you ever wondered what lies at the core of this concept? Writing an essay on American Dream can help you answer this question.

To write a good American Dream essay, you need to delve into its origins, evolution, and the various perspectives surrounding it. Read on to unravel the complexities and aspirations that define the concept.

The American Dream Essay Topics

Although the American Dream essay seems to have a clear topic to write about, you may choose between six different approaches to it, that is ways to develop the topic. It is important to choose one clear focus that will define your essay’s structure and thesis stament.

1. Historical Perspective of the American Dream

The American Dream has been a central theme in American literature and culture for centuries. Choosing this focus, you will have to explore the historical origins of the American Dream, tracing its evolution from the founding of the nation to the present day. Topics may include the influence of the Puritans, the frontier spirit, and the impact of immigration on the American Dream.

These titles will work well for an essay about the history of the concept:

1. “From Pioneers to Prosperity: Tracing the Historical Evolution of the American Dream”

2. “The American Dream Through the Ages: A Historical Analysis”

3. “Dreams and Realities: Exploring the Historical Context of the American Dream”

4. “Unveiling the American Dream: A Journey through History”

5. “Shaping the American Dream: A Historical Perspective on its Origins and Transformations”

2. The American Dream in Literature

If you are fond of literary studies, examine the portrayal of the American Dream in literature, focusing on how different authors have interpreted and critiqued this concept. Topics may include the works of F. Scott Fitzgerald, John Steinbeck, and Toni Morrison, among others.

Here are some great topics you may work on:

1. “The American Dream in Literature: Exploring Hope and Opportunity in The Great Gatsby”

2. “Chasing the American Dream: A Comparative Analysis of Death of a Salesman and The Grapes of Wrath”

3. “The Illusion of the American Dream: A Critical Examination of The Jungle and The House on Mango Street”

4. “Reimagining the American Dream: Gender and Identity in Their Eyes Were Watching God and The Joy Luck Club”

5. “The American Dream and the Immigrant Experience: A Study of The Namesake and The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao”

3. The American Dream in Popular Culture

Explore the representation of the American Dream in popular culture, including film, television, and music. Topics may include the portrayal of the American Dream in Hollywood movies, the influence of reality TV on the American Dream, and the role of hip-hop music in shaping contemporary notions of success and achievement.

Here are some good strating point for this research:

1. “The American Dream in the Film ‘The Pursuit of Happyness'”

2. “From Rags to Riches: The American Dream in Jay-Z’s ‘Empire State of Mind'”

3. “The Illusion of the American Dream: Unmasking Subtle Critiques in ‘American Beauty'”

4. “The American Dream: Examining ‘Mad Men’ as a Reflection of Post-WWII Aspirations”

5. “Reimagining the American Dream: Analyzing Kendrick Lamar’s ‘Alright’ as a Modern Anthem”

4. The American Dream and Social Justice

It can be really exciting to examine the intersection of the American Dream with issues of social justice, inequality, and discrimination. Topics may include the impact of race, gender, and class on the pursuit of the American Dream, as well as the role of activism and advocacy in challenging traditional notions of success and opportunity.

If you choose to explore this aspect, the following American Dream essay titles will work great:

1. “The American Dream: A Pathway to Social Justice”

2. “Reimagining the American Dream: A Call for Social Justice”

3. “The Intersection of the American Dream and Social Justice”

4. “Challenging the American Dream: Towards a More Just Society”

5. “The American Dream and Social Justice: Striving for Equality and Opportunity”

5. The American Dream and Economic Mobility

This American Dream essay topic will focus on the relationship between the concept and economic mobility, exploring the opportunities and barriers that individuals face in their pursuit of success and prosperity. Topics may include the impact of education, employment, and wealth inequality on the realization of the American Dream.

You may work on one of these essay titles:

1. “Breaking Barriers: Exploring the American Dream and Economic Mobility”

2. “Unraveling the Link between the American Dream and Economic Mobility”

3. “Beyond Borders: Examining Economic Mobility and the American Dream in a Globalized World”

4. “How Economic Mobility Shapes the American Dream”

5. “The Illusion of Equality: Assessing Economic Mobility and the American Dream in Contemporary Society”

6. The American Dream and Personal Fulfillment

You may choose to consider the psychological and emotional dimensions of the American Dream, examining how individuals define and pursue their own visions of success and happiness. Topics may include the role of self-fulfillment, personal growth, and well-being in the pursuit of the American Dream.

Here are essay topic ideas exploring this aspect of the American Dream:

1. “Chasing the American Dream: Exploring the Pursuit of Personal Fulfillment”

2. “The American Dream: A Pathway to Personal Happiness and Fulfillment”

3. “Reimagining the American Dream: Finding Personal Fulfillment in a Changing Society”

4. “The Pursuit of Happiness: How the American Dream Shapes Personal Fulfillment”

5. “Beyond Material Success: The True Meaning of the American Dream and Personal Fulfillment”

Perspectives on the American Dream

When it comes to the American Dream, there are various viewpoints that shape our understanding of this concept. Choosing a clear perspective is vital for writing a successful and coherent essay. Let’s explore three different perspectives: the optimistic view, the critical view, and the personal view.

• The Optimistic View: Success and Happiness are Attainable for All . The optimistic view believes that success and happiness are within reach for everyone. This perspective emphasizes the opportunities available in America, where hard work and determination can lead to a better life. For instance, individuals like Oprah Winfrey and Elon Musk have risen from humble beginnings to achieve great success, inspiring others to believe in the American Dream.
• The Critical View: Inequality and the Elusiveness of the Dream . The critical view highlights the inequality and challenges that make the American Dream elusive for many. This perspective acknowledges that not everyone starts on an equal playing field, and factors such as race, socioeconomic status, and access to education can hinder upward mobility. For example, studies have shown that the wealth gap between the rich and the poor has been widening in recent years, making it harder for some to achieve their dreams.
• The Personal View: Individual Interpretations and Experiences . The personal view recognizes that each individual has their own unique goals and aspirations, which may not align with the traditional notion of success. Some may find fulfillment in pursuing creative endeavors, while others may prioritize work-life balance over financial wealth. It is important to respect and value these diverse perspectives, as they contribute to a more inclusive understanding of the American Dream.

What Is a Good Thesis Statement for The American Dream Essay?

A good thesis statement should inform the reader about the focus and the structure of your American Dream essay, as well as reflect its main message, the idea you advocate for.

For example, if you are writing an essay on the history of the American Dream, your thesis statement should focus on the evolution of the concept over time. For example: “ The American Dream has undergone significant changes throughout history, reflecting the shifting values and aspirations of American society, from the early settlers’ pursuit of land and opportunity to the post-World War II era’s emphasis on material success and consumerism, and finally to the contemporary focus on individual fulfillment and social justice. ”

This thesis statement sets up a clear argument that can be supported with evidence from different historical periods and cultural contexts, while also acknowledging the complexity and diversity of the American Dream as a cultural phenomenon .

If you are writing an argumentative or a persuative essay , a thesis statement could be: “ The American Dream is a complex and evolving concept that encompasses the ideals of freedom, equality, and opportunity for all individuals to achieve success and prosperity through hard work and determination. However, the reality of the American Dream is often shaped by social, economic, and political factors that can create barriers to achieving this ideal. “

What Is a Good Hook for the American Dream Essay?

To create a compelling American Dream essay, it is crucial to captivate the reader’s attention from the very beginning. One effective approach is to start an essay with a thought-provoking question that challenges the conventional understanding of the American Dream. For instance, “Is the American Dream an attainable reality or an elusive illusion?” This hook immediately engages the reader and encourages them to delve deeper into the topic.

Alternatively, a powerful anecdote or a relevant quote from a notable figure can also serve as an attention-grabbing hook. By employing these techniques, the essay can initiate a stimulating discussion and set the stage for a thought-provoking exploration of the American Dream.

5 Challenges and Controversies Surrounding the American Dream

As you might have already undersood, American Dream is one of controversial essay topics and you may adopt a different stance on it. Here are the key controversy surrounding the topic to think about.

1. Economic Inequality

One of the major challenges surrounding the American Dream is the increasing economic inequality in our society. The gap between the rich and the poor has been widening over the years, creating a significant divide. This disparity in wealth distribution can hinder the realization of the American Dream for many individuals. For instance, access to quality education, healthcare, and job opportunities may be limited for those who are economically disadvantaged.

2. Social Mobility

Another controversial aspect of the American Dream is the question of whether it is still attainable in today’s society. Social mobility , or the ability to move up the social ladder, has become increasingly challenging for many individuals. Factors such as income inequality, limited access to resources, and systemic barriers can hinder upward mobility. For example, studies have shown that children from low-income families are less likely to achieve higher education and secure well-paying jobs. This raises concerns about the fairness and accessibility of the American Dream for all individuals, regardless of their background.

3. Cultural Assimilation

The concept of cultural assimilation is another area of controversy surrounding the American Dream. While the idea of achieving success and prosperity in America is appealing, it often requires individuals to navigate the delicate balance between preserving their cultural identity and integrating into mainstream society. For instance, language barriers, discrimination, and pressure to conform to societal norms can create tension and hinder the pursuit of the American Dream.

4. Focus on Material Wealth

The is an idea that the traditional view of the American Dream is flawned as it overestimates material wealth as a sole measure for success. However, it is important to broaden our definition of success to include personal growth, meaningful relationships, and making a positive impact on society. For example, success can be achieving personal goals, contributing to the community, or finding fulfillment in one’s passions.

5. Balancing Work and Life

With the emphases on hard work, the concept of the American Dream undermines the importance of finding a balance between work and life, which is essential for our overall well-being and happiness. The pursue of American Dream hinders or makes people comdemn prioritization of self-care, spending quality time with loved ones, and pursuing hobbies and interests outside of work. This has a negative impact on psychological health of individual people and the nation at large.

Concluding Ideas

While the American Dream may have different meanings for different people, it remains a symbol of hope, resilience, and the pursuit of a better life. Examining its impact on society, culture, and the individual in the American Dream essay will help you define your personal perspective on the concept and will make you more minflul when setting personal goals and making lifestyle choices.

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The American Dream

40 pages • 1 hour read

The American Dream: A Short History of an Idea that Shaped a Nation

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Introduction-Chapter 1

Chapter 6-Conclusion

Key Figures

Index of Terms

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

What should the Puritans’ legacy be for American history and the American Dream? Do you agree with the author’s statement that “you’ll never really understand what it means to be an American of any creed, color, or gender if you don’t try to imagine the shape of [the Puritan] dream—and what happened when they tried to realize it” (13)? Would all social groups in the US understand the Puritan dream the same way?

To what extent is the American Dream accessible only to Americans? In what ways would the concept of the American Dream make sense (or not make sense) for people raised outside the US? In which countries (if any) would the Dream make more sense to people today—or be easier to achieve?

Cullen discusses three groups that were largely excluded from pursing the American Dream for much of history: First Nations people, slaves, and women. What obstacles to pursuing and achieving any aspect of the American Dream still exist today for historically oppressed groups in the US? If structural patterns of injustice hinder certain groups from achieving the American Dream, does this discredit the Dream? Why or why not?

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American Dream - Essay Examples And Topic Ideas For Free

The American Dream, a widely held cultural ideal in the United States, suggests that through hard work and determination, individuals can achieve a prosperous and fulfilling life. Essays on this topic might discuss its evolution, its representation in literature and media, and its relevance and attainability in modern society. Additionally, discussions could explore how the American Dream reflects or contradicts societal values and the experiences of different demographic groups. A vast selection of complimentary essay illustrations pertaining to American Dream you can find in Papersowl database. You can use our samples for inspiration to write your own essay, research paper, or just to explore a new topic for yourself.

Corruption of the American Dream

The Great Gatsby is a story of a man's quest for an unachievable goal based off the social and economic repercussions around the 1920's. Although Gatsby's journey to win over Daisy came to a screeching halt with his death, his life story of wealth along with the other characters represented the corruption of the original American Dream derived from Benjamin Franklin's Autobiography. Fitzgerald used West Egg (new money) and East Egg (old money) to show the growing divide between "old […]

The Theme of the American Dream in the Great Gatsby

The American dream is a concept that many strive for and will not be deterred from. Within The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Jay Gatsby longs to create the most ideal lifestyle with Daisy, someone he has taken an interest in. Gatsby’s attraction to Daisy, who is married to Tom Buchanan, makes him go to extreme lengths to win her over. Ultimately, this leads to his downfall as this fantasy will not be the reality. Although his dream is […]

Escaping the Shackles of Modern Society

Throughout the history of drama production, the underlying message meant to be conveyed has been interpreted in many ways. Terrence Smith and Mike Miller argued that “The purpose of drama is not to define thought but to provoke it,” suggesting that plays are not used to spell out a one-sided topic, but rather are meant to evoke further speculation from all angles upon a specific subject. While witnessing the plot unfold amidst the play’s dynamics, the audience has the opportunity […]

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The American Dream in the Great Gatsby

The American dream often comes up in the novel The Great Gatsby. Hope and dreams are what keep people going to accomplish their American dream. Many characters in the book look at the American Dream a little different. For example, Tom and George look at the American dream differently just because of money wise, how is the class structure in America today, and can someone poor become rich? What is the American dream to us? The American dream for most […]

George and Lennie’s American Dream

The American Dream is difficult to define exactly. It means different things to different people. However, certain ideas and concepts are commonly held within most people's interpretations. The idea of self-sufficiency, of having a home and not having to answer to anyone is a classic part of the American Dream. The simple concept of being in control of one's own employment and livelihood has always been an aspiration for Americans. In the novel Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, […]

Death of Salesman

The play “Death of a Salesman” greatly portrays a specific ideology in regards to values, dreams, goals, and success in our society. It helps showcase the American dream that society tends to strive for even in the early 1900’s. That dream of being a successful business person. As well as the theory that image and physical attributes are most important to gaining fruition. Willy Loman plays a man in his sixties who has strived for this American dream for over […]

The American Dream in “Death of a Salesman”

“Death of a Salesman,” a play by Arthur Miller, was written in 1948 and produced in 1949. In Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesman” one theme revealed in the drama play is the concept of the American dream of opportunity. America is the dream land of golden opportunities, even the poorest man can build his way upward in life. Miller uses this concept of opportunity by illustrating that new opportunity does not occur multiple times. Born in Harlem, New York, […]

Pursuit of the American Dream

Can peace be defined both internal and externally? Peace is defined as a method to articulate group conflicts, especially collective violence and creates a common sense of tranquility. In The Great Gatsby by Scott Fitzgerald, Nick Carraway claims that everything with Gatsby will turn up all right in the end. At the beginning of the book, Nick Carraway claims, "No-Gatsby turned out alright in the end; it is what preyed on Gatsby, what dust floated in the wake of his […]

Willy Character Analysis in “Death of a Salesman”

Willy Loman in Arthur Miller's 'Demise of death of a Salesman' is a complex and clashed character. He winds up inconsistent with his environment, his qualities, and even his family, now and again. Furthermore, these contentions overflow into how he brings up his children. Willy attempts to impart what he supposes are his increasingly outstanding attributes into his young men; affability and activity. In any case, one can see by his activities and even his words that he has a […]

An American Lie the American Dream

“In recent years, thousands of Americans have died at the hands of law enforcement, a reality made even more shameful when we consider how many of these victims were young, poor, mentally ill, Black or unarmed” (Hill 1).  Minorities have struggled for years to be accepted into a society that excludes them. In “Nobody” by Marc Lamont Hill, he compares the injustices occurring today to those that happened years ago. African Americans are constantly suffering from racial discrimination and denial […]

The American Dream in USA

The strive to be successful in America is seen throughout time, this idea of success has been characterizing Americans for centuries. For as long as this country has been created every citizen and immigrant that has arrived strives to work as hard as possible to fulfill their American Dream. This idea of the American Dream has been criticized by these famous books: The Great Gatsby and in Of Mice and Men. The story of The Great Gatsby takes place after […]

