Comparing The American West As Symbol And Myth

The car, the symbol of American freedom, a gleaming machine steeped in a century of tradition. Yet, just how much of that tradition was entirely due to the civilian automobile? Could it be possible that the role of the car in competition defined its status in American imagination and society, just as its ubiquitous presence did? The car as competition is an overlooked portion of mechanical advancement, yet it may very well have redefined the role of the automobile in American life for decades to come. Just as the age of sail had its wooden ships and iron men, so too did the age of the car have its tough machines and tougher drivers. These men and the machines they controlled inspired Americans to go faster for themselves, from the high, sun-baked expanses of the Utah deserts to the windswept and ocean-battered beaches of northeastern Florida, to the back roads of small towns the nation over, Americans felt the need for speed.

The need to do, perform, create bigger, better, larger and more impressive than ever before is to Smith a defining portion of the American national psyche. No where is this drive to be the best more prevalent than in the history of the automobile. The car, itself a significant part of the American mindset, is the living and changing embodiment of the American will to perform. In more ways than one, the automobile is more American than most other pursuits in life. It is a European invention that crossed the Atlantic and was embraced by the people of this continent, much as pizza, hot dogs and the games that became baseball and football were. The history of the car is the history of America, one of breaking the limits and doing the