Synthesis Essay: The Fall Of The American Dream

Calyb Rankin

Roberson
English 150

4/21/16
The fall of the American dream

The All-American family with the wife, the husband, one boy and one girl, the steady income, the nice house, the two-car garage, the family pet, perhaps a Golden Retriever, and of course the white picket fence: all included in what many Americans believe as the “American dream”, where life is good, life is comfortable. But is this dream accessible? Can you have this convenient lifestyle? Or is it just that, a dream, a fantasy, a myth? The idea that virtues of hard work and ambition will only lead you to success has become a part of many Americans’ mentalities. Yet there are also those who do not believe in it. There are multiple factors that have changed the game

We have not seen much of the government stepping in and noticing things are out of place. McClelland in his article talks about how we have not had any president step up to the plate and take a swing at class inequality since Richard Nixon. Nixon made an attempt to save the economy by preventing foreign manufacturing to taking over, he also added a ten percent tariff on imported products. During the oil embargo and the rise of oil Nixon made a new standard for mpg on newly manufactured cars, as well as lowering the speed limit to 55 (McClelland 555). Is the American dream alive? Well that depends on your view on the American dream. McClelland found that 24 percent of Americans defined the American dream as not being in debt (McClelland 553). My personal belief is that the American dream is one where an average Joe can be born as an orphan and grow up to be the CEO of a large corporation. The American dream may very well still be alive, but it has become this distant goal with lots of obstacles in the way. I truly believe that the American dream is still alive , only that it has become a rare

Kevin Garnett was just another street “baller” with love for the game, but is now one of the top professional basketball players in the nation. Tupac Shakur, once lived in a homeless shelter, and later became one of the most popular rappers in history. Jim Carey, who at one point in his life lived with his family in their car, now a famous, well-off actor. “If they can do it, why can’t we?” is the attitude of some, while others still argue “There is no way.” In order to fully say that the “American Dream” is possible, one would have to define this “American Dream”. To some it is fame, to others it is money, to own property or to have certain freedoms, or maybe it is just to live humbly with a family in the suburbs. Some Americans have set their expectations so high that it has become to difficult to achieve, which causes many to give up on the American