Literary Analysis – Death of a Salesman

In “Death of a Salesman” by Arthur Miller, the conflict between father and son shapes the work’s overall significance and explains all the unfortunate occurrences throughout. The American Dream plays a big role in this novel. The American Dream symbolizes the ideas of futurism and possibilities. The American Dream has a definite objective for many people, and it means a different thing for all. The American dream also is accessible, but in this world, people still believe that because of […]

Is African Americans Counted out the American Dream

Ever since the early 1900s, equality has been of great concern on the basis of race. This has always been the source of division among people in the United States. Racism is also the most obvious form of inequality in America. Living the American dream is a phrase coined in 1931 to describe an equal state where everyone receives a certain level of acceptance and the ability to have equal benefits despite their race or state of outward appearance. It […]

My Thinking about American Dream

Introduction It’s a difficult thing to “know your place” and fulfill your familial duty when around you, friends, neighbors, and strangers alike, all lived these carefree lives without constraints. They seldom just did “as they’re told” and they spoke their opinions. Opinions which were met with respect and encouragement. Still, I was happy and thought I had it all back then. Life eventually taught me that I actually had nothing without free choice and free speech. Chapter 1: The American […]

Students’ American Dream

American Dream Imagine a five bedroom and three-bathroom home bricked dark brown with an attached three car garage with a red door with see through glass windows. This home is equipped with televisions in every room, Wi-Fi, computers, printers, two loving parents, three children, and enough food to feed the entire neighborhood that is situated with houses that have white picket fences aligning each perfectly cut yard with aesthetically pleasing square patterns. We have all seen this house in our […]

The Idea of the American Dream

The idea of the American Dream was presented around the same time America was facing the Great Depression. The ideal stated that every citizen of the United States had equal opportunity to attain life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness through hard work and determination. But is that really the case? John Steinbeck's novella Of Mice and Men supports the premise that the American Dream is dead by showcasing the obstacles that many faced, the lack of support and loneliness […]

Death of a Salesman Summary

"The tragic play Death of a Salesman written by Arthur Miller is a story about a salesman named Willy Loman, who spends his whole life with a deluded dream of achieving lofty goals in an unforgiving society. Willy often neglects his family’s needs, because he is so blinded by the thought of vast riches that are unattainable for him. Being a modern day tragedy, Death of a Salesman examines the effects of what can happen when a person chasing the […]

The Option of Urbanism Investing in a New American Dream

After World War II ended, men and women all over America chased after The American Dream. A three-bedroom home. A backyard for the kids and the dog. A white-picket fence. Maybe a detached garage for grandma and grandpa when they get too old to take care of themselves. Far out in the suburbs, they'd be safe from the noise, danger, and filth of the city. However, the dream quickly turned into a nightmare as highways were built, the cities emptied, […]

The Death of the American Dreams

Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, "you become what you think about all day long", and with James Gatz from Francis Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, that is completely true. James Gatz spent his days obsessing over following the American Dream and becoming a wealthy and prosperous man, and from James' imagination manifested a man named Jay Gatsby. Just as Jay Gatsby spent his life vying for Daisy Buchanan's love, and obsessing over her as mimicked through several love poems, he […]

Role of the American Dream

The American dream made it so people were raised to believe that anyone could fulfill their wishes.  It began in the 1900s and now is torn between whether it is still possible to achieve.  There are many definitions to this so called American Dream, everyone has their own belief on what it meant and even what it means now.  Many have looked at it as becoming wealthy with lots of money, so they could spend buying high quality materials to […]

American Dream and the Great Gatsby

The American Dream has changed since Fitzgerald wrote The Great Gatsby. Now, most people think the American Dream means happiness through money and what it can buy. Whereas Fitzgerald thought it meant happiness in any way possible. If you asked me what I believed the American Dream was before reading this book I would have said that I did not know what the American Dream was but after looking it up I would have thought it meant happiness through money. […]

Poor Education is a Social Issue

Poor education is feasibly at the top of many great American social issues. Because I believe it is the main root that leads the American citizens astray from the path of achieving the American Dream I am addressing it in this paper. James Adams said “the American Dream is the social order in which both, man and woman, are able to attain the fullest stature of which they are innately capable, and be recognized by others for what they are, […]

The Crisis and Contradictions of the American Dream

What are the crisis and contradictions of the American Dream?. In the first article Unequal Opportunity: Race and Education, the author explains how students are segregated in the U.S educational system. At the beginning of the article Darling-Hammond talks about the educatioanl gap between white and minority students.In the middle of the article Darling-Hammond futher explains how minority students are at a disadvantage because of the  schools unfair system .Darling-Hammong concludes that well education resources  make the difference.In the second […]

What is American Dream for me

Kenny Guinn once said, "There is something permanent, and something extremely profound, in owning a home," and I could not agree more. Owning a home brings a sense of fulfillment, permanence, privacy, and security, something that is less available when renting. It also imparts a sense of pride as it is an indication of success and achievement. There are also the economic advantages of owning a home. Equity, collateral, and appreciation of your home's value are just a few. Both […]

‘The American Dream’

Harlem was written in 1951 amid when numerous blacks felt constrained in their capacity to accomplish 'The American Dream.' Even though the Civil War was long finished and blacks actually reserved the option to cast a ballot, schools were still isolated and numerous blacks could just secure essential positions that did not furnish them with a future. In this way, a significant number of them had little expectation that their prospects could be extraordinary; many believed that their fantasies would […]

The Quest to Achieve the American Dream

Education is the constant distinguisher between white and black Americans in the quest to achieve the "American Dream". Educational disparity is defined as the pervasive difference in the academic achievement of the races.  African Americans have achieved at lower rates than their white counterparts for decades. According to The Journal of Blacks in Education,  white Americans graduate at a rate that is 24.7 % higher than that of African Americans.  In order to narrow this gap, we must first understand […]

How Coming to America Changed my Life

Moving from Nigeria to the United States permanently feels great, but at the same time, it is sad leaving some loved ones and family behind. Most people have several events or things that have changed their life or their way of thinking. One of the major changes that occurred in my life was when I moved from Africa to America. This change has entirely affected my personality positively. Why? Many foreigners want to come to America mostly in search of […]

No Access in the American Dream of Hope

The American Dream of Hope has been failing since history and people have been fighting it for it all the time to reach their goals. The 3 sources that give examples of unequal access in the American dream of hope is the bool Between the World and Me by Ta-Nehisi Coates, How to Tame a Wild Tongue by Gloria Anzaldua, and The Problem We All Live with by Nikole Hannah-Jones. The American Dream of Hope has unequal access because of […]

Feeding the Destruction of the American Dream

The bad habits we create directly extended into the food industry as do our uncontrollable economic circumstances. Our purchase and consumption of certain types of foods demand the production of them, creating an endless cycle. When you don’t know how to cook, you don’t what’s in your food, you don’t know what’s healthy versus unhealthy, and/or you don’t have money you turn to cheap food. The sad thing is that today cheap food directly correlates to unhealthy food; they are […]

An Idea of American Dream

Have you ever looked at the weather through the eyes of someone else? Depending on who that person is, the perspective maybe very different from the house. Best, their ideas and opinions may differ as well. And exact representation found when comparing what Whitman's I hear America singing langston Hughes I too. The two pumps being considered reveals others attitudes of pride women rights I hear America singing singing with open mouth stay strong melodious songs lines 128 through 29. […]

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How To Write an Essay About American Dream

Understanding the concept of the american dream.

Before diving into an essay about the American Dream, it's important to understand its concept and evolution. The American Dream is a national ethos of the United States, a set of ideals that includes democracy, rights, liberty, opportunity, and equality. It promises the chance for prosperity and success achieved through hard work in a society with few barriers. Begin your essay by discussing the historical origins of the American Dream, including how it has been represented in literature, politics, and culture. Address how the perception of this dream has changed over time, considering factors such as economic conditions, social movements, and immigration.

Developing a Thesis Statement

A strong essay on the American Dream should be centered around a clear, concise thesis statement. This statement should present a specific viewpoint or argument about the American Dream. For instance, you might discuss how the American Dream is relevant in today's society, analyze its portrayal in a specific piece of literature, or argue that the American Dream is only accessible to certain groups of people. Your thesis will guide the direction of your essay and provide a structured approach to your analysis.

Gathering Supporting Evidence

Support your thesis with relevant evidence and examples. This might include historical documents, literary texts, sociological research, or current events. For example, if you're examining the accessibility of the American Dream, you might include statistics on income inequality or social mobility. Use this evidence to build your argument and provide depth to your analysis.

Analyzing Different Perspectives

Your essay should also consider different perspectives on the American Dream. This could involve looking at how the dream is experienced by various social, ethnic, and economic groups. Discussing the critiques and affirmations of the American Dream from these different viewpoints can provide a more nuanced understanding of the topic. Acknowledge the complexities and contradictions that surround the American Dream, and how it can be both a source of inspiration and disillusionment.

Concluding the Essay

Conclude your essay by summarizing the main points of your discussion and restating your thesis in light of the evidence provided. Your conclusion should tie together your analysis and emphasize the significance of the American Dream in American culture and identity. You might also want to reflect on the future of the American Dream, considering current trends and societal changes.

Reviewing and Refining Your Essay

After completing your essay, review and refine it for clarity and coherence. Ensure that your arguments are well-structured and supported by evidence. Check for grammatical accuracy and ensure that your essay flows logically from one point to the next. Consider seeking feedback from peers or instructors to further improve your essay. A well-written essay on the American Dream will not only demonstrate your understanding of this iconic concept but also your ability to critically engage with cultural and societal issues.

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American Dream

1000+ documents containing “american dream” .

What is the American Dream?  Most Americans have asked themselves that very question at some point in their lives, and American Dream essays remain a favorite topic among professors in disciplines as varied as English, philoso ...

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American Dream he Great American Dream has undergone a massive transformation since the end of nineteenth century and the sooner we come to terms with it, the better it is for the rest of the world. he American dream was once characterized by westward expansion, 'the new world' and ideals of liberty, freedom and equality. Unfortunately all these interpretations of American dream have lost significance over the years. It is our inability to reconcile ourselves with the changing reality that has resulted in such gross judgment errors including the Vietnam War, the Gulf War and the more recent Afghan and Iraq wars. As harsh as it may sound, the truth is that America is no longer the symbol of equality or freedom. he black community had realized the sad truth a long time back as Malcolm X declared in 1962: "What is looked upon as an American dream for white people….

The Great American Dream has undergone a massive transformation since the end of nineteenth century and the sooner we come to terms with it, the better it is for the rest of the world. The American dream was once characterized by westward expansion, 'the new world' and ideals of liberty, freedom and equality. Unfortunately all these interpretations of American dream have lost significance over the years. It is our inability to reconcile ourselves with the changing reality that has resulted in such gross judgment errors including the Vietnam War, the Gulf War and the more recent Afghan and Iraq wars. As harsh as it may sound, the truth is that America is no longer the symbol of equality or freedom. The black community had realized the sad truth a long time back as Malcolm X declared in 1962: "What is looked upon as an American dream for white people has long been an American nightmare for black people." Our leaders have so far played a damaging role in interpreting and achieving the American Dream. George W, Bush, has not yet given up on the expansion theory. For Ronald Reagan, it meant becoming rich. And for others, it means being able to live and enjoy a free life. However none of these interpretations really define the American Dream because they have only contributed to turmoil and trouble around the world and within the country. For me thus, American Dream in its original form is only an elusive concept that has resulted in conflict, confusion and resentment. We need to give American Dream a new meaning and help the nation achieve it without military, political or social aggression. The new interpretation should be more in line with Rock star Bruce Springsteen's version of the American Dream: "I don't think the American dream was that everybody was going to make . . . A billion dollars, but it was that everybody was going to have an opportunity and the chance to live a life with some decency and some dignity and a chance for some self-respect." (1)

1) Quoted in Dave Marsh, Glory Days: Bruce Springsteen in the 1980s (New York: Dell, 1984), 264.

American Dream The Awakening" and "Thelma and Louise" Although written and filmed a century apart, Kate Chopin's novel, "The Awakening," and the movie "Thelma and Louis" possess the same core theme of feminism at odds with the norms of society. Chopin's character Edna, has had the social upbringing of any proper female of her day. Chopin describes her as "an American woman, with a small infusion of French which seemed to have been lost in dilution" (Chopin 9). Her marriage is social and filled with household schedules and social agendas. Edna's place is carved neatly and tightly. Her children were a responsibility that did not consume her for she "was not a mother-woman" (Chopin 19). She had never grown those protective wings that idolizing mothers grow and revere. Edna's husband, Leonce, reproaches her for her "inattention, her habitual neglect of the children" (Chopin 12). It was not as if Edna was a "bad"….

Works Cited

Chopin, Kate. The Awakening. C.1899. Herbert S. Stone & Co.

Electronic Edition.  http://docsouth.unc.edu/chopinawake/chopin.html 

Thelma & Louise." Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM). Directed: Ridley Scott;

Screenplay: Callie Khouri. 1991.

American Dream Entails That Anyone

In this way the American Dream became even less accessible to poor persons, who in the past may have expected help from the more fortunate sectors of society. Instead they were forced to see the rich grow increasingly richer without any chance for access to prosperity. Unemployment and disparate income rates exacerbate the problem. hose employed in the most worthy of caring professions are often at the lowest end of the poverty scale, according to Malveaux (in Rothenberg, 2004, p. 293). She also blames the blind eye of policy makers for creating and maintaining this policy by means of elements such as welfare and minimum wage policies. In terms of employment, there is also still much discrimination against both women and black people. Malveaux further blames both the government and society for the inaccessibility of the dream to some when citing the events of 9/11 (in Rothenberg, 2004, p. 294).….

The American Dream thus leads to more inequality, which is the exact opposite of its ideals. The very mythological nature of the concept is responsible for this phenomenon. Because the perception is that the United States is a country of opportunity for everybody, many immigrants move away from their home countries, believing that a better life exists in the United States. The reality is however that the current economic downturn and events such as 9/11, together with the somewhat unwise actions taken by the American government, has moved the country further away from the American Dream. The concept is therefore now truly a myth. It is a pity then that so many still cling to the ideals of the Dream as if it can offer the salvation that in reality the country could not.

Rothenber, Paula S. (2004). Race, Class, and Gender in the United States. 6th edition, Worth Publishers.

American Dream Throughout U S History

(Steinbeck, 1939) When the Grapes of Wrath is compared with the other works that are discussed earlier, it is clear that this is showing the negative side of the American dream. In this situation, things did not work as planned for the Joads. Instead, they were forced to deal with these challenges and believe that things will turn around. This determination is showing how the American dream is more than just about succeeding or failing. On the contrary, it is illustrating how the personal relationships with one another and the lessons that are learned will help to make everyone successful. The key for achieving this goal is to never lose faith in each other, no matter the consequences or the outcomes. (Steinbeck, 1939) This is different from the previous works, by highlighting the struggles and how the American dream can be realized. As the Grapes of Wrath, is discussing the relationships….

Cullen, J. (2003). The American Dream. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Hansberry, L. (2011). A Raisin in the Sun. New York, NY: Double Day Press.

King, M. (1964). The American Dream. Drew University. Retrieved from:  http://depts.drew.edu/lib/archives/online_exhibits/King/speech/TheAmericanDream.pdf 

Steinbeck, J. (1939). The Grapes of Wrath. New York, NY: Plain Label Books.

American Dream Is the Idea

Waves of immigrants -- the Irish fleeing famine, the Italians, the Germans, the Scandinavians, the Chinese -- came to America, in the hopes of beginning their own businesses, starting their own farms and making life better for their children. America seemed like a place where the past did not define one's status in the present: yet even though many of these ethnic groups made inroads into America's social fabric and prospered, they also had to struggle against racism and intolerance. Despite the success of many poor individuals, it is important to remember that even wealthy industrialists and philanthropists like Andrew Carnegie, who made a fortune after beginning life as a poor man, often employed workers at slave wages to make tremendous profits. Even today, having social standing in America conveys undeniable advantages. The rich live in communities with better schools, have better health (and health insurance) and greater access to networking….

