Summary Of The American Dream Dead Alive By Brandon King

In the essay “The American Dream: Dead, Alive, or on Hold?” Brandon king argues whether or not the American Dream is still alive and well in the USA. The author makes a strong case that the American Dream is, in fact, still held to a high degree of belief in America. Not only does he successfully argue that it is still alive, he presents information that shows how the Dream itself has shifted from a rags-to-riches story to one of a stable, happy life. Overall, King’s use of strong emotional appeals, coupled with his employment of sound reasoning and statistics make his argument that the American Dream has evolved over time very effective.

King uses logos to present his form of credibility to the reader and prove he is knowledgeable. Sure this is due to the fact that when King wrote this essay he was still a student and hasn’t really developed any kind of credibility for himself just

“The original term ‘American Dream’ was coined during the Great Depression by James Truslow Adams, who wrote that the American dream ‘is that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability and achievement, regardless of social class or circumstances of birth’ ” (573). He then addresses the views of liberal economists and activists, who think the American dream is dead, using facts from a survey done in 2009 by the New York Times. Essentially, the “survey found that 72 percent of Americans still believed it was possible to start poor, work hard, and become rich in America” (573). He reinforces his theory that the American dream is changing by the statistics on housing. “More and more people now rent their homes instead of buying; a recent study showed a decrease in home ownership from 69% in 2005 to about 66.5% in 2010 and an increase in renter household of 1.1 million”