American Dream Themes in I Hear America Singing and The Great Gatsby

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America has had a huge past time full of wars, party’s, economic failures, and some great Presidents. The United States has had its ups and downs but, has always overcome its problems. The United States has had some Presidents and other great people like Martin Luther King Jr. and Abraham Lincoln but they, unfortunately, were killed and assassinated. Even America today is not perfect, it has tons of problems that need to be solved. Hopefully in future years we can better the country and save our country. People these days always talk about how our country is just amazing. Don’t get me wrong, we have a great country but, it can still improve a lot. The easiest way to explain the American Dream is, the belief that anyone, regardless of where they were born or what class they were born into, can attain their own version of success in a society where upward mobility is possible for everyone. The American Dream is attained, rather than by chance, by commitment, risk-taking, and hard work. Anybody can achieve the American Dream but, I promise it is not as easy as it sounds.

Most of the people in The Great Gatsby have achieved the American Dream. Everyone in the book is very rich except for the people who live in the valley of ashes. Some people inherited their money and some made their money the hard way. For instance, Nick Carraway worked very hard for all of his money by writing and bond business. In my opinion, That’s the American dream. “So i decided to go East and learn the bond business” (Fitzgerald 3) this shows how he was into the bond business and he also was a talented writer. Nick gives us an overall perspective of the lives of those who reach for the American dream, building up an opinion about it. Nick's past, not having an upper-class family, is the reason why he is never going to be equal to East Egg people (Old money ). Gatsby also is a great example of the American Dream. He literally came from nothing and that the first time he met Daisy Buchanan, he said he was “a penniless young man.”. His fortune, we are told, was the result of a bootlegging business – he “bought up a lot of side-street drug-stores here and in Chicago” and sold illegal alcohol over the counter to strangers. Bootlegging is the making, distribution, or sale of goods, especially beer and liquor. Gatsby actually dropped out of college. He had an offer to work in the copper business with Dan Cody. Gatsby’s American Dream unfortunately ended early when he got shot and killed at the end of the movie and book. Someone that did not have trouble achieving the American Dream is Tom Buchanan because he inherited every single bit of his money.

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'I Hear America Singing' is a big list of people working away. The narrator of the poem says that he hears 'America singing,' and then describes the people who make up America—the mechanics, the carpenters, the shoemakers, the mothers, and the seamstresses. People that make up America are striving and pushing to achieve there dream. Some people think that achieving that goal is easy until they try it for there selves and they figure out that money does not grow on trees. For some it’s easy and for some it’s hard, it all depends on what kind of work ethic you have. Through his poem 'I Hear America Singing,' Walt Whitman further explores the concept of patriotism and the common man. He uses the singing metaphor to reflect the positive contributions made by common American people to society. Whitman writes, 'The varied carols I hear, / those of mechanics, each singing their own as they ought to be / blithe and heavy.'(Whitman 2) He continues to list daily jobs where they work. “The carpenter singing his as he measures his plank or beam,”(Whitman 4) this sentence is basically saying that there is a guy singing while he is working which can lead to achieving the American Dream.

'Let America Be America Again' is a 1935 poem by Langston Hughes, an American poet. ... In addition to condemning America's unjust life, the poem conveys a sense of optimism that the American Dream will come soon. America claims it's about equality, but not everyone was always free to do what they wanted. America stands for land where anything is possible, but greed and corruption are stopping people from coming forward on a daily basis. The poem is a comparison between what America wants to be and what was witnessed by Hughes and others. Langston Hughes is writing a poem by someone who thinks America isn't up to what it should be. The speech is furious and resentful. He refers to the people who came here with hopes and dreams and are let down. “Let it be the dream it used to be”(Hughes 2) this explains how people thought America would be the best place ever and when they came over here, they weren’t treated very good.

Many Americans see the lack of opportunities for education and work, a stagnant or recessionary economy, poor political direction, and global trends as major barriers to achieving the American Dream. Apparently, the word 'American Dream' was coined in 1931 by historian James Truslow Adams, referring to The dream of a land where life should be better and wealthier and fuller for every man, with opportunities for every man according to his skill or achievement. The lower class people unfortunately have the most obstacles when trying to reach the American Dream. Also way back in 1619 when the slave trade and things like that started, it was almost impossible for them to reach the American Dream. They had way to many obstacles and road blocks in their way. There are so many obstacles these days, that people do not even want to go for the American Dream, they think it is not possible to achieve.

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American Dream Themes in I Hear America Singing and The Great Gatsby. (2022, August 12). Edubirdie. Retrieved December 21, 2024, from https://edubirdie.com/examples/i-hear-america-singing-let-america-be-america-again-and-the-great-gatsby-representation-of-american-dream/
“American Dream Themes in I Hear America Singing and The Great Gatsby.” Edubirdie, 12 Aug. 2022, edubirdie.com/examples/i-hear-america-singing-let-america-be-america-again-and-the-great-gatsby-representation-of-american-dream/
American Dream Themes in I Hear America Singing and The Great Gatsby. [online]. Available at: <https://edubirdie.com/examples/i-hear-america-singing-let-america-be-america-again-and-the-great-gatsby-representation-of-american-dream/> [Accessed 21 Dec. 2024].
American Dream Themes in I Hear America Singing and The Great Gatsby [Internet]. Edubirdie. 2022 Aug 12 [cited 2024 Dec 21]. Available from: https://edubirdie.com/examples/i-hear-america-singing-let-america-be-america-again-and-the-great-gatsby-representation-of-american-dream/
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