American Dream the Term American

A solid work ethic can help stimulate creativity. ork ethic does not entail laboring for long hours in deplorable working conditions. A healthy work ethic means that Americans work hard because they love what they do and take pride in it. arshauer shows how the "get rich quick" ideal has permeated American society, replacing what was once a healthy work ethic with an unhealthy arrogance. Liu also refers to what he has perceived to be a "culture of entitlement" in which individuals feel they deserve to be rich without having to work. The American Dream was never about winning the lottery. Rather, it was about being duly rewarded for hard work. The fact that hard work can be fulfilling has been lost on the current generation, which idolizes wealth but not the creative energy needed to create and sustain it. The new economy is changing the American Dream. Creativity and….

Florida, Richard. "The New American Dream."

Francis, David R. "The American Dream Gains a Harder Edge."

Library of Congress. "What is the American Dream?" Retrieved June 23, 2007 at  http://memory.loc.gov/learn/lessons/97/dream/thedream.html#cooliris 

Liu, Eric. "A Chinaman's Chance: Reflections on the American Dream."

American Dream Today the Term

This is a lesson that many today need to learn. This view of the American Dream can still be seen today, however, even if it requires reading between the lines. In Bruce Handy and Glynis Sweeney's graphic essay "The American Dream, Supersized," the author is struck by his daughter's field trip in a limousine to the former tenements that were the home of many immigrants in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The view of the American Dream that the authors presuppose is represented by this scene is the ability to achieve luxury without really thinking about the struggle that this type of wealth entails. Yet the facetious comments that the authors "imagine" in the mouths of immigrant parents, such as "God willing, my children will go to medical school and then become rich by injecting women's faces with poison to make them look younger" and "Would that my great-grandson grows….

American Dream What's Wrong With the American

American Dream What's wrong with the American Dream? The American Dream is primarily associated with achievement and success. According to Hochschild, achievement and success can be individually defined as it can mean something different to each person. The basic tenant, however, is the notion that hard work yields favorable results, if you play by the rules. Further, the dream can be pursued by anyone despite his or her background, culture, race or personal history (Charon & Vigilant, 2009, p. 28). Hochschild notes that there is an inherent problem with the American Dream; namely, that everyone can equally participate and can begin again. The myth and fantasy associated with this basic tenant is something that can be desired and sought after but not achieved. The American Dream is really a notion, ideology, or philosophy for White middle class Americans. It is not equally accessible for people of color, and up until recently, not nearly….

Charon, J., & Vigilant, L. Social problems: Readings with four questions. 4th edition.

CA: Wadsworth.

American Dream Futile Bait and

The relationship between company and worker, where the company makes an investment in the employee through training, stock options, a structured retirement and benefits plan, etcetera, is no longer the norm today. Furthermore, although in other countries, health insurance, a livable pension plan, and other benefits like daycare for children, are not necessarily tied to private employment, these necessities for survival are in America. To be unemployed or underemployed means living in a state of continual anxiety about caring for one's self and for one's dependants. This drives many workers to look for unhelpful assistance from paid personal consultants and headhunters, who administer unhelpful personality tests rather than make a real effort to seek employment for their clients. Besides the problems inherent to the way that American government and corporate America are structured is the problem that there simply are fewer and fewer jobs for college-educated job seekers and more….

Ehrenreich, Barbara. (2005). Bait and Switch: The (Futile) Pursuit of the American

Dream. New York: Metropolitan Books.

American Dream in the context of Gus Van Sant's 1997 film "Good Will Hunting" There has been much controversy with regard to the American Dream during recent years, as people appear to be more and more hesitant about accepting the fact that it exists. "Good Will Hunting" stands as a perfect example concerning a person who feels fed up with promises associated with living the American Dream and simply wants to live life the ways that he feels is best. While the film also emphasizes how a person can fail in taking advantage of the opportunity to live the 'American Dream', it also makes it possible for viewers to understand that people should actually focus on appreciating things that actually matter instead of being obsessed with the material aspect of the dream. The protagonist's name, Will, is basically meant to emphasize his main problem -- his lack of will. "He lacks….

Bibliography:

Fitzgerald, F. Scott, "The Great Gatsby," (Interactive Media, 14 Feb 2012)

http://books.google.com/books/about/The_Great_Gatsby.html?id=JgxOs2GX86AC&redir_esc=y

Miller, Arthur, "The Man Who Had All the Luck," (Penguin Group U.S., 25 May 2004)

 http://books.google.com/books?id=ODxxXvnvpm0C&dq=%E2%80%A2%09Miller,+Arthur,+%E2%80%9CThe+Man+Who+Had+All+the+Luck%E2%80%9D,+ (Penguin+Group+U.S.,+25+May+2004)&hl=en&sa=X&ei=yW59UoTTJ-HE7AbwnIGwAQ&ved=0CEAQ6AEwAg

Consumerism: The Fallacy of the American Dream The American Dream is really money." Jill Robinson, an American novelist, cuts to the chase when she pinpoints the materialist nature of the American Dream. Usually cloaked with images of a leisurely retirement, the American Dream is fundamentally a struggle to keep up with the Joneses and to reassure our children that they will not have to work as hard as we did. The American Dream entails sacrificing the present for the future, saving and scrimping in order to play golf in Boca. Once upon a time, middle class Americans felt proud of pursuing the American Dream because it was the norm: everyone had ideals of suburban life with the white picket fence and a golden retriever. Now, Americans are jaded and cynical. We continue to climb corporate steps and work fifteen-hour days so that we can make the payments on the SUV. We….

The American Dream: An Elusive Ideal The "American Dream" is a pervasive concept in American society that embodies the aspiration for individual prosperity, success, and happiness. It is often characterized by the pursuit of material wealth, home ownership, and a comfortable lifestyle. Yet, despite its widespread acceptance, the American Dream remains an elusive ideal for many. According to the Declaration of Independence, "all men are created equal," and have the inherent right to "life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness" (Jefferson, 776). This foundational principle laid the groundwork for the belief that anyone who works hard and is determined can achieve their goals. However, the reality of the American Dream is far more complex. Economic inequality has become increasingly entrenched in American society, with a growing gap between the wealthy and the poor (Piketty, 204). This has made it increasingly difficult for many to attain the level of prosperity once associated with the….

American Dream Essay Titles Introduction The American Dream is something numerous writers and researchers have written about in the past.  The best way to attract new attention to your essay is to give it a great title that catches the eye of potential readers.  American Dream essay titles should pop with imagination and excitement.  After all, this is one topic that incites a great deal of enthusiasm in people, whether they believe in the Dream or denounce it as a nightmare.  So don’t be boring with your title.  Check these out for inspiration. Top 25 American Dream Essay Titles 1. Ben Franklin and the Myth of the American Dream 2. The Pursuit of Mammon:  How the  American Dream Turned into out to be an American Nightmare 3. Edward Albee and Satirizing the American Dream in American Drama 4. Is the American Dream Still Possible?  For Those Who are Naïve Enough to Think It was Ever Realistically Possible,….

Logan Wolf David Chapman Summer 2012/ENC-1101 The social immobility The American Dream is not what it appears to be. The American Dream as defined by James Truslow Adams in his book, The Epic of America, is "that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement. It is a difficult dream for the European upper classes to interpret adequately, and too many of us ourselves have grown weary and mistrustful of it. It is not a dream of motor cars and high wages merely, but a dream of social order in which each man and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature of which they are innately capable, and be recognized by others for what they are, regardless of the fortuitous circumstances of birth or position." (Truslow 214-215). Although Mr. Adams' definition sounds….

American Dream Deadline May 3rd 2013 Intro

American Dream" Deadline: May 3rd, 2013 Intro: "In United States, major ideology American Dream, suggests equality opportunity exists positions social class structure a reflection deserve. The American Dream is generally regarded as a set of privileges that an individual living in the U.S. would have access to freedoms providing him or her with the chance to become prosperous and to be happy in general. The basic idea of the American Dream started as a result of people acknowledging that as long as an individual was free, he or she could achieve his or her goals as long as he or she is willing to work in order for them in a relatively short period of time. Even with the fact that the U.S. is presently one of the most developed countries and that American cities have access to a wide range of privileges, the American Dream has become less accessible….

Works cited:

Cullen, Jim, "The American dream: a short history of an idea that shaped the nation," (Oxford University Press, 2004)

Grogger, Jeffrey, and Trejo, Stephen, "Falling Behind or Moving Up? The Intergenerational Progress of Mexican-Americans," Retrieved April 23, 2013, from the PPIC Website:  http://www.ppic.org/content/pubs/report/r_502JGR.pdf 

"American dream dying: the changing economic lot of the least advantaged," (Rowman & Littlefield, 2010)

"The American Dream then and now," Retrieved April 23, 2013, from the Arcor Website:  http://home.arcor.de/vhailor/413_FF_Fact_file_3_NRW.pdf

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Stuck on formulating a unique Author\'s Structure of the novel men and mice thesis statement. Can you help me brainstorm?

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Sat / act prep online guides and tips, best analysis: the american dream in the great gatsby.

Book Guides

The Great Gatsby is a tragic love story on the surface, but it's most commonly understood as a pessimistic critique of the American Dream. In the novel, Jay Gatsby overcomes his poor past to gain an incredible amount of money and a limited amount of social cache in 1920s NYC, only to be rejected by the "old money" crowd. He then gets killed after being tangled up with them.

Through Gatsby's life, as well as that of the Wilsons', Fitzgerald critiques the idea that America is a meritocracy where anyone can rise to the top with enough hard work. We will explore how this theme plays out in the plot, briefly analyze some key quotes about it, as well as do some character analysis and broader analysis of topics surrounding the American Dream in The Great Gatsby .

What is the American Dream? The American Dream in the Great Gatsby plot Key American Dream quotes Analyzing characters via the American Dream Common discussion and essay topics

Quick Note on Our Citations

Our citation format in this guide is (chapter.paragraph). We're using this system since there are many editions of Gatsby, so using page numbers would only work for students with our copy of the book.

To find a quotation we cite via chapter and paragraph in your book, you can either eyeball it (Paragraph 1-50: beginning of chapter; 50-100: middle of chapter; 100-on: end of chapter), or use the search function if you're using an online or eReader version of the text.

What Exactly Is "The American Dream"?

The American Dream is the belief that anyone, regardless of race, class, gender, or nationality, can be successful in America (read: rich) if they just work hard enough. The American Dream thus presents a pretty rosy view of American society that ignores problems like systemic racism and misogyny, xenophobia, tax evasion or state tax avoidance, and income inequality. It also presumes a myth of class equality, when the reality is America has a pretty well-developed class hierarchy.

The 1920s in particular was a pretty tumultuous time due to increased immigration (and the accompanying xenophobia), changing women's roles (spurred by the right to vote, which was won in 1919), and extraordinary income inequality.

The country was also in the midst of an economic boom, which fueled the belief that anyone could "strike it rich" on Wall Street. However, this rapid economic growth was built on a bubble which popped in 1929. The Great Gatsby was published in 1925, well before the crash, but through its wry descriptions of the ultra-wealthy, it seems to somehow predict that the fantastic wealth on display in 1920s New York was just as ephemeral as one of Gatsby's parties.

In any case, the novel, just by being set in the 1920s, is unlikely to present an optimistic view of the American Dream, or at least a version of the dream that's inclusive to all genders, ethnicities, and incomes. With that background in mind, let's jump into the plot!

The American Dream in The Great Gatsby

Chapter 1 places us in a particular year—1922—and gives us some background about WWI.  This is relevant, since the 1920s is presented as a time of hollow decadence among the wealthy, as evidenced especially by the parties in Chapters 2 and 3. And as we mentioned above, the 1920s were a particularly tense time in America.

We also meet George and Myrtle Wilson in Chapter 2 , both working class people who are working to improve their lot in life, George through his work, and Myrtle through her affair with Tom Buchanan.

We learn about Gatsby's goal in Chapter 4 : to win Daisy back. Despite everything he owns, including fantastic amounts of money and an over-the-top mansion, for Gatsby, Daisy is the ultimate status symbol. So in Chapter 5 , when Daisy and Gatsby reunite and begin an affair, it seems like Gatsby could, in fact, achieve his goal.

In Chapter 6 , we learn about Gatsby's less-than-wealthy past, which not only makes him look like the star of a rags-to-riches story, it makes Gatsby himself seem like someone in pursuit of the American Dream, and for him the personification of that dream is Daisy.

However, in Chapters 7 and 8 , everything comes crashing down: Daisy refuses to leave Tom, Myrtle is killed, and George breaks down and kills Gatsby and then himself, leaving all of the "strivers" dead and the old money crowd safe. Furthermore, we learn in those last chapters that Gatsby didn't even achieve all his wealth through hard work, like the American Dream would stipulate—instead, he earned his money through crime. (He did work hard and honestly under Dan Cody, but lost Dan Cody's inheritance to his ex-wife.)

In short, things do not turn out well for our dreamers in the novel! Thus, the novel ends with Nick's sad meditation on the lost promise of the American Dream. You can read a detailed analysis of these last lines in our summary of the novel's ending .

Key American Dream Quotes

In this section we analyze some of the most important quotes that relate to the American Dream in the book.

But I didn't call to him for he gave a sudden intimation that he was content to be alone--he stretched out his arms toward the dark water in a curious way, and far as I was from him I could have sworn he was trembling. Involuntarily I glanced seaward--and distinguished nothing except a single green light, minute and far away, that might have been the end of a dock. (1.152)

In our first glimpse of Jay Gatsby, we see him reaching towards something far off, something in sight but definitely out of reach. This famous image of the green light is often understood as part of The Great Gatsby 's meditation on The American Dream—the idea that people are always reaching towards something greater than themselves that is just out of reach . You can read more about this in our post all about the green light .

The fact that this yearning image is our introduction to Gatsby foreshadows his unhappy end and also marks him as a dreamer, rather than people like Tom or Daisy who were born with money and don't need to strive for anything so far off.

Over the great bridge, with the sunlight through the girders making a constant flicker upon the moving cars, with the city rising up across the river in white heaps and sugar lumps all built with a wish out of non-olfactory money. The city seen from the Queensboro Bridge is always the city seen for the first time, in its first wild promise of all the mystery and the beauty in the world.

A dead man passed us in a hearse heaped with blooms, followed by two carriages with drawn blinds and by more cheerful carriages for friends. The friends looked out at us with the tragic eyes and short upper lips of south-eastern Europe, and I was glad that the sight of Gatsby's splendid car was included in their somber holiday. As we crossed Blackwell's Island a limousine passed us, driven by a white chauffeur, in which sat three modish Negroes, two bucks and a girl. I laughed aloud as the yolks of their eyeballs rolled toward us in haughty rivalry.

"Anything can happen now that we've slid over this bridge," I thought; "anything at all. . . ."

Even Gatsby could happen, without any particular wonder. (4.55-8)

Early in the novel, we get this mostly optimistic illustration of the American Dream—we see people of different races and nationalities racing towards NYC, a city of unfathomable possibility. This moment has all the classic elements of the American Dream—economic possibility, racial and religious diversity, a carefree attitude. At this moment, it does feel like "anything can happen," even a happy ending.

However, this rosy view eventually gets undermined by the tragic events later in the novel. And even at this point, Nick's condescension towards the people in the other cars reinforces America's racial hierarchy that disrupts the idea of the American Dream. There is even a little competition at play, a "haughty rivalry" at play between Gatsby's car and the one bearing the "modish Negroes."

Nick "laughs aloud" at this moment, suggesting he thinks it's amusing that the passengers in this other car see them as equals, or even rivals to be bested. In other words, he seems to firmly believe in the racial hierarchy Tom defends in Chapter 1, even if it doesn't admit it honestly.

His heart beat faster and faster as Daisy's white face came up to his own. He knew that when he kissed this girl, and forever wed his unutterable visions to her perishable breath, his mind would never romp again like the mind of God. So he waited, listening for a moment longer to the tuning fork that had been struck upon a star. Then he kissed her. At his lips' touch she blossomed for him like a flower and the incarnation was complete. (6.134)

This moment explicitly ties Daisy to all of Gatsby's larger dreams for a better life —to his American Dream. This sets the stage for the novel's tragic ending, since Daisy cannot hold up under the weight of the dream Gatsby projects onto her. Instead, she stays with Tom Buchanan, despite her feelings for Gatsby. Thus when Gatsby fails to win over Daisy, he also fails to achieve his version of the American Dream. This is why so many people read the novel as a somber or pessimistic take on the American Dream, rather than an optimistic one.  

