The American Dream is an opportunity to succeed and have a better life. The American Dream is freedom and equality. It’s a way to get better rights to live a life where their choices are their own choices. It is also new opportunity to attain jobs, better pay, and a better lifestyle. This dream gives people fair immigration processes, safe working conditions, voting rights for men, and women. The American Dream is a way for people to gain nice private residences. It is hope for people to attain a life they’ve wanted for a long time. People who were able to obtain the dream were Europeans, farmers, exodusters, cowboys, settlers, big businesses, women, consumers, and entrepreneurs. Workers weren’t able to obtain the dream at first, but the government started to establish laws that made working conditions safer and helped workers feel safe when working. Government also established better pay, so, although at first the working conditions were poor, American citizens put their poor working status into the sight of the government, so now the workers are feeling good when they work. The American Dream was attainable because it gave different groups of people a way to live their lives freely without thought of being mistreated and allow them to experience different freedoms that they’ve never had before moving to America. The American Dream was a way for people to benefit their lives with different opportunities offered, different rights they have, and the equality and fairness that their dreams held. The dream gives hope to people, living in poverty, and ensure them that everything will get better.
One reason the American Dream was attainable was Westward Expansion. Westward Expansion expanded the opportunities that the American Dream gives because this expansion gave America more territories which increases new land opportunities. The American Dream, for people during this time period, was to helped uncivilized areas become civilized. It helped groups of people have better living conditions and make their own profit. It was a new chance for job opportunities and a better way of life due to all the new goods purchased and traded. Farmers, Exodusters, Settlers, and Entrepreneurs were able to obtain the Dream. Farmers achieved the dream because the Homestead Act motivated them. This act gave new equipment for farming. The new land gave them private property to raise crops and cattle, and the invention of barbed wire allowed them to enclose their property to keep their crops and animals in their land. Exodusters were newly freed slaves that moved west to be free. They were able to move west and enjoy the land opportunities that they didn’t have when they were slaves. Settlers were able to have achieve a way of trading easier due to the transcontinental railroads that were created and having barbed wire to keep their trading goods locked in one area. Cowboys who moved West were able successfully trade their cattle, without hassle, through the railroad system. Entrepreneurs were able to live in a economy where they could run their own trade and industry and not have the government control, or own, that. (Capitalism). In a newspaper advertisement, there was a notice for farmers about a new invention, barbed wire fence. The Homestead Act gave farmers new equipment like barbed wire, to enclose their own property that they own (Document A 1890). Westward Expansion was a way to expand land and trade to benefit the different group of people. There is a belief in the United States that settlers were destined to expand across North America. That belief, Manifest Destiny, shows that expanding was a big benefit to settlers and others.
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Another reason the American Dream was attainable was immigration. Immigration allowed new people to achieve a dream where their rights are better. Immigrants were able to experience new opportunities that America provided. For people during this time period, the American Dream was to escape poverty from their old countries, gain profit, better job opportunities, and better living conditions. The dream was also way to a better lifestyle and to be treated fairly and equally. European immigrants were able to obtain the dream during this time. They were able to obtain the dream because they achieved jobs and a place to live. They gained freedom of speech and religion, amendment rights. They were able to live without religious persecution, and practice their beliefs freely. In an article, a social settlement hull house was mentioned. This hull house shows that there were services that helped immigrants improve living conditions. A social settlement was established, by Jane Addams in Chicago, to provide the poor with the help and resources they needed (Stephens 1899). Immigrants were able to obtain the dream by moving to America. They were able to live a free life and cherish their new opportunities that came with moving to America. The American Dream gave immigrants a way to live a better lifestyle by achieving new things like rights, jobs, and better homes.
The Progressive Era was a reason the American Dream was attainable. The Progressive movement was a huge part of the American Dream because it gave people rights to show that they, American citizens, are all treated equally and fairly. During this period, the American Dream was for women to get the right to vote and also get better work conditions. They believed they should rights like men do. Women, workers, consumers, and children were able to obtain this dream during the Progressive Era. They were able to obtain this dream because women got the president to sign the 19th Amendment, which gave women the right to vote. The Pure Food & Drug Act was created to allow consumers to have expiration dates so they don’t eat spoiled food. The Meat Inspection Act was created to inspect meat so no Americans could get sick. The Illinois Factory Act gave women limited working hours, for men as well, and prohibited child labor, which allowed children to focus on education instead of labor. Teddy Roosevelt stated, “ Working women have the same need to protection that working men have; the ballot is as necessary for one class as to the other; we do not believe that with the two sexes there is identity of function, but we do believe there should be equality of right.' (1912). Roosevelt believed that the workers need better conditions to be safe no matter the gender. The Progressive Movement allowed the American Dream to come into full effect. This movement allowed everyone to get the rights that they deserved. It even gave children a chance to grow up knowing enough to get themselves job opportunities. It gave rights to show equality and fairness in America.
