Sophs #5 Journal-- The American Dream
Your final journal assignment for the first quarter is an appropriate one. You've studied the early colonists and then the early Americans. Both groups of people had visions of the greatness of America. The Puritans envisioned a religious "city upon a hill" nurtured and protected by their God. America's founding fathers constituted a democratic republic that would encourage other governments throughout the world to also engage in a social contract with its citizens, ensuring a protection of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. America was created to be a model of government for the rest of the world.
A Frenchman, Guillaume Jean de Crèvecoeur, emigrated to the colonies in 1755. He married a American-born women, raised a family, and farmed in Orange County, NY. Life was going well until the Revolutionary War broke out. Unwilling to choose between the revolutionary and the Tory cause, de Crevecoeur fled to England, leaving his wife and children. When the war ended, he published a book in 1782, Letters From an American Farmer, adapting the pseudonym of an American farmer, James, and writing back in epistles to his brethren in England. The book told of the promise of the good life in America; it is one of the first written statements of the American Dream.
The notion of the American Dream (even today) represents a romanticized ideal of the hope and promise of America. For de Crevecoeur, the American Dream promised these new and exciting gifts to all who dared to call themselves, Americans:
1. America is an asylum, a refuge for Europe's poor and downtrodden
2. The American society is a melting pot of people from all over Europe
3. The American economy rewards the hard worker with a chance to get ahead.
4. The American is free to worship as he pleases, and religion demands little of him.
5. Americans are the western pilgrims, bringing the best of Europe to this new land, and making it better. Americans are looked upon as leaders of the world.
Throughout America's history, there is no doubt that the American Dream has been realized by millions of successful people. There is also little doubt that reality of America did not always live up to the Dream. Undoubtedly, millions of people experienced failures, too--nightmares, not dreams.
Look over the five aspects of deCrevecouer's Dream listed above. Write about how any one of those ideas either rewarded OR failed an individual. Ideally, I'd like you to relate a personal story about a relative or someone you closely know. However, if you absolutely cannot think of someone, you are free to write about someone else. In that case, provide your information source at the end of your writing.
posted by JTF @ 8:26 PM
12 comments
12 Comments:
After reading over the five aspects of deCrevecouer's Dream and thinking very hard, I thought of my grandfather (who I have never met but I have heard a lot about him.) The third aspect of deCrevecouer's Dream stuck out to me the most. It states: The American economy rewards the hard worker with a chance to get ahead. My grandfather owned a shop called West End Machine Shop in Brown Town. And having as many kids as he did (a grand total of ten, as you know) he had to work very hard to bring in an income. Although not all ten were born when he started working next door to his house at the shop, having four-six kids and a wife was still a lot to make money for. When all of the ten kids were born and growing up, my grandfather had help from my Uncle Joe, my dad, Bill, and I think my Uncle Tom. My Grandfather was very persistent with his work. He would work all day, come home for dinner, and then go right back to work to finish if he needed to. I think he had the chance to get ahead by having so many kids. What I mean by that is the fact that my dad now owns West End Machine Shop and loves what he does. My dad is the seventh child, and he took over the shop from my grandfather. I'm proud of my dad's dad and I'm proud of my dad and what they have done for the Betley Family.
Crevecoeur believed that "The American is free to worship as he pleases, and religion demands little of him" and I agree. I am a Catholic, but my friend happens to be Jewish and we both go to St. Mark's. This just shows that no matter what you believe in you are free to go to whatever school you wish. Your religion isn't and shouldn't slow you down. My friend's father is Jewish and that's where she gets it from, yet her mother is Catholic. This just proves that no matter what religion you choose your able to do what you please. Like, A Jew marrying a Catholic. What you believe in shouldn't change the person you are and what you decide to do. Its your decision, your religion shouldn't chose for you. For example, even though her father is Jewish they still celebrate Christmas as a family since her mother is Catholic. It is their decision and their religion doesn't stop them from doing what they please. This family is a perfect example of Crevecoeur's idea. They worship as they wish.
De Crévecoeur’s idea of the American Dream is still pretty accurate today. My uncle was one of nine children growing up in a town house in south Philadelphia. If anyone knows anything about the American Dream it’s him. He grew up playing stickball in the street with a deformed tennis ball stolen from the country club trash can and extremely violent basketball. A good amount of the people who grew up in a situation like that stay in Philly and don’t really make anything of themselves, but not him. He once told me that that school was cheating, that they give you all the books with all the answers you will ever need and all you have to do is remember them. He skated through school with straight A’s and went on to medical school. He then became a podiatrist and joined a clinic. After several years of working there he bought the whole practice and now he is filthy rich and buys whatever he wants whenever he wants. I believe that he is a great example of the American Dream.