...as the moon rose higher the inessential houses began to melt away until gradually I became aware of the old island here that flowered once for Dutch sailors' eyes--a fresh, green breast of the new world. Its vanished trees, the trees that had made way for Gatsby's house, had once pandered in whispers to the last and greatest of all human dreams; for a transitory enchanted moment man must have held his breath in the presence of this continent, compelled into an aesthetic contemplation he neither understood nor desired, face to face for the last time in history with something commensurate to his capacity for wonder.

And as I sat there brooding on the old, unknown world, I thought of Gatsby's wonder when he first picked out the green light at the end of Daisy's dock. He had come a long way to this blue lawn and his dream must have seemed so close that he could hardly fail to grasp it. He did not know that it was already behind him, somewhere back in that vast obscurity beyond the city, where the dark fields of the republic rolled on under the night." (9.151-152)

The closing pages of the novel reflect at length on the American Dream, in an attitude that seems simultaneously mournful, appreciative, and pessimistic. It also ties back to our first glimpse of Gatsby, reaching out over the water towards the Buchanan's green light. Nick notes that Gatsby's dream was "already behind him" then (or in other words, it was impossible to attain). But still, he finds something to admire in how Gatsby still hoped for a better life, and constantly reached out toward that brighter future.

For a full consideration of these last lines and what they could mean, see our analysis of the novel's ending .

Analyzing Characters Through the American Dream

An analysis of the characters in terms of the American Dream usually leads to a pretty cynical take on the American Dream.

Most character analysis centered on the American Dream will necessarily focus on Gatsby, George, or Myrtle (the true strivers in the novel), though as we'll discuss below, the Buchanans can also provide some interesting layers of discussion. For character analysis that incorporates the American Dream, carefully consider your chosen character's motivations and desires, and how the novel does (or doesn't!) provide glimpses of the dream's fulfillment for them.

Gatsby himself is obviously the best candidate for writing about the American Dream—he comes from humble roots (he's the son of poor farmers from North Dakota) and rises to be notoriously wealthy, only for everything to slip away from him in the end. Many people also incorporate Daisy into their analyses as the physical representation of Gatsby's dream.

However, definitely consider the fact that in the traditional American Dream, people achieve their goals through honest hard work, but in Gatsby's case, he very quickly acquires a large amount of money through crime . Gatsby does attempt the hard work approach, through his years of service to Dan Cody, but that doesn't work out since Cody's ex-wife ends up with the entire inheritance. So instead he turns to crime, and only then does he manage to achieve his desired wealth.

So while Gatsby's story arc resembles a traditional rags-to-riches tale, the fact that he gained his money immorally complicates the idea that he is a perfect avatar for the American Dream . Furthermore, his success obviously doesn't last—he still pines for Daisy and loses everything in his attempt to get her back. In other words, Gatsby's huge dreams, all precariously wedded to Daisy  ("He knew that when he kissed this girl, and forever wed his unutterable visions to her perishable breath, his mind would never romp again like the mind of God" (6.134)) are as flimsy and flight as Daisy herself.

George and Myrtle Wilson

This couple also represents people aiming at the dream— George owns his own shop and is doing his best to get business, though is increasingly worn down by the harsh demands of his life, while Myrtle chases after wealth and status through an affair with Tom.

Both are disempowered due to the lack of money at their own disposal —Myrtle certainly has access to some of the "finer things" through Tom but has to deal with his abuse, while George is unable to leave his current life and move West since he doesn't have the funds available. He even has to make himself servile to Tom in an attempt to get Tom to sell his car, a fact that could even cause him to overlook the evidence of his wife's affair. So neither character is on the upward trajectory that the American Dream promises, at least during the novel.

In the end, everything goes horribly wrong for both George and Myrtle, suggesting that in this world, it's dangerous to strive for more than you're given.

George and Myrtle's deadly fates, along with Gatsby's, help illustrate the novel's pessimistic attitude toward the American Dream. After all, how unfair is it that the couple working to improve their position in society (George and Myrtle) both end up dead, while Tom, who dragged Myrtle into an increasingly dangerous situation, and Daisy, who killed her, don't face any consequences? And on top of that they are fabulously wealthy? The American Dream certainly is not alive and well for the poor Wilsons.

Tom and Daisy as Antagonists to the American Dream

We've talked quite a bit already about Gatsby, George, and Myrtle—the three characters who come from humble roots and try to climb the ranks in 1920s New York. But what about the other major characters, especially the ones born with money? What is their relationship to the American Dream?

Specifically, Tom and Daisy have old money, and thus they don't need the American Dream, since they were born with America already at their feet.

Perhaps because of this, they seem to directly antagonize the dream—Daisy by refusing Gatsby, and Tom by helping to drag the Wilsons into tragedy .

This is especially interesting because unlike Gatsby, Myrtle, and George, who actively hope and dream of a better life, Daisy and Tom are described as bored and "careless," and end up instigating a large amount of tragedy through their own recklessness.

In other words, income inequality and the vastly different starts in life the characters have strongly affected their outcomes. The way they choose to live their lives, their morality (or lack thereof), and how much they dream doesn't seem to matter. This, of course, is tragic and antithetical to the idea of the American Dream, which claims that class should be irrelevant and anyone can rise to the top.

Daisy as a Personification of the American Dream

As we discuss in our post on money and materialism in The Great Gatsby , Daisy's voice is explicitly tied to money by Gatsby:

"Her voice is full of money," he said suddenly.

That was it. I'd never understood before. It was full of money--that was the inexhaustible charm that rose and fell in it, the jingle of it, the cymbals' song of it. . . . High in a white palace the king's daughter, the golden girl. . . . (7.105-6)

If Daisy's voice promises money, and the American Dream is explicitly linked to wealth, it's not hard to argue that Daisy herself—along with the green light at the end of her dock —stands in for the American Dream. In fact, as Nick goes on to describe Daisy as "High in a white palace the king's daughter, the golden girl," he also seems to literally describe Daisy as a prize, much like the princess at the end of a fairy tale (or even Princess Peach at the end of a Mario game!).

But Daisy, of course, is only human—flawed, flighty, and ultimately unable to embody the huge fantasy Gatsby projects onto her. So this, in turn, means that the American Dream itself is just a fantasy, a concept too flimsy to actually hold weight, especially in the fast-paced, dog-eat-dog world of 1920s America.

Furthermore, you should definitely consider the tension between the fact that Daisy represents Gatsby's ultimate goal, but at the same time (as we discussed above), her actual life is the opposite of the American Dream : she is born with money and privilege, likely dies with it all intact, and there are no consequences to how she chooses to live her life in between.

Can Female Characters Achieve the American Dream?

Finally, it's interesting to compare and contrast some of the female characters using the lens of the American Dream.

Let's start with Daisy, who is unhappy in her marriage and, despite a brief attempt to leave it, remains with Tom, unwilling to give up the status and security their marriage provides. At first, it may seem like Daisy doesn't dream at all, so of course she ends up unhappy. But consider the fact that Daisy was already born into the highest level of American society. The expectation placed on her, as a wealthy woman, was never to pursue something greater, but simply to maintain her status. She did that by marrying Tom, and it's understandable why she wouldn't risk the uncertainty and loss of status that would come through divorce and marriage to a bootlegger. Again, Daisy seems to typify the "anti-American" dream, in that she was born into a kind of aristocracy and simply has to maintain her position, not fight for something better.

In contrast, Myrtle, aside from Gatsby, seems to be the most ambitiously in pursuit of getting more than she was given in life. She parlays her affair with Tom into an apartment, nice clothes, and parties, and seems to revel in her newfound status. But of course, she is knocked down the hardest, killed for her involvement with the Buchanans, and specifically for wrongfully assuming she had value to them. Considering that Gatsby did have a chance to leave New York and distance himself from the unfolding tragedy, but Myrtle was the first to be killed, you could argue the novel presents an even bleaker view of the American Dream where women are concerned.

Even Jordan Baker , who seems to be living out a kind of dream by playing golf and being relatively independent, is tied to her family's money and insulated from consequences by it , making her a pretty poor representation of the dream. And of course, since her end game also seems to be marriage, she doesn't push the boundaries of women's roles as far as she might wish.

So while the women all push the boundaries of society's expectations of them in certain ways, they either fall in line or are killed, which definitely undermines the rosy of idea that anyone, regardless of gender, can make it in America. The American Dream as shown in Gatsby becomes even more pessimistic through the lens of the female characters.  

Common Essay Questions/Discussion Topics

Now let's work through some of the more frequently brought up subjects for discussion.

#1: Was Gatsby's dream worth it? Was all the work, time, and patience worth it for him?

Like me, you might immediately think "of course it wasn't worth it! Gatsby lost everything, not to mention the Wilsons got caught up in the tragedy and ended up dead!" So if you want to make the more obvious "the dream wasn't worth it" argument, you could point to the unraveling that happens at the end of the novel (including the deaths of Myrtle, Gatsby and George) and how all Gatsby's achievements are for nothing, as evidenced by the sparse attendance of his funeral.

However, you could definitely take the less obvious route and argue that Gatsby's dream was worth it, despite the tragic end . First of all, consider Jay's unique characterization in the story: "He was a son of God--a phrase which, if it means anything, means just that--and he must be about His Father's Business, the service of a vast, vulgar and meretricious beauty" (6.7). In other words, Gatsby has a larger-than-life persona and he never would have been content to remain in North Dakota to be poor farmers like his parents.

Even if he ends up living a shorter life, he certainly lived a full one full of adventure. His dreams of wealth and status took him all over the world on Dan Cody's yacht, to Louisville where he met and fell in love with Daisy, to the battlefields of WWI, to the halls of Oxford University, and then to the fast-paced world of Manhattan in the early 1920s, when he earned a fortune as a bootlegger. In fact, it seems Jay lived several lives in the space of just half a normal lifespan. In short, to argue that Gatsby's dream was worth it, you should point to his larger-than-life conception of himself and the fact that he could have only sought happiness through striving for something greater than himself, even if that ended up being deadly in the end.

#2: In the Langston Hughes poem "A Dream Deferred," Hughes asks questions about what happens to postponed dreams. How does Fitzgerald examine this issue of deferred dreams? What do you think are the effects of postponing our dreams? How can you apply this lesson to your own life?

If you're thinking about "deferred dreams" in The Great Gatsby , the big one is obviously Gatsby's deferred dream for Daisy—nearly five years pass between his initial infatuation and his attempt in the novel to win her back, an attempt that obviously backfires. You can examine various aspects of Gatsby's dream—the flashbacks to his first memories of Daisy in Chapter 8 , the moment when they reunite in Chapter 5 , or the disastrous consequences of the confrontation of Chapter 7 —to illustrate Gatsby's deferred dream.

You could also look at George Wilson's postponed dream of going West, or Myrtle's dream of marrying a wealthy man of "breeding"—George never gets the funds to go West, and is instead mired in the Valley of Ashes, while Myrtle's attempt to achieve her dream after 12 years of marriage through an affair ends in tragedy. Apparently, dreams deferred are dreams doomed to fail.

As Nick Carraway says, "you can't repeat the past"—the novel seems to imply there is a small window for certain dreams, and when the window closes, they can no longer be attained. This is pretty pessimistic, and for the prompt's personal reflection aspect, I wouldn't say you should necessarily "apply this lesson to your own life" straightforwardly. But it is worth noting that certain opportunities are fleeting, and perhaps it's wiser to seek out newer and/or more attainable ones, rather than pining over a lost chance.

Any prompt like this one which has a section of more personal reflection gives you freedom to tie in your own experiences and point of view, so be thoughtful and think of good examples from your own life!

#3: Explain how the novel does or does not demonstrate the death of the American Dream. Is the main theme of Gatsby indeed "the withering American Dream"? What does the novel offer about American identity?

In this prompt, another one that zeroes in on the dead or dying American Dream, you could discuss how the destruction of three lives (Gatsby, George, Myrtle) and the cynical portrayal of the old money crowd illustrates a dead, or dying American Dream . After all, if the characters who dream end up dead, and the ones who were born into life with money and privilege get to keep it without consequence, is there any room at all for the idea that less-privileged people can work their way up?

In terms of what the novel says about American identity, there are a few threads you could pick up—one is Nick's comment in Chapter 9 about the novel really being a story about (mid)westerners trying (and failing) to go East : "I see now that this has been a story of the West, after all--Tom and Gatsby, Daisy and Jordan and I, were all Westerners, and perhaps we possessed some deficiency in common which made us subtly unadaptable to Eastern life" (9.125). This observation suggests an American identity that is determined by birthplace, and that within the American identity there are smaller, inescapable points of identification.

Furthermore, for those in the novel not born into money, the American identity seems to be about striving to end up with more wealth and status. But in terms of the portrayal of the old money set, particularly Daisy, Tom, and Jordan, the novel presents a segment of American society that is essentially aristocratic—you have to be born into it. In that regard, too, the novel presents a fractured American identity, with different lives possible based on how much money you are born with.

In short, I think the novel disrupts the idea of a unified American identity or American dream, by instead presenting a tragic, fractured, and rigid American society, one that is divided based on both geographic location and social class.

#4: Most would consider dreams to be positive motivators to achieve success, but the characters in the novel often take their dreams of ideal lives too far. Explain how characters' American Dreams cause them to have pain when they could have been content with more modest ambitions.

Gatsby is an obvious choice here—his pursuit of money and status, particularly through Daisy, leads him to ruin. There were many points when perhaps Gatsby ;could have been happy with what he achieved (especially after his apparently successful endeavors in the war, if he had remained at Oxford, or even after amassing a great amount of wealth as a bootlegger) but instead he kept striving upward, which ultimately lead to his downfall. You can flesh this argument out with the quotations in Chapters 6 and 8 about Gatsby's past, along with his tragic death.

Myrtle would be another good choice for this type of prompt. In a sense, she seems to be living her ideal life in her affair with Tom—she has a fancy NYC apartment, hosts parties, and gets to act sophisticated—but these pleasures end up gravely hurting George, and of course her association with Tom Buchanan gets her killed.

Nick, too, if he had been happy with his family's respectable fortune and his girlfriend out west, might have avoided the pain of knowing Gatsby and the general sense of despair he was left with.

You might be wondering about George—after all, isn't he someone also dreaming of a better life? However, there aren't many instances of George taking his dreams of an ideal life "too far." In fact, he struggles just to make one car sale so that he can finally move out West with Myrtle. Also, given that his current situation in the Valley of Ashes is quite bleak, it's hard to say that striving upward gave him pain.

#5: The Great Gatsby is, among other things, a sobering and even ominous commentary on the dark side of the American dream. Discuss this theme, incorporating the conflicts of East Egg vs. West Egg and old money vs. new money. What does the American dream mean to Gatsby? What did the American Dream mean to Fitzgerald? How does morality fit into achieving the American dream?

This prompt allows you to consider pretty broadly the novel's attitude toward the American Dream, with emphasis on "sobering and even ominous" commentary. Note that Fitzgerald seems to be specifically mocking the stereotypical rags to riches story here—;especially since he draws the Dan Cody narrative almost note for note from the work of someone like Horatio Alger, whose books were almost universally about rich men schooling young, entrepreneurial boys in the ways of the world. In other words, you should discuss how the Great Gatsby seems to turn the idea of the American Dream as described in the quote on its head: Gatsby does achieve a rags-to-riches rise, but it doesn't last.

All of Gatsby's hard work for Dan Cody, after all, didn't pay off since he lost the inheritance. So instead, Gatsby turned to crime after the war to quickly gain a ton of money. Especially since Gatsby finally achieves his great wealth through dubious means, the novel further undermines the classic image of someone working hard and honestly to go from rags to riches.

