Re: It did exist

Posted by Neeraja on 01-14-2008 in Is the American dream lost??

I think the term was first used in a book called "The Epic of Americas" by James Adam, and it talked about everyones lives being better/richer and having success based off of ability/achievement. It referred to not simply the idea of being wealthier but rather a social order in which each man can achieve that success regardless of which family they were born under. Basically it was a rip on the English system of wealth. Today, I think that the common element between the original American dream and the present day American dream is.. wealth, and wealth alone. As cynical as this may sound, whereas the American dream was a thought to have all of society succeed regardless of their background, now its a more capitalist based selfish idea of personal success. The common "lets all succeed together regardless of who we're born as" may very well have turned into a common "I want to succeed and if you can't keep up then you arent capable enough." Hence the basis of both dreams are consistant- wealth and capability rather than being born in wealth, but the idealistic unity aspect is rather lost.