Out of deCrevecouer's five dreams, the one that I have experienced the most is, “The American is free to worship as he pleases, and religion demands little of him.” I have met all kinds of Americans in my life from Catholics to Buddhists. In my grade school during Christmas time we sang Christmas carols, Christian hymns, and Hindu folk tunes. Nobody in this country ins forced into a religion, and nobody in those religions is forced to attend their services. I remember in fourth grade going to my Hindu teacher’s temple, taking off my shoes, and learning about the Hindu religion. I was amazed that such diverse religions could be in such proximity to each other. The day before we went to a Jewish Synagogue where we got to be part of the service and listen in. My grade school was big on exposing kids to other religions and other cultures. I think America had grown even more into deCrevecouer’s saying. I think America has taken it to include all cultures as well as religion. You can find Spaniards, Italians, Mexicans, and French just around the corner from each other. This is one of my favorite things about our country. I believe that every country should have not just a freedom of religion, but a freedom of culture and ideals.
Guillaume Jean de Crevecoeur promised the idea that Americans economy rewards hardworking people with a chance to get ahead. This statement can be taken both negatively and positively especially when compared to my dad. My dad takes his job very seriously. He works with computers and his job pretty much consumes his entire life. Every week he travels around the country to propose projects and new ideas to his company. Even when he is home for two days he spends them on phone calls, running from place to place, stressing over housework, or preparing for his next business trip. Ever since my dad began his new job, added tension has affected our family. Also our relationship has changed. My dad does not understand the line between hard work and being overly obsessed with his job. Although his job takes over his life, he does really enjoy it. Because of my dad’s hard work and determination, I have a place to live and am able to have a good education. However, I wish he could find the balance between family and work. My dad is so focused on doing his best work, which is sometimes annoying, but it is also a very admirable trait.
The five aspects of The American Dream really relate to today's society. De Crevecoeur's book told all people they could have a better life in America. The one aspect that i thought was very important is, the American economy rewards the hard worker with a chance to get ahead. When i think of this many people come to mind, but the best person would have to be my grandfather. He is a truely successful individual who was rewarded a lot in his lifetime. The only reason he was rewarded was because he worked hard for his future. After thirty years of great service in the GM company he earned a significant amount of money. He always did everything he was told and never complained. This allowed him to get ahead in life a bit more than most Americans. Since my grandfather worked hard for his money he really exemplifies this idea of The American Dream. Im sure he encountered a lot of failures during his lifetime, but not once did he give up and quit. He tried his best to get ahead in life and support his family. Like De Crevecoeur, many people sacrificed a lot to call themselves, Americans. His list was an inspiration for all living in a tough society. These aspects are the hope and promise that everyone should follow to achieve success as an American.
The aspect of deCrèvecoeur's dream that I chose is the one where it states, "The American society is a melting pot of people from all over Europe". I decided to choose this one because i have an aunt whose parents lived in Europe, and she was also born in Europe. When my aunt Robin was born, her parents decided to move to America because her dad got a job as a chemist for DuPont. Coming from Europe to America gave him a great job and a chance to make a good life for my aunt and her mom. America is truly a melting pot because we do have a lot of people who are originally from Europe who came here for more opportunities just like my aunt and her parents did. My aunt is now a proud mother of four. She is a stay at home mom of her four kids which are ages two, four, six, and eight. She also designs jewelry in her spare time and is married to my uncle jeff who works as a general manager at a golf course in Tampa, Florida. I do believe that my aunt would not have as good as a life as she does now if her parents did not decide to move because America really gave her a chance to succeed. America is a melting pot and i think that is what makes our country so great.