If you're addressing this prompt or a similar one, make sure to focus on the darker aspects of the American Dream, including the dark conclusion to the novel and Daisy and Tom's protection from any real consequences . (This would also allow you to considering morality, and how morally bankrupt the characters are.)

#6: What is the current state of the American Dream?

This is a more outward-looking prompt, that allows you to consider current events today to either be generally optimistic (the American dream is alive and well) or pessimistic (it's as dead as it is in The Great Gatsby).

You have dozens of potential current events to use as evidence for either argument, but consider especially immigration and immigration reform, mass incarceration, income inequality, education, and health care in America as good potential examples to use as you argue about the current state of the American Dream. Your writing will be especially powerful if you can point to some specific current events to support your argument.

What's Next?

In this post, we discussed how important money is to the novel's version of the American Dream. You can read even more about money and materialism in The Great Gatsby right here .

Want to indulge in a little materialism of your own? Take a look through these 15 must-have items for any Great Gatsby fan .

Get complete guides to Jay Gatsby , George Wilson and Myrtle Wilson to get even more background on the "dreamers" in the novel.

Like we discussed above, the green light is often seen as a stand-in for the idea of the American Dream. Read more about this crucial symbol here .

Need help getting to grips with other literary works? Take a spin through our analyses of The Crucible , The Cask of Amontillado , and " Do not go gentle into this good night " to see analysis in action. You might also find our explanations of point of view , rhetorical devices , imagery , and literary elements and devices helpful.

Anna scored in the 99th percentile on her SATs in high school, and went on to major in English at Princeton and to get her doctorate in English Literature at Columbia. She is passionate about improving student access to higher education.

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Theme of the American Dream in Literature: Guide & Topics

The American Dream theme encompasses crucial values, such as freedom, democracy, equal rights, and personal happiness. The concept’s definition varies from person to person. Yet, books by American authors can help us grasp  it better. Many agree that American literature is so distinct from English literature because the concept of the American Dream influences it heavily.  

In this article, our custom writing team will focus on the theme of the American Dream in literature. We will give examples of books that discuss the concept and suggest some essay topics. Read the full article to learn more!

• 🗽 Definition & History
• 📚 The Theme in Literature
• 📝 Essay Topics

🔍 References

🗽 the american dream theme & its history.

We all, as human beings, have the desire to fulfill our dreams. To achieve them, we put forth the effort. The idea behind the phrase “hard work pays off” is closely related to the American Dream. Let’s look at the term’s history and how its meaning evolved.

The term was coined back in 1931 by James Truslow Adams. He defines the American Dream as “the pursuit of a happier and a better life for all citizens of every rank.” In his book Epic of America , he also mentions that the American Dream is “a dream of a land where life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement.”

The roots of the idea behind the American Dream can be traced back to Colonial Period. First settlers and pilgrims from England saw the States as a promised land of opportunities. They wanted to build a new nation on those lands, free from the old order.

The 1920s or the Jazz Age is the time when the American Dream was at its peak. It is the time of the Harlem Renaissance, economic growth, and technological progress. It is also the time when the idea of the American Dream becomes “corrupted.” In other words, the concept focused on wealth and materialism rather than the ideas of freedom and equality. One of the reasons for that was increased consumerism in American society.

Core American Values & The American Dream

The American Dream played a crucial role in constructing the nation. Since America is a country formed through immigration, people needed something that could unify them.

Unlike other countries, the early colonies featured a mix of nationalities with different histories and cultures. However, people who came to America all shared the hope to find opportunities and achieve independence. The ideas that laid out the basis for constructing the American nation can be referred to as the American Dream.

Although James Adams first used the term in Epic of America , the idea behind the American Dream goes back to the 4th of July, 1776. It is the day The Declaration of Independence was signed. The declaration reflects the values associated with the American Dream.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness. The Declaration of Independence

Thomas Jefferson, one of the declaration’s authors, explicitly emphasizes the pursuit of happiness. Happiness is the key to everything that the Dream encompasses.

The ideas of Benjamin Franklin have also influenced the formation of the American Dream. In his Autobiography , he tells a story of a man who came from nothing and achieved success through hard work.

Franklin defines himself as an example of an ideal American citizen. He emphasizes that his success can be imitated by any American who strives for success and works hard. Franklin’s life became an example of self-improvement. He believed that if people follow his model, America can become a prosperous country with self-aware citizens.

The American Dream in Literature

From the very beginning, the theme of identity has been prominent in American literature. The US was a land of promise, a New World where everyone dreamed of a just, forward-thinking society. When America began to form its own culture during the revolutionary period, many started to question what it meant to be American.

Literary works of that time were, in a way, a self-discovery. They reflected the ideas, values, and aspirations of the American people. For that reason, along with self-identity, they focused on freedom, racial discrimination, gender, equality, and individualism.

📚 Examples of the American Dream in Literature

It’s true that the theme of the American Dream is present in almost every work of American literature. It is seen as either a positive or a negative phenomenon by various authors.

For instance, the poem I Hear America Singing by Walt Whitman and The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin describe the American Dream as something that can help the country develop and bring positive changes to society.

In contrast, the following works talk about the vanity of the American Dream:

• The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald,
• Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck,
• A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry,
• Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller.

The American Dream in The Great Gatsby

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel The Great Gatsby raises a lot of social and psychological questions. One of the book’s topics is the American Dream and how it fails people’s expectations. You can learn more about this and other themes in the novel from our article on the themes in The Great Gatsby .

Fitzgerald depicts the American Dream as something materialistic. It comes in the form of wealth, success, and social status—things that don’t guarantee happiness.

The American Dream posits that anyone who works hard can achieve success in the United States, no matter their social class. The novel questions that idea. Specifically, it criticizes how materialistic the American Dream became when the initial ideas were about freedom and equality. The Great Gatsby shows how consumerism had corroded and corrupted one of the country’s foundational ideas. 

How does the Great Gatsby Represent the American Dream?

The protagonist of Fitzgerald’s novel, Jay Gatsby, is the proof that the American Dream, despite people’s expectations, can’t be achieved. From the outside, Gatsby looks like a successful man who paved the way for himself. In reality, however, his life is miserable. He stays an outsider in the eyes of elite society and has no one who truly cares about him.

Jay Gatsby is a romantic character who believes in love and achieving dreams. He pursues wealth and influence as a way to fulfill these dreams. He is too blinded by his passion for Daisy, whom he idealizes, just like people idealize the American Dream.

In the end, Gatsby’s naivety and unwillingness to see the truth bring him to his downfall. Through the character of Jay Gatsby, Fitzgerald shows how corrupted the American Dream became. You can learn more from our article on the characters in The Great Gatsby .

The Great Gatsby: American Dream Quotes

Here are some quotations from Fitzgerald’s novel that demonstrate how the idea of the American Dream is depicted in the book:

I decided to call to him. Miss Baker had mentioned him at dinner, and that would do for an introduction. But I didn’t call to him, for he gave a sudden intimation that he was content to be alone—he stretched out his arms toward the dark water in a curious way, and, far as I was from him, I could have sworn he was trembling. Involuntarily I glanced seaward—and distinguished nothing except a single green light, minute and far away, that might have been the end of a dock. When I looked once more for Gatsby he had vanished, and I was alone again in the unquiet darkness. The Great Gatsby, Chapter 1

He had come a long way to this blue lawn and his dream must have seemed so close that he could hardly fail to grasp it. He did not know that it was already behind him, somewhere back in that vast obscurity beyond the city, where the dark fields of the republic rolled on under the night. The Great Gatsby, Chapter 9

If that was true he must have felt that he had lost the old warm world, paid a high price for living too long with a single dream. The Great Gatsby, Chapter 7

American Dream: Death of a Salesman

The play Death of a Salesman talks about the difference between reality and dreams. The main character, Willy Loman, is a tragic hero. He is flawed because he refuses to accept reality and keeps living in the illusion he had created for himself. Eventually, it leads him to his downfall resulting in his death.

In his play, Arthur Miller criticizes the American society of the 1940s for its materialistic values. The author shows the struggles that each character has to go through in an attempt to achieve their American Dream.

Rather than directly criticizing the American Dream, the play talks about the confusion that comes with it. It condemns how people start to see material success as their way towards happiness and elevate it above everything else. Want to learn more? Feel free to read our summary of Death of a Salesman .

American Dream Quotes: Death of a Salesman

Here are quotations that reflect the idea of the American Dream in Miller’s play:

Work a lifetime to pay off a house. You finally own it, and there’s nobody to live in it. Death of a Salesman, Act 1

Biff Loman is lost. In the greatest country in the world a young man with such—personal attractiveness, gets lost. And such a hard worker. There’s one thing about Biff—he’s not lazy. Death of a Salesman, Act 1

It’s who you know and the smile on your face! It’s contacts, Ben, contacts! The whole wealth of Alaska passes over the lunch table at the Commodore Hotel, and that’s the wonder, the wonder of this country, that a man can end with diamonds here on the basis of being liked! Death of a Salesman, Act 2

American Dream in Of Mice and Men

John Steinbeck’s novella tells the story of two migrant ranch workers who search for new job opportunities. The narrative takes place during the Great Depression. It touches on various topics such as friendship, loneliness, race, gender, and economic class.

The main characters, George and Lennie, wish to own a farm. They hope that they will eventually buy land and fulfill their dream if they work hard. George and Lennie’s dream farm is the representation of the American Dream and its fragility.

In his book, Steinbeck argues that the American Dream of “life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” is an illusion and can’t be achieved. The author shows the reality of poor workers trying to make it in America.

Through the book’s characters, it becomes evident that such things as skin color, social status, and gender still affect our position in society. It also reflects how lonely people become while trying to pursue their American Dream.

Of Mice and Men: American Dream Quotes

Here are some interesting quotations that illustrate how the American Dream is portrayed in Steinbeck’s novella:

And these shelves were loaded with little articles, soap and talcum powder, razors and those Western magazines ranch men love to read and scoff at and secretly believe. Of Mice and Men, Chapter 2

I seen too many guys with land in their head. They never get none under their hand. Of Mice and Men, Chapter 4

Then – it’s all off?” Candy asked sulkily. George didn’t answer his question. George said, “I’ll work my month an’ I’ll take my fifty bucks an’ I’ll stay all night in some lousy cat house. Or I’ll set in some poolroom til ever’body goes home. An’ then I’ll come back an’ work another month an’ I’ll have fifty bucks more. Of Mice and Men, Chapter 5

📝 American Dream Essay Topics

In this part of the article, we introduce a list of topics on the American Dream. You can use them for inspiration in your essay:

• Describe a character that you think exemplifies the American Dream.
• Write about an author who criticizes the American Dream in his books.
• Analyze a poem that depicts the American Dream as a positive phenomenon.
• Do you think the American Dream is achievable?
• Describe how the American Dream has changed over time .
• Which historical events affect the emergence of the American Dream?
• Describe the American Dream of today.
• Does the American Dream influence world literature?
• How is the American Dream reflected in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s works?
• The Lost Generation and the American Dream.
• The representation of the American Dream in Steinbeck’s Grapes of Wrath .
• Describe Langston Hughes’ version of the American Dream.
• Depiction of the American Dream in movies .
• What is the original meaning of the American Dream?
• Allegory in Edward Albee’s The American Dream .
• The failure of the American Dream.
• Martin Luther King’s version of the American Dream.
• Describe Jack Kerouac’s vision of the American Dream in On the Road .
• Do you think in The Sun Also Rises Hemingway is skeptical about the American Dream?
• Did Benjamin Franklin’s definition of the American Dream get lost?

We hope that you found this article helpful and learned something new. If you liked it, feel free to share it with your friends.

• How the American Dream Has Changed Over Time: Williamsburg-James City County Public Schools
• The Colonial American Dream: Encyclopedia.com
• American Dream: Corporate Finance Institute
• The American Dream, Equal Opportunity, and Obtaining the Vote: The University of Maine
• Of Mice and Men: Key Terms and Concepts: San José State University
• The American Dream and Literature: De Paul University
• How the American Dream Turned into Greed and Inequality: World Economic Forum
• Fitzgerald’s Critique of the American Dream: Bridgewater State University
• Defining the Dream: The Institute on the American Dream: Penn State University
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Park Avenue: Money, Power and the American Dream

1. introduction.

This chapter will analyze the documentary on inequality in the United States, addressing media, cultural, and economic criticism. The American economy and its political institutions have changed as a consequence of the existing economic influence of the rich. While inequality in the American economy is rising, the political economy faced by democracy is negatively influenced by the outsized power and influence of the wealthy. The country is confronted with highly skewed consumption of collective goods, increased excess profits, distorted economic policies which discriminate against the mass public, and skewed income distribution. These factors that contribute to greater inequality deserve further analysis. The primary purpose of this chapter will be a critical analysis of Park Avenue: Money, Power, and the American Dream and the factors influencing the documentary. The focus is on the Bretton Woods era political economy, which is unable to explain the contemporary dynamics of inequality. Although the critical analysis in this chapter does not discredit Park Avenue per se, it does offer an explanation of the documentary through the cultural, media, and economic context that judged it. While Park Avenue addresses many important issues through cultural, political, and media critique, the real question is whether the values and perspectives of this purpose will play a role in constructing a future society that is again imbued with equal opportunities.

1.1. Background and Significance

In this thesis, using the documentary titled Park Avenue produced by Alex Gibney, we examine the influence of the wealthy and politically influential upon policy making. Unfortunately, many know that before the stock market crash in 1929, major banks lent and invested in risky securities and held significant stakes in utility companies, which in turn provided exorbitant profits to the banks. Consequently, speculative trades and speculative lending led the American economy to disaster. However, not many are familiar with the fact that most of the economic clout that two decades later fueled the creation of policies aimed at rescuing the floundering U.S. economy lay in the hands of the country's largest financial bodies. Here lies the crucial question. By shaping economic policies for their benefit, did the country's wealthiest financial groups make the American political-economic system more resilient or more fragile? Park Avenue explores New York City's difference between the wealthiest and the poorest residents, the income disparities across time, classes of exclusion, and the financial and economic inequality throughout the USA. The documentary takes its name from one of the most exclusive and expensive streets in New York, presenting an examination of how the gap between rich and poor has been growing ever since the 1980s. Through interviews with authors and reports of top economists, we perceive how inequality increased so sharply in the neoliberal period. Central to the research question, Park Avenue provides how billionaires use their wealth and power to shape economic policies in their favor, adversely affecting the lives of the 99.9% of all Americans. Following the conclusions of the documentary, we conduct a critical analysis of an academic research paper and a book that analyzes a difference association between political and economic powers.

1.2. Purpose and Scope of the Study

This dissertation is intended to analyze the relationship or dialectic involved when wealth and power influence society and indeed influence and sustain our lifestyle in a complex, capitalist, and democratic society, specifically a society like that in the United States that is so successful with its capitalist and democratic approach. It is the author's thesis, however, that wealth and power can also subvert and eventually dilute the democratic process and with it, the very strength of American capitalism. The thesis argues that it is "the street" where all the wealth and societal rights are located, which makes the United States different from other countries. In this study, we argue that class conflict and class hostility are playing an essential and increasing role in the United States. There are many excellent histories of the upper class (the street) in the United States. Kim Phillips-Fein's Invisible Hands is the most recent and a most rewarding read. Before Phillips-Fein, Richard J. Walton wrote another history of American entrepreneurs. These paperback histories are useful in organizing the periods they cover by specific wealthy families. They do list the "street" activities of those families, many of which occurred within the lifestyles these families created without any public comment, along with components of their belief systems, especially as written. However, none really interpret the dialectic relationships or the class conflict and hostility of wealth and power enjoyed by specific families on "the street".

