The Biased American Dream By James Truslow Adam - 1858 Words

â€Å"The Biased American Dream† The American Dream is a commonly known theme among the general population today. It states that with the right amount of work any US citizen can obtain success in their lives. This idea was popularized around 1930 with James Truslow Adam’s book â€Å"The Epic of America† bringing about the idea that there is opportunity for everyone in America if they can work hard enough.3 This idea of the American dream however began much earlier than the 20th century. Rather it began in the west in the 1800s as US citizens gained the ability to cross the frontier and begin completely new lives, whether those lives became advantageous or not. According to the American Dream the western settler’s level of work, not race or gender, would determine whether or not he or she became successful. However this was not the case. The American Dream of the 19th century is disparate from the one known today. Unlike Adam’s â€Å"American Dream† of the 1930s, this western  "American Dream† was heavily skewed towards white male, US citizen obtainment. This was because the main drive of the western frontier was for white male US citizens to profit from the newly obtained land and keep it for themselves thus fulfilling their new â€Å"American Dream.† In the mid19th century, economic opportunities existed in the Western Frontier of America, allowing people to go and accomplish their dreams if they had the motivation, but those opportunities were prohibitive for women, nonwhites, or non USShow MoreRelatedThe American Dream: A False Sense of Hope Essay1543 Words   |  7 Pages In an average day, an American is exposed to over 3000 advertisements, (Kilbourne). Whether they want to admit it or not, they are drawn toward them. A common scheme of the advertisers is to allow the consumer to â€Å"picture the new them.† Whether this be a wealthier them, a skinner them, or a prettier them, they gear there product towards every person and want everyone be able to connect with the advertisement and picture the â€Å"new them.† American Idol, Nutrisystem, and The Biggest LoserRead MorePsychology and Author’s Purpose in the Great Gatsby2923 Words   |  12 PagesGreat Gatsby It was 1931, six years after the publication of The Great Gatsby, when historian James Truslow Adams coined the term The American Dream (â€Å"The Epic of America†, 415). Yet, his was a new take on an old concept. F. Scott Fitzgerald did not have to wait for Adams to brilliantly propose that the ideal of social equality and the pursuit of Happiness is a dream like enterprise, which has little to do with reality (US 1776). In the 1920’s, reality was solid proof that the â€Å"pursuit