Summary Of The American Dream Dead Alive By Brandon King

In “The American Dream: Dead, Alive, or on Hold?”, Brandon King boldly decides to redefine the concept of “the American Dream” and claims that it is “the key to climbing out of the Great Recession, overcoming inequality, and achieving true prosperity.” (573) In his essay, his new definition of the American Dream is “the potential to work for an honest, secure way of life and save for the future,” (573) which contrasts against the original idea that it “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,” as proposed by James Truslow Adams. While this is an impressive redefinition of the

However, according to King’s thesis, he supposedly believes that “[the American Dream] is the key to climbing out of the Great Recession, overcoming inequality, and achieving true prosperity.” (573) Yet in his final statement, he concludes that “planning for the future by saving more and enacting policies that sustain economic growth are what will keep the American Dream alive.” (578) Hence, it cannot be determined whether King views the American Dream as a solution to the current economic issues present in America, or an ultimate goal that every American is still striving for, leading to a very confusing perspective on which is the cause and which is the effect. What’s more, despite how the essay seems to close on a relatively optimistic note, it seems to imply that there is an ever-present possibility of the American Dream dying, instead of being “more alive… than ever” (573), as King bravely declared in his thesis. As a result, King’s approach becomes inconsistent and cannot be placed in a comprehensible

In brushing the American Dream off as something “based on perception, on the way someone imagines how to be successful,” (575) that will “continue to exist as part of the American psyche” (578) King is immediately hypocritical in his words as he not only stated his redefinition of the American Dream in an earlier paragraph, that he “would redefine the American Dream today as the potential to work for an honest, secure way of life and save for the future,” (573) but also continued to enforce his perception onto the current economic situation. It is unreasonable for him to incessantly bring up his personal judgment of the American Dream’s current state when he had already concluded that its definition varies from person to person. In this essay, then, King is hypocritical in imposing his opinions onto his readers when no assumption can be made that they would agree with him or be persuaded by him for certain, once again leaving him unsuccessful in his attempt to link his suggestions and views up with his