2. Historical Context of Park Avenue

During the height of the Cold War, the United States and the Soviet Union were competing fiercely for global economic, political, and cultural influence. The US was touting its open society, the American Dream, and its record of defense of freedom and human rights at home and abroad to win the propaganda Cold War. Political scientists Gabriel Almond and Sidney Verba wrote down the prevalent understanding of US politics in the 1950s that the United States was a "civic culture" where its citizens were educated to be well-informed voters who were tolerant and supportive of other points of view, and adequate sponsors of voluntary groups that were politically oriented. It was said that US citizens were provided through all forms of creative expression the environment necessary for the formation of highly individualized personalities. According to sociologist and consultant Silberman, the US, the Soviet Union, Britain, and France all gave more attention to the values particularly integral to their own societies and directed their propaganda messages at symbolizing their own national virtues instead of focusing on the weaknesses of their enemies in their societal efforts. The US propagandistic approach of the time did not include a debate of US societal problems in open forums with knowledge of their existence and of their gravity within US society. At that moment in time, a television documentary produced by National Educational Television (NET) was notable. "Park Avenue: Money, Power, and the American Dream" was a 58-minute documentary that was stated to offer a first-hand look at the class consequences of five generations of living on Park Avenue. The program was chosen for analysis due to the fact that this documentary was rare for its moment in time. The documentary breaks past some barriers that prevent the open discussion in American society of the topic of wealth and its consequences; and is made possible by the use of the underlying ideas, the general background information, the specific types of information, and the symbol system of documentary production. Notable is also that the documentary manages to reach different groups in society. Different segments of American society have different attitudes about the internal societal conflicts which could involve the interests of particular social groups. It is not common for different segments of a society to share common assumptions that governmental decisions should be based on the General Welfare and that justice is inherently valuable and that people with power are entitled to special privileges. The consensus view of the function of law is the fact that it is beneficially located. It is at this time in the progress of a society that docudrama is seen at its optimum value.

2.1. Origins and Development of Park Avenue

The name of Park Avenue originates from the railroad strike of 1874, which left the neighborhood virtually deserted as numerous previous wealthy homeowners of the neighborhood had left or sold their homes in order to avoid the protests and demonstrations. As a result of this opportunity, the first apartment buildings began to spring up at this time. By the 1920s, a bridge across 59th Street had been approved and constructed, and the post-war boom of the twenties brought demand for the large 12-13 room apartments, long considered the status symbol of wealthy New Yorkers. Suddenly, Park Avenue had evolved into the richest street in the richest city in the world. In the 1920s on Park Avenue, many wealthy Jewish families from Central and East European backgrounds were most certainly still non-WASPs, but they now held the single biggest contingent on Park Avenue, approximately one-third. The 'ethnic' character of Park Avenue reflects the diversity of a rapidly changing America at that time. Park Avenue families with German, Irish, and Jewish backgrounds all shared a genuine neighborhood and a strong pride of place in the fact that they had made it onto the avenue, both culturally and professionally. These 'pioneers' in the upper-class acceptance at Park Avenue's highest social levels now found themselves facing a radical change in the social fabric of their beloved Upper East Side. While most 'old' wealthy families still clung to their almost century-old houses of the 'Old World' models, a new generation of rich upper-class architects were catering to the real or perceived taste of a 'new' very much Americanized upper-class. These new upper-class members of Park Avenue did not ever intend to lower themselves to mix up in town. What went through Park Avenue's almost hermetically sealed doors was upper-class, tub-thumping Anglophilia to its highest degree. Anything European was always best, particularly if not handcrafted. Lavish parties, very elaborate in style, were held mostly to show off to one's own group but still pretended to imitate the European style court. Dressed in blue jeans, carrying enormous foreign purses, were intended to show both that one was 'in', not ordinary, not nouveau riche, and with it, at the same time European and traveled. At any rate, the Upper East Side's esteem must have been, at least it seemed that way, extremely poorly expanded. Anyway, the grandchildren of the ethnic families seemed to be absorbed within the WASPs' fiercely guarded definition of old Park Avenue families.

2.2. Key Figures and Families

At the heart of the documentary is the story of two families: the Speyers and the LeFraks, both storied real estate moguls. The film chronicles the lives of the Speyers, who arrived in New York City almost 200 years ago and married into the Stuyvesant family, and the LeFraks who hold a lesser but still significant place in the history of American wealth. The current head of the LeFrak Organization is Steve, once a Democrat, now a Republican who, as of August 2014, is worth $5.4 billion according to Forbes. The LeFraks arrived in America beginning with the Rhode Island colony in 1680. They have been bankers, real estate developers, and, of course, major philanthropists. The Speyers, between 1856 and 1869, acquired the land assembly project, the Elbridge T. Gerry Estate, from the widow of the Commodore, grandson of Samuel Speyer. The LeFraks own just a block of 1st Avenue, while the Speyers have owned over the years several entire city blocks, mostly in the area known as Midtown Manhattan. Along with the Speyer and LeFrak families, other families such as the Rockefellers, Vanderbilts, Fricks, Astors, Mellons, Du Ponts, and Morgans have been part of the American aristocracy. The Morgans are more famous for J.P., the mega-financier around the early 20th century. Lately, this family has inherited its wealth from J.P. Morgan’s interest in the Guaranty Trust Company established in 1916, which eventually merged with J.P. Morgan & Co. They control, with more than 500 million shares, over 16% of JPMorgan Chase. With a chairman and a CEO sharing the last name Morgan, America’s leading bank company has more Morgans in the organization, including the newly created position of a “lead director,” a role designed to check and balance the firm in a potentially problematic situation, no pun intended.

3. Wealth Disparities and Social Stratification

Republican efforts to implement pollution policies that protect public health and sustain economic growth require a fair-minded assessment of the contributions of free enterprise that does not minimize the environmental toll of industrial activity. As the series maintains, ensuring that national and state agendas reflect the overwhelming support of business leaders for environmentally responsible policies is not only good politics, but also a valuable source of opportunities for entrepreneurs - including those of today and tomorrow. Ultimately, the creation of sound policies to protect the environment and public health is a challenge that must be addressed as a nation, not as warring political or economic factions. A dialogue among corporations, entrepreneurs, community activists, policymakers, the households in which they all reside, and other stakeholder groups to find common ground will go far to ensure that environmental protection and economic growth move in an effective, sustainable partnership. While the United States ranks as the wealthiest nation in the world and enjoys the highest standard of living ever achieved in human history, these bounties are not distributed evenly. The wealthiest 5 percent lay claim to nearly 60 percent of the nation's disposable income, while the poorest 20 percent must subsist on 4.2 percent. People who work full time and head their households make up over 43 percent of the nation's poor, and overall, nearly one in four of all American children live in poverty. America now has the highest child poverty rate in the developed world, a problem that transcends such stark statistics. Some of the thirty thousand children who die each year from painful, lingering cancer and other diseases attributable to industrial pollution or the misuse of environmental resources might have lived had they not been born in the wrong neighborhood. The poor often suffer other environmental ills, including deteriorated housing, lead paint, contamination in schools, and illegal dumpsites.

3.1. Income Inequality in the United States

The distribution of total income among individual Americans is of great interest to a wide collection of people. There is an underlying reason for this interest: most people want to know the level of income inequality in the United States because they believe that too high a level of this inequality is socially, politically, or economically undesirable. Americans are unique in this regard; to most people in other countries, whether America has more or less income inequality than any other country simply is not an issue. They simply accept the level in their own country; they do not continually debate about it. They are mostly concerned with the standard of living in their own country and with whether this standard is increasing through time, not with whether the less well-off members of their society are dragging even more behind those at the top. We are the exceptions. Almost all observed American income inequality, especially between the top and the middle and the bottom, has resulted from an increase in the dispersion of labor earnings. The increase of earnings inequality in the United States has, therefore, been a distributional battle between the owners of firms and the workers who are employed by these firms. It is quite apparent, however, that the owners have largely obtained victory in these struggles. For example, from 1977 to 2007, the average real after-tax income of the 400 highest-income Americans, in 2007 dollars, rose from $34 million to $345 million, or from 228 times the average income of the bottom 90 percent of Americans to 955 times that of the bottom 90 percent. Long-observed income inequalities between different occupational groups, such as doctors and medical personnel, CEOs and production workers, or finance workers and nonfinance workers, are now largely responsible for this growth in overall earnings inequality.

3.2. The Role of Park Avenue in Wealth Distribution

The sharp division between Park Avenue and the rest of the country, particularly the contrasts between wealth created in finance versus wealth generated elsewhere, is often highlighted by popular media. As Thompson's article explores, Mark Measurement, which compares the nation's biggest fortunes across a variety of categories, is an enduring contest with active participation from a wide variety of the country's wealthiest individuals. The large rewards that accrue from working in finance, particularly in contrast to non-finance professions, have prompted an economics literature attempting to quantify, valorize, and explain the benefits associated with working in financial firms. That wealth disparity distinguishes Park Avenue from the rest of the population is not a novel argument. Already, in the Gilded Age, when giants such as J.P. Morgan and John D. Rockefeller were walking the streets of Manhattan as potentates of men, it was said that Place and Room were both looking for wealth. These sentiments are now being echoed in the country's present rage over its wealthiest citizens. Yet, despite the enduring belief that the top 0.01% possess an enormous share of national wealth, some evidence suggests that Americans tend to underestimate levels of wealth inequality across the country.

4. Political Influence and Lobbying

In addition to campaign donations, our richest citizens are using well-paid lobbyists to influence Congress. In the 1960s, nearly half of retired members of Congress became lobbyists. These ex-members of Congress often use their influence to secure well-paying contracts or benefits for their clients. The data concerning one year will show us that 238 former members of the 111th Congress were "pursuing lobbying careers". On other years the number may be as high as 292. "Of these 238 or so ex-lawmakers, more than half are working for lobbying firms. Some have gone to work as consultants or strategists, while still others are using their government know-how for lobbying activities at trade associations, unions and corporations." These lobbyists are paid as "rainmakers" or sometimes as "strategic consultants." A rainmaker charges a fee for each successful vote. Where a strategic consultant could charge a flat fee for a period of months or perhaps until the bill is approved. In 1990, Dick Cheney received $1 million in salary and stock options from the Halliburton Company. Yet, as of 2010, he had sold more than half of his total shares in Halliburton, which had increased in the intervening time period. In 2000 alone, eighty of the Fortune 100 corporations used lobbyists, and these corporations spent a total of $823 million. Also spent were vast amounts of money on "soft money." A California power company spent more than one million in soft for political contributions in 2003 to three of the Democratic governors running for office for a two-year term. Additionally, corporations spent more than three hundred million dollars in 2008 to protect their federal contracts, according to research released in 2010.

4.1. The Power of Money in Politics

The pursuit of self-enrichment has also had an overpowering influence in the political system. Those with immense wealth, like those with political power, have been relentless in their efforts to eliminate constraints from the electoral process. As a result, the practical meaning of "one person, one vote" has become "one dollar, one vote," where election costs now soar far beyond the means of any challenger unless they are a member of the economic elite themselves. The outcome is a political system that has been transformed from a popular democracy to a plutocratic autocracy, where the political behavior of those on Park Avenue includes the manipulation of a truncated electoral process and "the performance of such other acts as are required to gain and keep influence over society." The battle for ideological control has made tangible progress since the days at the beginning of the last century when President Theodore Roosevelt decried the fact that "The State governments have lost most of the power they used to have, especially in economic fields. The United States Congress or Senate is now in many matters the tool of small, oppressively rich interests which bribe a sufficient number of Senators and Representatives to get their way." Even so, Theodore believed that it was possible to revitalize democracy.

4.2. Case Studies of Political Influence on Park Avenue

Undoubtedly, influential individuals exert powerful control over the workings of the American system of governance. Given such influence is unique, it is important to further analyze those who wield it. Park Avenue, being pivotal in affording political influence to the wealthy and powerful, provides a useful jumping-off point. By analyzing the political agency of various executives in the United States, differences in economic power and political influence can be determined. Of importance is whether individuals differ within their business sector regarding political influence. Furthermore, if dominant sectors exist, do they have a different level of political influence? Finally, whether dominance coupled with a different level of political influence postulates greater financial rewards in the long run when contrasted with executives functioning in ordinary segments. When directly analyzing Park Avenue, it is apparent that wealthy Americans exploit public institutions in the pursuit of their own self-interest. Many provisions in U.S. law benefit a minority of rich individuals to the detriment of society. There is evidence that rich people manipulate public policy in ways where they are the unique benefactors. Since wealthy elites use their resources to alter public policy for their own private gain, the majority of the economically disadvantaged consequently benefit quite little, if at all. By virtue of lobbyist efforts, positions of high influence are quickly taken up in political areas such as the Senate when budget cuts that affect lower-earning individuals take hold. On the contrary, individuals are much more likely to receive funding from economic elites if they are in communities where their financial situation is less than favorable; this ensures alignment with the interests of wealthier individuals.

5. Conclusion

Throughout American history, institutions have always used social stratification as a means of bestowing the influential with special privileges. The acquisition of wealth has very seldom been pursued for its own sake. Comfort, security, and leaves of absence from organized labor's daily grind are means toward the end. More important, economic power is a monster that the beleaguered citizen is quite sure does not wish the Republic well. Despite the accumulated wealth of the United States, no truly wealthy person has ever had the nerve to caper up Broadway in a golden loincloth, yelling obscenities. Discretion and fear of the revenge of the people have much to do with this moderation. Marxists would imply that such discretion is atrophie, that the capitalists ought to be giving their lessons on the grand strategy of class warfare in a public forum, and that nothing but tactical ineptitude prevents them from doing so. Since the masters of the universe have so far succeeded in preventing their less favoured fellow citizens from public displays of ineptitude, it is worth asking how they do it. To answer this requires, first and foremost, rethinking class. Let me sum up my conclusions. Throughout this writing, that term has been used in its conventional meaning: a set of executives and specialists commanding supervision over others in general lower material comfort, status, and opportunities for self-fulfilment, income and authority. The richest fraction of this class own almost everything. Property ownership is much less important to the identity and raison d'etre of the rest. These conclusions go against the grain of much broadsides, which claim to have finally discovered the upper class. The problem with these writers is not that they overstate the power and responsibility of a segment of those holding a middle or intermediate position on the social stratification. It is that they understate the extent to which such a middle position is dominant in the world of work. When one looks at the day-to-day responsibilities of decision-making at the locus of control, the managers and professionals do the work and the propertied pay for it. Any objective account of their plight also casts doubt on the radicals' plan as an electoral strategy in the present regime. So long as it relies on the votes of small proprietors and non-proletarian managers who are struggling for identity as a solidaristic block, the so-called new politics is really old Social Darwinism in a new form. Authorities never preceded being. Expertise never comes into being as a full-time, well-paid occupation until it has adequate material resources at its command.

5.1. Summary of Findings

This thesis has examined the impact of wealth and influence on American society with a focus on the work of G. William Domhoff to critically analyze a well-timed work by Alex Gibney. Gibney recently composed a documentary entitled Park Avenue: Money, Power & The American Dream. Today, Domhoff’s work has been entirely adopted by those who protest against the current inequality in wealth, to such an extent that his findings are generally presumed to be common knowledge and observations. However, little work has been done to examine the accuracy of his findings and how his works compare to historical American society, since the early twentieth century when Weber initially questioned the relationship between wealth and power. The aim of this part of the thesis was to investigate whether the already historically rich, such as the Rockefellers, continue to hold substantial wealth or whether the new rich, such as Soros and the Koch brothers, are increasingly gaining power and influencing political decisions. This can be seen in the Occupy Wall Street movement, which claims that 1% of the population holds 99% of the wealth and has undue influence in the American constitutional process. The Occupy movement, represented as the 99% vs. the 1%, is upset at the disproportionate wealth and influence that the upper class possesses and is actively voicing their disapproval. Since the 1% are labeled as the enemy, it is imperative to understand not only who these people are, but what the 99% does. This is ultimately the aim of this research in order to examine whether they are aware of the fact that democracy in America functions as such whereby all citizens, regardless of economic status, have an equal say in terms of representation in the political economy. As many outside the Ivy League and New England have been derogatory of the alleged truth that Domhoff presents, a critical examination of the accuracy of his words and their meaning is imperative to conduct, in order for the public to have a greater understanding of the role and importance of all in the political economy.

