American Dream Research Paper

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The American Dream Growing up, the term “American Dream” seemed to be something that everyone fantasized over. The American Dream is a set of ideals in which freedom includes the opportunity for prosperity and success, and an upward in social mobility achieved through hard work. There are many situations that must go in a persons favor in order for them to be successful in achieving the American Dream. American citizenship, physical condition, and family background affect a person’s chance of achieving this dream. To begin with, the recent immigrants, both legal and illegal, are not as lucky as your typical American citizen. It is obvious that being a legal citizen in the United States of America gives you an overwhelming advantage of achieving any goal you may have in life. Whether it be finding a job, a place to live, or even a getting a drivers license. There are millions of people who have become unsuccessful on the journey over to the US. Illegally smuggling across the United States border certainly did not do you any good (Litotes). In John Steinbeck’s novel, Of Mice And Men, Lennie asked Crook why he thought that he was unwanted and he replied, “’Cause I’m black. They play cards in there, but I can’t play because I’m black. They say I stink. Well, I tell you, you all of you stink to me,” (Steinbeck, 64). In this case the initial problem here is not necessarily his legal status, but the color of his skin. This goes to show us that from a biased American citizen standpoint, being “different” can play a huge role in determining your success in life. Secondly, the living situation, working situation, and background one comes from can affect their success in achieving the American dream as well. People who were raised without any sort of self-perseverance or responsibility will face a much more difficult time in not only finding a steady, well paying job, but keeping it as well. In the article Afterward: Nickel and Dimed, it explains that “An astounding 29 percent of American families living in what could be more reasonably defined as poverty, meaning that they earned less than a bare-bones budget covering housing, child care, health care, food, transportation, and taxes-though not, it should be noted, any entertainment, meals out, cable TV, Internet service, vacations, or holiday gifts,” (Ehrenreich, 228). This quote is a key example and a wake up call to many that just under a third of our country struggles to afford basic needs on an everyday basis. A lot of times it is not always the persons’ fault for how poorly they were raised. Do you think it is possible for these people to overcome poverty completely and achieve the American Dream before they die? (Rhetorical question)
Finally and most importantly, a person’s physical condition is the key roll in success for our situation. Anywhere from back pain, asthma, and arthritis all the way to a car accident can all affect someone’s working skills in many different ways. Jobs vary in required
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