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Emma Ogden

Ms. Price

English 1

March 20, 2018

The Present Day American Dream

Tommy Hilfiger said “The road to success is not easy to navigate, but with hard work,

drive and passion, it’s possible to achieve the American dream.” So what is the definition of the

American Dream? The definition of the American Dream has changed over time. The original

definition of the American Dream was a “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.”

This definition was written in 1931, which was before major events such as the Civil Rights Act

and Women’s suffrage. A definition that is more reflective of the American Dream in today’s

society is, The American Dream is reaching what your goal in life is. It is obtainable for all but it

is harder for some to reach than others. The definition of the American Dream has changed

because not everyone has the exact same opportunities, everyone’s background or where they

come from is different, and money can also play a role in the change of the definition of the

American Dream. Even though the definition of the American Dream has changed it is still

obtainable for all.

Not everyone has the same opportunities which changes the part of the original definition

that everyone has an equal opportunity to reach the American Dream. In the article “Saving the

American Dream” Amy L. Wax writes, “ours is no longer a mobile society that gives people

from all walks of life a fair shot at the American Dream.”. Today’s society has social status,

stereotypes, and constant judgement. These aspects of society can make it more difficult for
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certain individuals or groups to reach the American Dream. People can have unequal

opportunities because of how society perceives them. For example some are judged based on

where they come from or by how they look. Going along with social status of today’s society,

“people in the top tiers are more likely to be well-educated, get and stay married, be dedicated

and attentive parents, work hard at their jobs, obey the law, and invest in their communities”

(Wax). People who are in the top tiers of society have more opportunities available to them in

order to reach the American Dream than those who are in the lower tiers of society. This allows

for them to be put at an advantage or to have a step forward when trying to meet this Dream,

starting with their education.This is a clear example showing how not everyone has the same

opportunities. The American dream can be harder to reach for some than others because of the

way society is today. There are also other factors involved when people are trying to reach the

American Dream.

People’s backgrounds, where they come from, and how much money they make or have

are other factors that can also influence how many opportunities someone has or how difficult it

is for them to reach the American Dream. “Kids in well-off families benefit from high-quality

schools, safe neighborhoods, helpful mentoring connections,”and “enriching extracurricular

activities”(Smith). Families that have more money are already put at an advantage. They are

presented with more resources and tools to help them reach the American Dream more easily.

Those who have more money get to experience or have all of the opportunities that were

presented in this quote, such as higher- quality education. If someone has a higher-quality

education they are more likely to go to college and more likely to live a more successful life

compared to someone who has a poor education. People’s background can also include their

race, which can be a barrier when trying to reach the American Dream. Carolyn Muyskens
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wrote, “But Hannah-Jones, who has done extensive reporting on the issue of school segregation

and integration, resources like money and teachers follow white students.” This quote shows

how resources follow specific races giving them an initial advantage in trying to reach the

American Dream. A school setting is not the only setting where events similar to what is seen in

the text can occur. Someone can have fewer opportunities within their workplace or within their

daily lives all because of their background. Someone’s background and race is not something

they can change or control yet it can decrease someone's opportunities and make it more difficult

for them to reach the American Dream. Barriers such as someone’s background or where they

come from, and how much money they make might limit their opportunities but it will not

completely prevent them from reaching the American Dream.

The American Dream is attainable for all despite obstacles that many have to face to

reach it. “The American dream is alive and well, especially for black Americans. Riley pointed

to the progress that’s been made, particularly to the civil rights movement”(Muyskens). Even

though certain races have had to get through barriers to reach this Dream they have been able to

do so. An example of this is that African Americans had no civil rights and through the Civil

Rights Movement they were able to gain these right and get closer to reaching their dream of

being treated equally. This shows that even if there are obstacles everyone can reach the

American Dream. Amy L. Wax states, “The goal of more mobility runs up against the core

dilemma of the meritocracy-which is that talent, effort, and ambition, which determine the ability

to climb, are not randomly distributed up and down the social scale.” This shows once again that

everyone can reach the American Dream but that people have to seize the opportunity to reach

the dream when it is presented to them. The opportunity to seize the dream will not be presented
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to each individual at the same time but the opportunity will come for everyone. Though it might

be difficult for some to reach the American Dream it is possible for everyone to do.

The main factors contributing to the change of the definition of the American Dream are

that not everyone has the same exact opportunities, everyone's background or where they come

from is different, and that the amount of money people have varies. Overall race, money, and the

way today’s society is can all be barriers when people are trying to reach the American Dream.

People can get past these barriers and can reach this dream by seizing the opportunity when it is

there. When someone reaches the American Dream they are reaching what their goal in life is.

They are reaching that desire or ambition that they have been working for in their life. This can

be something as big as owning your own company or it can just be being the first in your family

to graduate high school. No matter what the situation is people will always be faced with barriers

and by getting passed these barriers everyone can reach the American Dream.
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Works Cited

Muyskens, Carolyn. “GVSU's Common Ground Initiative: Journalists Debate Race and the

American Dream.” General One File, UNWIRE Text, 29 Jan. 2017,

go.galegroup.com/ps/retrieve.do?tabID=T004&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&searchRe

sultsType=SingleTab&searchType=AdvancedSearchForm¤tPosition=1&docId=GALE|A4

79264371&docType=Article&sort=Relevance&contentSegment=&prodId=ITOF&content

Set=GALE|A479264371&searchId=R10&userGroupName=ncowl&inPS=true.

Smith, David Hugh. “'Our Kids' Suggests an American Dream out of Reach for Many.” Point

of View Reference Center, The Christian Science Monitor, 12 Mar. 2015,

www.csmonitor.com/Books/Book-Reviews/2015/0312/Our-Kids-suggests-an-American-

dream-out-of-reach-for-many.

“Tommy Hilfiger Quotes.” BrainyQuote, Xplore,

www.brainyquote.com/authors/tommy_hilfiger.

Wax, Amy L. “Saving the American Dream: Its Not Just about the People at the Top.” Point

of View Reference Center, Commentary, 1 Nov. 2017,

content.ebscohost.com/ContentServer.asp?T=P&P=AN&K=125886157&S=R&D=pwh&

EbscoContent=dGJyMNLe80Sep7I4y9fwOLCmr1Gep7dSr6i4TLaWxWXS&ContentCust

omer=dGJyMPGusk2zrrRJuePfgeyx7of0.
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