5.2. Implications for American Society

The implications of the impact of wealth can shape American society in a myriad of ways. Americans are fervently divided into classes. The tension between the wealthy and the middle class is tremendous. As presented earlier in this paper, Wallace describes this poisonous relationship with great clarity and illustrates how this tension stems from growing inequity, both social and economic inequity. The consequences of this dichotomy lead some of the wealthy on Park Avenue to vilify those on the coasts and seethe about class hatred and class warfare. It also creates a conundrum where politicians depend on the support of billionaires. Wallace suggests that policymakers are often inclined to look the other way and begin to believe in a rising tide that lifts all boats. Corporatism also allows wealth to corral the building and the shaping of America's culture based on money and the insatiable desire to make ever more of it. It also allows wealth to encourage consumptive habits in the public, which can feed on capitalist propaganda that gives largesse of great tradespeople and egocentric businessmen who create jobs and model commercial society's ethical behavior. It is the only way to escape which could guide policymakers as they navigate the bile. Corporatism is a prevalent practice that is described in the documentary to illustrate the lengths to which those living on Park Avenue will go to gain the wealth and influence that are essential to their survival on the tony, elite, affluent, distinguished block in New York City. Corporatism as a form of political behavior allows a few extremely wealthy individuals to control the conduct and actions of a nation. In essence, the citizens become entitled, and the plutocrats delve into untamed wanton corporate lunacy and insatiable greed. The ultimate implication of extreme corporatism is the accumulation of ever-increasing wealth that rewards the few; the many go unrewarded. This staggering accumulation of wealth becomes nothing more than a cycle for the few; money consumes them. Society becomes driven, almost literally, by the rich. Furthermore, the media's immurement and emphasis on corporate capitalism allows this underlying devolution of civility to escalate as the inherent value of civility is diminished. The well-to-do, protected by the nation's founding principle of equality, are able to siphon off wealth via tax policy. In his Farewell Address, President George Washington offered guidance for the nation when he warned about faction, democracy's need to avoid animosity and vitriol, and the tendency of selfish interests to sully the nation's moralistic, principled independence. And even though the wealthy viewed these words as significant, it has not deterred them from pursuing self-interest, ownership, and wealth accretion. It is not up to those on Park Avenue to decide the current state of affairs; we must all work together, aligning our tools of capitalism with moral philosophy for the common good. These prosperous figures on Park Avenue must reflect on the moral obligations the wealthy have to citizens and treat money with modesty. Voltaire even suggested, and supports, an inflationary approach to acquiring wealth where the wealthy could be advised to act more charitably with their possessions. As the noose tightens and society's perception of the wealthy is becoming increasingly negative, we must initiate meaningful policy and tax changes that reflect a higher moral ethic. Our most significant challenge is to rid the nation of its current desire to acquire wealth at all costs and proudly accept their role in re-establishing a thriving societal mechanism once again.

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"The American Dream is dying": Democrats' main selling point "is not a winning message"

"if you want your message to resonate, you can’t be dull, and the democrats have become more than a little boring", by chauncey devega.

President Biden and the Democrats are in a battle for the soul and future of American democracy. The stakes of the 2024 election are that high. Donald Trump is an existential threat to the country.

The 2024 election is existential for President Biden and the Democratic Party in more basic and fundamental ways as well: Trump continues to threaten President Biden and other leaders in the Democratic Party with death and imprisonment if he takes back the White House. The most recent example of such tyrannical behavior occurred last Saturday when Donald Trump told the NRA convention that President Biden should be executed for being a “Manchurian candidate”: “If that were a Republican, he would have been given the electric chair, they would have brought back the death penalty."

Biden is a patriot who loves America. Trump is a corrupt coup plotter and public admirer of Hitler , Vladimir Putin and other enemies of democracy.

Yet Biden has responded to Trump's escalating threats against democracy with a desperate desire to present an image and leadership style that is “reasonable” and “responsible” and emphasizes public policy successes. As I explained in a recent essay, being boring, nice, and passive will not help President Biden and the Democrats defeat Donald Trump and the MAGA movement. Political scientist M. Steven Fish agrees.

Fish is a professor of political science at the University of California, Berkeley. He has appeared on BBC, CNN, and other major networks, and has published in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, The American Interest, The Daily Beast, Slate, and Foreign Policy. His new book is “ Comeback: Routing Trumpism, Reclaiming the Nation, and Restoring Democracy's Edge .”

In this conversation, Fish argues that the Democrats have neglected the importance of emotions in winning over the mass public to their cause. He also warns that the Democrats (and by implication many liberals and progressives) fundamentally misunderstand the (white) working class and their continued support for Donald Trump and Republicans. Toward the end of this conversation, Fish offers advice for President Biden and the Democrats on how to recalibrate their messaging and leadership style to defeat Trump and the Republicans in the 2024 election and beyond.

Read part one of our conversation here . 

This interview has been lightly edited for clarity and length : 

Politics is fundamentally a struggle over emotions and ideas. Democrats on the national level are horrible storytellers. They believe that facts and policy win political battles. They do not. Democrats win the facts and lose the argument.

All the research I did for my book bears out what you say here. First, on emotions: The Republicans—and for that matter, their authoritarian equivalents around the world—never forget that politics is about appeals to values and feelings more than material interests. The Democrats have lost track of that fact and think that the advantage goes to the party that offers more attractive policies and the most goodies.

A crucial part of appealing to emotions is having a great story. The political psychologist Drew Westen spells this out in his work, and he rightly faults the Democrats for both their belief that elections are primarily debates over policy issues and their lack of a compelling narrative.

"I think blaming the media for anything almost always misses the point."

What I’ve found is that the most inspiring narratives, the ones that really connect with people and win them over to your side, are national narratives. All the great liberal leaders such as Dr. King, JFK, and FDR armed themselves with enthralling national stories that centered on showing the world what we Americans were made of by reducing poverty, overcoming racism, leading the world in education and scientific innovation, and making the blessings of citizenship a reality for all Americans. And by aggressively claiming the flag and constantly wrapping their progressive programs in a grand national vision, they never allowed ethnonational creepy crawlers like George Wallace to claim patriotic superiority.

Today’s Democrats are so squeamish about nationalism and seemingly incapable of appreciating the power of narrative that they have no national story at all. So, in the absence of a powerful, liberal national- democratic  story, Trump’s cramped, nativist,  ethnonational  fable, which treats native-born white Christians as the true Americans, is pretty much all we ever hear, even though most Americans don’t actually find it compelling.

And without a strong national narrative, your policies will be seen as sops to special interests and particular groups rather than as vital to the whole nation’s welfare. In the absence of such a story, no one will care about your policies unless they stand to benefit from them directly themselves. That would include, for example, the vast majority of workers who don’t have reason to think a given infrastructure spending bill will get them a job, and the overwhelming majority of Americans who work for employers who provide health insurance.

I am a proud member of the Black working class. My father was a janitor and my mother a home healthcare worker. I grew up with the so-called “white working class” that the mainstream media and political class fetishizes—and mocks and fails to understand. In many ways I feel more at home with those folks than I do with the white upper class and other elites who I often travel among personally and professionally. This background and life experience has given me a great insight into the Age of Trump, one that most of my fellow travelers, especially if they are white and from more privileged backgrounds, sorely lack.

You just put your finger on why voters of color are going over to the Republicans in droves. Almost half of Hispanics and fully a quarter of Black men now say they plan to vote for Trump. Many highly educated white liberals just can’t believe their eyes, and their reaction is often the same as it is when they see working-class whites throw in with the Republicans: How can these people vote against their own interests ? And how can we Democrats strive ever more fervently to let them know how much we love them and how the Republicans don’t care ?

Whites now make up no more than about a quarter of my students at Berkeley, and I can’t tell you how many kids of color tell me that their parents are all in for Trump. Many are first and second-generation Americans from Latin America, Asia, and Africa. What I’m hearing from my students, and also seeing in the research, is that a lot of people of color, including many recent immigrants, are tired of well-heeled white liberals treating them as casualties rather than as authors of the American story. Progressives’ white savior complex, however well-intentioned, can become so patronizing that it feels like plain old racism to them.

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In my book, I focus a lot of attention on white working-class voters, since that’s the group that seems to be going over to Trump in the largest numbers.

One of the things these people find most alienating about many affluent white progressives is how bigoted we think they are. Of course, there are plenty of hardcore bigots out there. But a raft of data suggests that they’re a small and diminishing portion of the population, and they’re not even a majority among Republican voters.

Overeducated coastal white elites who rarely mix it up with working-class Republicans—and this includes a lot of academics, journalists, and most of the people who control the Democratic Party’s messaging—tend to grossly overestimate how bigoted working-class whites are.

"Democrats are doing what they always do, which is running on 'the issues' rather on the story that’s much bigger than 'the issues' and that ties them all together."

What the Democrats offer today are pathos-soaked appeals to “struggling working families.” The vibe they put out to working-class people is basically:  The American Dream is dying—especially for people like you. The only way you can revive it is by accepting government aid. And if you’re not smart enough to realize how desperately you need it, just wait until you get old and sick, and the Republicans won’t cover your preexisting conditions !

In America, this is not a winning message.

What role has the mainstream news media played in the democracy crisis?

Let’s start with an important fact noted by the historian Timothy Snyder: Reporters are the heroes of our age. They are the guarantors of democracy, all the more in times like ours when democracy is in grave danger. And for the most part, the ethic of objectivity and truth-telling is alive and well.

I’d like to add that I think blaming the media for anything almost always misses the point. I often hear my fellow liberals say that “the media” are to blame for Trump’s rise. But the media are just the messenger, and outlets of every type and stripe stay in business by giving us the information we want and putting it in terms that engage our attention. The reason Trump dominates the airwaves, even out of office, is that he’s more interesting and entertaining and less constrained by the Marquess of Queensberry boxing rules than his opponents, so stories about him get more clicks.

The fact is, we live in an age of click-bait communication, infotainment, and public addiction to spectacle. If freedom’s enemies project more chutzpah and garner more attention than its defenders do, democracy will remain in jeopardy—if it survives at all. And if the truth-tellers tell their truths less provocatively, consistently, and doggedly than the disinformers tell their lies, any shared notion of reality will shrivel. We can already see that happening.

If you want your message to resonate, you can’t be dull, and the Democrats have become more than a little boring. Their low-dominance risk-aversion, fear of offending, distaste for “othering” anyone, and skittishness about using provocative, transgressive language, are a big part of why so many voters, especially young ones, experience the Democrats’ policy appeals as bloodless, boring bromides.

Just have a look at Project 2025 and Agenda 47. Trump and MAGA describe themselves as “conservatives." In reality, they are neofascists (or even more specifically fake right-wing authoritarian populists). We need to use accurate and specific language to defeat this threat to American and global democracy. 

This needs to be integrated into the Democrats’ narrative. The Trumpified Republicans are in no way conservatives, at least not in the American sense. Nor are they patriots. Democracy is our country’s most sacred tradition, and nobody who seeks to undermine democracy in America has the right to call themselves either a conservative or a patriot.

Look, I grew up in a Republican family in the Midwest and the South: small government, small business, personal responsibility, patriotism, and all the rest. Mom told me we were Republicans in part because some Democrats used the N-word. Mind you, this was in Kentucky back in the 1970s, and she was right. Obviously, the Trumpified Republicans are no longer my parents’ party.

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Whatever you and I might think of their policies, Ronald Reagan, John McCain, and Mitt Romney were both conservatives and patriots. None of them would have thought of trying to undermine the legitimacy of democracy by claiming that any election they lost was rigged or by inciting an insurrection. None of these figures were my political heroes, but still, they were real conservatives and real Americans. Trump and his MAGAmen are radical yahoos and traitors. And, as you say, neofascists. It’s long past time the Democrats got over their squeamishness about adducing these facts and using these terms.

You mention Project 2025 and Agenda 47, and you’re right: These documents provide a roadmap for demolishing democracy. As you know, the Republicans’ plans include eviscerating what they call the “deep state,” which actually means the agencies of justice, administration, and law enforcement. These are the part of the government that ensure the rule of law—that is, a system in which the rulers, as well as everyone else, must obey the rules. Gutting them will enable the Republicans to rig political competition, stay in office even when they lose, suppress opposition, weaponize law enforcement, and leverage their offices for private gain.

As usual, Trump and the Trumpized Republicans are telling us exactly what they plan to do, so we have no excuse for acting shocked at their behavior. The question is how democracy’s defenders can use the Republicans’ remarkably candid statements of their intentions against them.

How can the Democrats leverage the Republicans’ betrayal of democracy to beat them in November and beyond?

It’s true that Biden and other top Democrats sometimes sound the alarm on the Republican threat to democracy. But is that what they are  running on ? Is that what they  never quit  talking about? Not really. Instead, they run on promises to control prescription drug prices. They run on the Republicans’ abortion bans. They run on taxing the rich at a higher rate. In other words, the Democrats are doing what they always do, which is running on “the issues” rather on the story that’s much bigger than “the issues” and that ties them all together.

That story is about American democracy, and it’s what the Democrats should be running on, day in and day out. Everything we hold dear—a dynamic economy, our preeminence in the world of science and innovation, civil rights, civil peace, a woman’s right to choose, public health, basic human decency—rests on the preservation of democracy.

We defend it; the Republicans are seeking to turn us into a tinpot dictatorship. Their hero and role model is Viktor Orbán, the two-bit Hungarian despot who wrecked his country’s democracy, allied his country with Putin, and drove every company out of business that refused to bankroll his party and bribe his sorry butt. Do you want to live in Orbán’s America?

Trump does. After meeting with Orbán at the White House, he said of him: “It’s like we’re twins!”

Trump’s ultimate hero and mentor, of course, is Vladimir Putin, America’s greatest sworn enemy. Democrats also support our democratic allies to the hilt, including Ukraine. Those relationships multiply our power and keep our nation secure. Trump wants to withdraw from NATO.  Withdraw from NATO!  Why? Because destroying NATO is Putin’s dream, and Trump sides with Putin. Always, every time. Do you know what Dwight Eisenhower and Ronald Reagan would call that? Treason! Because that’s what it is.

Now why the hell don’t the Democrats say it?

If you had a private meeting with President Biden and his advisors what advice would you give them?

Fire your pollsters, or at least ignore them. They can’t get their twitchy noses out of last week’s focus-group data on gasoline prices, and they don’t see the big picture or grasp what you’re up against. Nor do they fully see what you’re really capable of. The constant adjustment of your message to polling data makes you look like a people-pleasing panderer rather than the principled, passionate progressive hard-ass you really are. You’ve been at this for over half a century and run in nine elections. You understand Americans better than anyone else does.

Be provocative. Be interesting. Use transgressive language. Ridicule Trump; don’t even act like you take him seriously. But don’t just keep shining the spotlight on him and hoping against hope that if voters finally see how awful he is, they’ll choose you by default. That’s classic low-dominance politics, and it’s part of why Trump is always the news, even though you’re the president and he’s just a private citizen trying to stay out of jail. Keep the spotlight on yourself. You’re the man; Trump is not.

Switch to a high-dominance messaging style that projects your superior strength and commitment to democracy and the American way. We saw glimpses of your appreciation for the need to do that in your Republican-owning SOTU speech, your decision to leak that you refer to Trump as a “sick fuck” in private, and your “make my day, pal” response to Trump’s invitation to debate. But those were just flashes of dominance; you’ve got to do it every day.

Trump’s a traitor who sides with our enemies. You’re a bold commander who has produced a crackling economy, united our democratic allies against Putin’s horrific invasion of Ukraine, and stood up to Xi Jinping. That’s why Putin and Xi and every other enemy of democracy in the world is pulling for Trump. You kicked Trump’s ass once, and you’re going to do it again. Show it and tell it.

