Freshmen writing

Instructor Hyeryung Hwang

WRIT 1301

2 February 2017

Rough Draft

The American Dream is a concept that is spoken about frequently in American culture. The American Dream is the belief that anyone can become successful if they work hard, no matter where they come from. The American Dream makes the United States sound like a wonderfully egalitarian place—it doesn’t matter what one’s starting position in life is. The American Dream makes it sound like everyone has the same chances of success. However, this is not true. In the following paragraphs I will argue that the American Dream is an ideology that does not prove true for everyone because of income inequality and structural barriers that cannot be overcome by simply working hard.

The first hint in Brandon King’s essay “The American Dream: Dead, Alive, or on Hold?” that the American Dream may not be a truthful idea is that the American Dream has changed over time. King describes a “more modest” conception of the American Dream today, describing how, instead of aiming for extreme wealth, Americans are focused on building up their savings accounts, acquiring long-term job security, and being frugal with their spending habits (611-612). King puts a positive spin on these changes, viewing the diminishing goals of Americans as different lifestyle preferences. However, the less lofty ambitions of Americans today are likely due to lowering levels of upward economic mobility driven by income inequality (Casselman). If upward mobility is less likely, it is not very realistic to have grand ambitions of material wealth. The changes in the American Dream that King describes are more likely due to Americans adjusting their dreams to be more attainable in a difficult economy rather than reflecting different goals.

One of the most significant features of the American Dream ideology is the value it places on work. Working hard is seen as the key to overcoming adversity, attaining success, and living a good life. What the American Dream ideology doesn’t recognize is that there are many factors that play into the American Dream not coming true for a number of people. Not everyone makes the same amount of money for the same amount of work, which means that some have to work harder than others to achieve the same amount of financial success. The American Dream does not account for the different starting positions from which Americans may begin to pursue their dreams—rather than taking into account the unequal distribution of barriers to success, the American Dream assumes that everyone has the same chances of achieving success. It is true that some are able to achieve their dreams, overcoming adversity to reach a place of financial security. However, for every person for whom hard work has paid off and the American Dream attained, there are a stories of failure. Not every person who works hard will necessarily achieve the financial status and lifestyle they aspire to. Barriers like being unable to afford a college education, a low minimum wage, and large amounts of debt can keep even the modest goals like financial security out of reach. A person who works extremely hard on a minimum-wage job will still have an extremely difficult time attaining financial security, and may not even be able to achieve that. The American Dream’s focus on work obscures these structural issues that affect a person’s ability to achieve financial success and stability, which proves that the American Dream is more a myth than a realistic goal.

King ends his essay by claiming that the American Dream will stay relevant if American’s rely on the core idea of the American Dream: “that anybody can climb out of hardship and achieve success” (615). However, because of income inequality, diminishing likelihood of upward mobility, and structural barriers to success, this conception of the American Dream is in danger. In 2014 a poll concluded that 55% of Americans don’t believe in the American Dream (Blake). If more than half of Americans don’t believe in the American Dream, it would seem that this core idea of the American Dream is indeed in danger. If the American Dream is to be kept relevant and become more than a myth, the inequalities that prevent Americans from achieving success should be dealt with.

Works Cited

Blake, Aaron. “The American Dream is hurting.” The Washington Post, 24 Sept. 2014,

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2014/09/24/the-american-dream-is-

hurting/?utm_term=.9abbc4f54039.

Casselman, Ben. “Inequality is Killing the American Dream.” FiveThirtyEight, 8 Dec. 2016,

https://fivethirtyeight.com/features/inequality-is-killing-the-american-dream/.

King, Brandon. “The American Dream: Dead, Alive, or on Hold?” They say, I say: With

Readings. 3rd ed. New York: Norton & Company, Inc, 2015. 610-616. Print.