The American Dream was also attainable due to imperialism. Imperialism was a way for the American Dream to be brought to other nations by America. During this period, the American Dream was to spread democratic ideas overseas and allow new territories to join America to benefit not only the U.S. but themselves. The Dream was to find a new source of protection that will protect us from old, and new, enemies. People able to obtain the dream were new territories such as Panama, Alaska, and the Philippines. They were able to spread christianity around the world. New territories were able to spread their markets to American products. That allowed them to spread American culture around the world, like music, and gain profit from trade. They allowed American soldiers to station there and let them refuel and rest in order for the soldiers to protect the new territories. Panama was able to win their independence from Colombia and helped America make the Panama Canal which made trade for everyone faster and easier. President McKinley brought the idea of annexing the Philippines to Senate. He brought this idea because McKinley cared about the Cuban and wanted to treat them with respect. “And one night late it came to me this way… That we could not give them back to Spain- that would be cowardly and dishonorable; That we could not turn them over to France or Germany- our commercial rivals in the Orient- that would be bad business and discreditable; That we could not leave them to themselves- they were unfit for self-government- and they would soon have anarchy and misrule there worse than Spain’s was; and That there was nothing left for us to do but to take them all, and to educate the Filipinos, and uplift and civilize and Christianize them, and by God’s grace do the very best we could by them, as our fellowmen for whom Christ also died.”(McKinley Document B). Imperialism gave new territories freedom they didn’t have before. Other territories went from not having a say, nor rights, to getting rights of freedom of speech, or religion, and having a say in what goes on.
The American Dream was attainable due to industrialization. Industrialization paved way for big businesses to increase trade. Industrialization made the Dream easier to obtain by creating opportunities for owners to create businesses. During the industrial period, the Dream was to benefit big businesses and make it easier, and faster, when it comes to the creation of products. The Dream was to make money by producing and selling products globally. The people able to obtain the dream are big business owners like Carnegie, Rockefeller, Cooke, and Morgan. Big business owners like Carnegie, Rockefeller, Cooke and Morgan were able to obtain the dream because they were able to make products to sell to consumers or trade. The new equipments and techniques discovered allowed them to make products faster, so they could make their own profit and sell globally. The Interstate Commerce Act addressed the problem of railroad monopolies by setting guidelines for how the railroads could do business. This made 'just and reasonable' rate changes; prohibited special rates or rebates for individual shippers; prohibited 'preference' in rates for any particular localities, shippers, or products; forbade long-haul/short-haul discrimination. This helped penalize competition so each business can achieve the American Dream by making it easier and faster to create and sell products. (1887). Industrialization gave businesses a way to make a profit by creating factories and discovering new equipment and techniques. They were able to sell these products to consumers, or trade their products globally. More goods were able to be produced by an industrialized economy. Industrialization makes an economy run more efficiently, allowing more goods to be produced and more labor freed up to improve the economy still further.
I want to write a body paragraph based off of the Roaring 20s. My source will be 1920’s Advertisements.
In conclusion, the American Dream was attainable through Westward Expansion, Immigration, the progressive era, imperialism, industrialization, and the roaring ’20s. Westward Expansion allowed new and different land opportunities due to the expansion of America. It gave new equipment to farmers to produce and sell products without hassle. Immigration was a way for people with cultural differences to come to America do get away from oppression, and find a way towards happiness. Immigrants were able to own their houses and be treated better than before. The progressive era allowed women and workers to have equal rights and allowed consumers to find fresh food. The progressive era allowed women the right to vote, allowed workers to feel safer when working, and gave consumers a chance to eat fresh food instead of expired food. Imperialism was a way for new territories to find protection from enemies, and be helped by the U.S. Industrialization allowed businesses to blossom due to the machines helping in making products faster and trading them for profit. The roaring 20s was a period of time that brought economic growth and better profit to business owners. With new inventions, more consumers were able to purchase services that would be recreational uses. This period of time created a social and political change. Many people have been able to achieve the American Dream because, when coming to America, opportunity is everywhere.
Works Cited
- “Interstate Commerce Act .” [Template] Interstate Commerce Act, 1887, docs.google.com/document/d/1-Gwb3zPwdTuTqsoaQ0K2ZZ2hf5xjEjGeZmYFYSwpsy4/edit.
- McKinley. “Document B.” Imperialism DBQ Packet, 2019, docs.google.com/document/d/1BtKoXdkps9o23ef_yvlHHRoEBrB3zdSLoVmHJfaMBnw/edit.
- “Newspaper Advertisement for Barbed Wire.” CP Sources for Study Day , 1890, docs.google.com/document/d/1bK1fD70MaRqQQCgMXEggNl7yWq2-3zCIkLwfOpNeRvo/edit.
- Roosevelt, Teddy. “Quotations from the Speeches and Other Works of Theodore Roosevelt.” Brief Biography - Theodore Roosevelt Association, Theodore Roosevelt Association, 6 Aug. 1912, www.theodoreroosevelt.org/site/c.elKSIdOWIiJ8H/b.9297493/k.7CB9/Quotations_from_the_speeches_and_other_works_of_Theodore_Roosevelt.htm.
- Stephens, Alzina Parsons. “‘Life in a Social Settlement Hull House’ .” Immigration Document Analysis, “Chicago” Article, Mar. 1899, docs.google.com/document/d/1twRbqr8PTXf43sYudeoLmXo99hI9560Z2CA3RiYfIRA/edit.
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