This final bit of advice is not for Biden, it’s for the rest of us, everybody who wants democracy to prevail: It’s time to rally behind Biden with abandon. Let’s leave the prattle about Biden’s age to the Republicans; it’s a disgrace for liberals to keep tearing ourselves apart about it when he’s our candidate and the main thing standing between us and a slide into autocratic hell. So what if he moves more slowly than he used to? Biden’s mind is sharp, his heart’s enormous, and he works 12-hour days. He’s got what it takes and then some. He’s our guy. Let’s back him to the hilt and take it to Trump.

about this topic

• When Trump gets dark, Biden goes light
• Trump's testing out a new campaign strategy: horror politics
• Sociopaths and psychopaths are not necessarily monsters. Experts urge using these terms properly

Chauncey DeVega is a senior politics writer for Salon. His essays can also be found at  Chaunceydevega.com . He also hosts a weekly podcast,  The Chauncey DeVega Show . Chauncey can be followed on  Twitter  and  Facebook .

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Memorial Day is the unofficial start of summer. It's a time to gather with friends and family for a grill out, a picnic, or maybe a trip to the beach to soak up the sun. But while it may well feel like a day of celebration, what sometimes gets forgotten is that it was conceived as a day of commemoration for the brave military members who died serving their country.  

A University of Phoenix survey found that less than half of Americans polled knew the exact purpose of Memorial Day, while around a third were unsure of the difference between Memorial Day and Veterans Day.

To clarify, Veterans Day, which takes place in November, is a tribute to all those who served honorably in the military in wartime or peacetime, whether living or dead.

The confusion is compounded by Armed Forces Day, a military celebration held in May for those currently serving. However, while the reasons differ, the sentiment of each day is the same: all three are important opportunities to show gratitude.

So, when you chow down on that hot dog, barrel down that slip 'n slide, or whatever you do for fun this Memorial Day, spare a moment to acknowledge the people in uniform whose sacrifice made a difference.

On this Memorial Day, watch the video for a surprise reunion of battle buddies bonded by the loss of their leade r

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• Sustainability
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• How Kevin Kim’s immigrant story fuels NYC’s small businesses

In 1975, Kevin Kim’s mom and dad picked up their lives and brought their two kids from South Korea to New York, moving into a one-bedroom, one-bathroom apartment in Sunnyside, Queens.

Kim, who is commissioner of New York City’s Department of Small Business Services, was 5 at the time, his sister was 9, and their parents were working 14- to 16-hour days, seven  days a week, trying to build up their artificial flowers business. Kim’s maternal grandmother moved in to help out.

Mom would create the flower designs and dad would head over to the garment district, knocking on wholesalers' doors to sell those designs. After seven years of doing that, the family finally made it out of that tiny apartment.

His parents’ struggle to make it — especially because they spoke limited English and “had no clue about any government resources,” he said — informed a lot about how Kim has engaged immigrant small business communities in New York City. There are over 200,000 small businesses across the city, and about half of them are owned by immigrants.

Kim’s own experience as an entrepreneur, even after living in New York City most of his life, was similar — he also didn’t know what government resources he could access.

"When I came into this role, the first thing that was so glaring was that — wow, this agency New York City Small Business Services has so many incredible programs already,” he said in a recent interview. “And yet, if people don't know about it, it's all for naught.”

He set out to make sure people just like his parents would know about SBS, which provides a long list of resources for small businesses, including funding, commercial lease assistance and government contracting opportunities.

He spoke to the Mastercard Newsroom about his work at SBS and the sentiment he’s hearing in the streets from small businesses today. Kim also talked about the creation of the city’s $85 million NYC Small Business Opportunity Fund — the biggest public-private loan program for small businesses in the city’s history – which was created in partnership with Mastercard and Goldman Sachs. He also made sure to plug the upcoming SBS Small Business Month Expo on May 29, which will bring a variety of small business resources under one roof.

After being appointed to the position more than two years ago, Kim this month announced plans to step down at the end of June .

The following Q&A was edited for length and clarity.

You mentioned how much you wanted to focus on outreach at SBS. So how did you manage to get the word out?

Kim: I came in and we ended up reorganizing our agency to create the first-ever outreach team, and we put a team of about 10 people in there. We also put the existing RV unit, which we affectionately call Mobie, into action — that allowed it to go around the city multiple times a week.

I realized that our social media was lagging and, in this day and age, without robust social media activity, you're not going to get the audiences that you're aiming to get. The way we disseminated the programming information out to this 8.5 million-person city of 700 different languages being spoken every day became my focus.

We are clearly seeing the engagement with our agency just skyrocket. It was an intentional effort to make sure people knew that if they needed us, we were there and they knew how to get to us.

And that was all part of this grand strategy to make sure that people knew about all of our services, in language and in historically underserved communities, and that they wouldn't have to wait seven years like my parents to have a successful small business — that maybe they could cut that time in half.

What are you hearing from small businesses today — is there more optimism since the pandemic?

Kim: One of the best parts of this job is that I do get to go around to all the commercial quarters in every borough in so many neighborhoods. I ran into this small business owner, a Haitian bakery in Queens who opened during the pandemic. The fact that they were doing really well by the time I visited tells you something, right? The history, the resiliency, the hope of New Yorkers coming here with very little and starting a small business and not just helping their own family, but I know that particular business was giving back to the Haitian American community. And so it's that cycle, living the American dream right here in New York City that still exists. That just really reminded me of my own personal story.

It's not just them living their dream, but they're really impacting the community by hiring New Yorkers as well. So it feels like everybody's chipping in, the mood out in the streets is much more vibrant. I'm not trying to brush over some of the challenges that are still out there. Of course, retail theft is still out there.

The optimism, I feel it. I think the types of programs and investments the Adams administration has made, that's made a huge impact when you invest in the commercial corridors.

Tell me about the city’s Opportunity Fund.

Kim: We were able to have such great private partners in Goldman Sachs and the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth . The design of the program was so collaborative, having discussions about not just how much money is going to go out there, but what's the biggest impact we can have.

When you come out with a loan program by a government entity, you sometimes look for the easiest way to implement it and that could have been just picking the three or four largest CDFIs [community development financial institutions, which provide financial services to low-income communities] and then just working through them and calling it a day. What was extremely impactful here was that Mastercard, Goldman Sachs, SBS — we all had that second layer of intentionality saying, if we're going to do this, and maybe it takes a little bit longer to design it and to roll it out fully, let's make sure we focus on capacity building for some of our smaller CDFIs.

And that's what we did. And that second prong to this, I think, really impacted the results we got and who got the money, because the smaller CDFIs were really rooted in historically underserved communities. So after one year of the implementation of this program, we ended up with 1,046 businesses getting an average of $80,000.

You could just see the demand that was out there, because in the first couple of weeks, we had over 10,000 businesses express interest.

Kevin Kim, right, speaks with Shamina Singh, the president of the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth, on the role of public-private partnerships in supporting small businesses at a recent summit for Strive, a global philanthropic initiative working to empower small businesses for a digital future. (Photo credit: Rebecca Abraham)

The results again mirrored so much of that outreach, with 80% MWBEs [minority and women-owned business enterprises] receiving the money. We had 69% who are self-identified as BIPOC [black, indigenous, and other people of color]. We had 59% of recipients being located in low- and moderate-income communities.

Because of the success, we're already trying to think about what a 2.0 version would look like.

What’s a success story from the Opportunity Fund?

Kim: We had chef Jae Lee, from a restaurant called Nowon . It is a Korean American bar and restaurant in the East Village. They became very well known on Instagram and social media for their kimchi burgers. I've tried it. It's very good.

They were trying to expand to a second location in Bushwick, Brooklyn, and the traditional bank said, “Sorry, you're not eligible.” Chef Lee applied for this Opportunity Fund, got $250,000, subsequently was able to open in Bushwick — a larger space, and now he employs over 50 New Yorkers.

So what this story really highlights is that when you get the right business that gets the right capital access, again, it's not just about that business. It's about the impact of hiring those 50 New Yorkers. It’s about that new, bigger location. It's about providing an experience to people in that community. And so that kind of economic impact is something that needs to be fully appreciated. So that was one of our great success stories.

Especially thinking about your parents’ story, how does that make you feel that you were an important part in making success stories like Nowon’s happen?

Personally, I feel as if this is one of the most rewarding experiences I've had, having the privilege of being commissioner of SBS. But I want to make it so clear that it was really the years-long effort of my capital access team and other leaders here at SBS who finally made this happen.

Banner photo: Kevin Kim, left, and New York City Mayor Eric Adams, right, at a June event in which they announced that more than 600 small businesses had received funding from the Opportunity Fund since its inception in January. (Photo courtesy of New York City Department of Small Business Services)

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Home — Essay Samples — Economics — American Dream — Immigrants And The American Dream

Immigrants and The American Dream

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Words: 952 |

Published: Mar 19, 2024

Words: 952 | Pages: 2 | 5 min read

Table of contents

I. introduction, a. the american dream, b. immigration and the united states, c. thesis statement, ii. the concept of the american dream, a. the fluid nature of the american dream, b. immigrants and the american dream, c. challenges faced by immigrants, iii. economic opportunities for immigrants, a. varied job opportunities, b. income disparities, c. importance of education and upward mobility, iv. social integration and cultural assimilation, a. challenges in adapting to american culture, b. discrimination and prejudice, c. importance of community support, v. the impact of immigration policies on the american dream, a. role of government policies, b. legal barriers, c. importance of immigration reform, vi. conclusion, a. impact of immigration on the american dream, b. interconnectedness of immigrants and the american dream, c. importance of further research.

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Today’s best savings rates

Will savings rates stay high , how the fed impacts savings rates , how you can benefit from opening a high-yield savings account , what to look for in a high-yield savings account, methodology, best savings rates today -- don’t miss out on apys up to 5.55%, may 24, 2024.

The right high-yield savings account can make a big difference in your bottom line.

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Liliana Hall is a writer for CNET Money covering banking, credit cards and mortgages. Previously, she wrote about personal credit for Bankrate and CreditCards.com. She is passionate about providing accessible content to enhance financial literacy. She graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a bachelor's degree in journalism, and has worked in the newsrooms of KUT and the Austin Chronicle. When not working, she is probably paddle boarding, hopping on a flight or reading for her book club.

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Kelly is an editor for CNET Money focusing on banking. She has over 10 years of experience in personal finance and previously wrote for CBS MoneyWatch covering banking, investing, insurance and home equity products. She is passionate about arming consumers with the tools they need to take control of their financial lives. In her free time, she enjoys binging podcasts, scouring thrift stores for unique home décor and spoiling the heck out of her dogs.

CNET staff -- not advertisers, partners or business interests -- determine how we review the products and services we cover. If you buy through our links, we may get paid.

Key takeaways

• The top high-yield savings accounts offer APYs up to 5.55%. 
• A high-yield savings account with a competitive APY can help you grow your money faster. 
• Consider more than just APY when opening a new high-yield savings account. Look at account fees, minimum deposit requirements and monthly withdrawal limits. 

Now’s the time to take advantage of elevated savings rates. The best high-yield savings accounts currently earn annual percentage yields, or APYs, up to 5.55% -- more than 10 times the national average . 

“I believe that everyone should have a high-yield savings account,” said Kendall Meade, a certified financial planner at SoFi. “[It’s] a great place to keep your emergency savings as well as short-term goals so that it is safe and accessible in case you need to use it.”  

But you should act soon to maximize your interest earnings because some experts still expect the Fed to cut rates at some point in 2024. Read on to learn where you can find today’s top savings rates.

Experts recommend comparing rates before opening a savings account to get the best APY possible. You can enter your information below to see CNET’s partners’ rates in your area.

Here are some of the top savings account APYs available right now:

The Federal Reserve has opted to keep the federal funds rate at a range of 5.25% to 5.50% at its last six meetings. As a result you can still find high-yield savings accounts with APYs as high as 5.55%.

Experts expected several rate cuts to happen later this year, which would prompt savings rates to follow suit. But the most recent Consumer Price Index report revealed inflation rose 3.4% year over year -- down slightly from March’s numbers but still stubbornly higher than the Fed’s 2% target rate. Inflation has eased significantly since 2022, but the timeline for future rate cuts is still unclear. 

Some experts still think rate cuts are possible in 2024, according to Elaine King , a certified financial planner. However, some economists predict that rate cuts are now less likely to happen in 2024 unless inflation begins trending downward soon. Either way, you can expect high savings rates to stick around for the foreseeable future.

The Fed doesn’t directly impact savings rates, but its decisions have ripple effects. For instance, when the Fed raises rates, many banks increase their rates for traditional and high-yield savings accounts, said Lanesha Mohip, a corporate accountant, founder of the Polished CEO and CNET expert review board member. Inversely, when the Fed lowers rates, banks drop savings rates, too.

“When the Fed changes the rates, it impacts everything,” said Mohip. That includes borrowing and savings rates. While taking out a loan or paying back debt may be more expensive, the high rates can also put extra money in your savings. 

Banks can change the interest rates on savings accounts at any time. Since savings rates are variable, your APY will likely go down once the Fed drops rates. But for now, many banks are holding rates steady in anticipation of what the Fed will do next. Based on CNET’s weekly tracking, here’s where rates stand compared to last week:

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Where you keep your money matters. A high-yield savings account is a great place to park money reserved for your emergency fund or any short-term savings goals. It could also be a good place to stash monetary windfalls, such as your tax refund . Here’s what else makes HYSAs stand out:

• High rates: HYSAs often have APYs 10 times higher (or more) than the national average, as tracked by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
• Low or no fees: Monthly maintenance fees can eat into your savings. Many online banks can charge low or no fees thanks to their lower operating costs.
• Liquidity: You can access money in your HYSA anytime without penalty (as long as you mind any withdrawal limits). 
• Accessibility: If you open an HYSA at an online bank, you’ll have 24/7 access through its mobile app. You may also have lots of customer service options, including by phone, online chat and secure messaging.
• Low risk: HYSAs are protected by federal deposit insurance if they’re held at an FDIC-insured bank or credit union insured by the National Credit Union Administration. That means your money is safe up to $250,000 per account holder, per account type.

Some accounts have minimum deposit requirements, fees and other charges that can chip away at your savings. 

Here’s everything you should keep in mind when comparing savings accounts: 

• Minimum deposit requirements: Some HYSAs require a minimum amount to open an account -- typically, from $25 to $100. Others don’t require anything. 
• ATM access: Not every bank offers cash deposits and withdrawals. If you need regular ATM access, check to see if your bank offers ATM fee reimbursements or a wide range of in-network ATMs, said Mohip. 
• Fees: Look out for fees for monthly maintenance, withdrawals and paper statements, said Mohip. The charges can eat into your balance.
• Accessibility: If you prefer in-person assistance, look for a bank with physical branches. If you’re comfortable managing your money digitally, consider an online bank.
• Withdrawal limits: Some banks charge an excess withdrawal fee if you make more than six monthly withdrawals. If you think you may need to make more, consider a bank without this limit.
• Federal deposit insurance: Make sure your bank or credit union is either insured with the FDIC or the NCUA. This way, your money is protected up to $250,000 per account holder, per category, if there’s a bank failure.
• Customer service: Choose a bank that’s responsive and makes it easy to get help with your account if you need it. Read online customer reviews and contact the bank’s customer service to get a feel for working with the bank.

CNET reviewed savings accounts at more than 50 traditional and online banks, credit unions and financial institutions with nationwide services. Each account received a score between one (lowest) and five (highest). The savings accounts listed here are all insured up to $250,000 per person, per account category, per institution, by the FDIC or NCUA.

CNET evaluates the best savings accounts using a set of established criteria that compares annual percentage yields, monthly fees, minimum deposits or balances and access to physical branches. None of the banks on our list charge monthly maintenance fees. An account will rank higher for offering any of the following perks:

• Account bonuses
• Automated savings features
• Wealth management consulting/coaching services
• Cash deposits
• Extensive ATM networks and/or ATM rebates for out-of-network ATM use

A savings account may be rated lower if it doesn’t have an easy-to-navigate website or if it doesn’t offer helpful features like an ATM card. Accounts that impose restrictive residency requirements or fees for exceeding monthly transaction limits may also be rated lower.

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CNET Money is an advertising-supported publisher and comparison service. We’re compensated in exchange for placement of sponsored products and services, or when you click on certain links posted on our site. Therefore, this compensation may impact where and in what order affiliate links appear within advertising units. While we strive to provide a wide range of products and services, CNET Money does not include information about every financial or credit product or service.