Out of the five ideas of De Crevecoeur’s American dreams the one that reminds me the most of my family is “The American society is a melting pot of people from all over Europe.”My great grandfather, Carl Yuengling was born in Pottsville Pennsylvania in 1899. His parents were from Germany. His father (my great great grandfather) came over on a ship to work in the Yuengling Brewery. After working for a year he traveled back to Germany to bring his wife to live with him in Pennsylvania. While traveling on the ship, my great great grandfather became ill with tuberculosis. He died that year before my grandfather was born. At the time of his death, my great grandmother had a young son (Ernst Yuengling) and soon after had my great grandfather (Carl Yuengling). My great grandmother was related to the Yuengling’s by marriage and had other relatives that lived in New York City. After my great great grandfather died she moved to New York to be with her family. My great grandfather grew up in New York City and kept a diary about his life. New York had many sections of different people from all over Europe. Some of these sections included people from Germany, Italy, Poland, Ireland, and China. With all the people from all over Europe came many different languages, cultures and food. My great grandfather owned a “confectionary store” in the city where they sold food and candy. He employed many different people from different cultures in his store. His stories in his diary and the stories he told my mom live on many years after his death. These stories remind me of how our country really is a melting pot of people from Europe.
Guillaurne Jean de Crevecoeur aspect, "The American economy rewards the hard worker with a chance to get ahead." Really implies to my two older sisters, Kasey and Lindsay Prettyman. My sisters currently have a 4.0 GPAs and are a part of national honor society. They also are the best players on their field hockey teams and are getting looked at by collages all over the country. They are getting scholarships offers from many top schools in the nation. The reason why they are successful is because of their hard work. My sisters sometimes study for 5 hours a day and practice field hockey in the same day. Even when they won't have a test for another week they will still study for a test. My sisters are the true definition of Crevecoeur aspect, "the American economy rewards the hard worker with a chance to get ahead." With my sisters work ethic, they can go to collage to almost anywhere they want for free and are a real inspiration to me.
Crèvecoeur’s list of five aspects of America is a somewhat different approach than my thoughts are. However, the fact that the American society is a melting pot of people from all over Europe is agreeable in this case. When I heard about this I immediately thought of my parents and their backgrounds. My father had lived in New York almost his entire life, but his relatives were from Eastern Europe. My mother on the other hand, was raised here in Delaware all her life. Her relatives were descendants from Eastern Europe though. Without the ‘melting’ of different people from different places, I wouldn’t even be alive. The melting of many people I believe, have rewarded an individual, and failed one as well. With the mixing of different people going on, we learn about different ideas and new approaches to things. We also get a broader range of techniques and inventions going on around the world. The failing part of the mixing would be the fact that some people do not get along well. Another disadvantage would be that it would be hard to stand out in a group of different people. What if everyone had a different idea? Some people have a different thought or so that others do not agree on, causing a riot. That’s another thing that might fail an economy like this. You pretty much could not pinpoint one thought that could be easily understood and agreed on.
Someone I know who realized the American dream of being able to get ahead in the workplace and be highly successful is my mom. When she first strted out she did not have much to work from but she kept at it and never gave up. Now she is the manager of a very big lawfirm dealing with bankruptcy and coppyright infringement. I myself have realized the American dream of freedom of religion whenI decided to convert to a religion that I probably would not be aloud to practise in many other places freely. Even though all my family is from America I know of many people who have emigrated to America to get ahead in life and have done so very successfully. So therefore as long as you truly do try your best and work as hard as you can and beleive in the American dream there is nothing you can not accomplish here.
Reading de Crevecoeur’s idea that “The American economy rewards the hard worker with a chance to get ahead.” reminds me of my mother due to her hard working past. Her story begins when she was raised as one of six kids with a father who didn’t really pay attention to his children and a mother who was preoccupied with the others. My mom was a middle child and you know what they say about how the middle kid always gets the short end of stick; this basically sums up my mom’s childhood. First of all, her parents didn’t quite push school work on her and make her feel like school was actaully important therefore she didn’t try hard resulting in not the best grades. Her mother, my mummum, was always busy with her younger children, caring for them and making sure they were staying out of trouble so that leaves my mom a bit neglected and not given enough attention. Sad, huh? Well she was left on her own fending for herself in this tough world, having to pay for her own car, her yearbooks, which were limited to just two, her class ring, her clothes, everything! She wasn’t even given the option of going to college because she couldn’t afford it and her parents weren’t willing to pay for it eventhough her other siblings were given the oppurtunity. Her life was pretty unfair but she toughed it out and got a lot of jobs so she could live her own life the way she wanted to with no strings attached. Luckily my mom met my dad because he owned his own business that brought in a nice income therefore not needing her to get a job. So finally, life tends to work out in the end leaving the hard working with a pleasant future and a life well spent all due to America’s countless oppurtunities describedby the wise Guillaume de Crevecoeur.
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