American Dream

Defining the American dream cannot be done in a single succinct phrase it is open to a thousand interpretations. I think President Clinton came the closest “The American dream that we were all raised on is a simple but powerful one- if you work hard and play by the rules you should be given a chance to go as far as your God- given ability will take you.” The idea of the American dream to me is that one’s potential for success is decided by that individual’s interpretation of success and how hard they are willing to work to achieve their personal dreams. We are all born with the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness to me this coincides with the essential American dream. Every American is ultimately responsible for improving their life through hard work. However the right to pursue happiness/ success is by no means a guarantee of it, liberty means the freedom to succeed or fail. There will always be more losers then winners, it’s a simply fact of nature. Society cannot escape this fact simply because it hurts our feelings to think not everyone is going to be a winner. Losers will always complain that the system is unfair, that the game is rigged or that some factor out of their control decided their fate to them is say get over it, work harder and try something different. What’s great about America is not that everyone wins, but that who wins and who loses is the culmination of an individual’s actions and choices. We determine our own fate our choices our decisions are the primary factors of success. Is everyone born with the same opportunities or privilege? Obviously not, but every person in America has the ability to move up or down the social ladder through their individual actions. A man born poor, who dedicates himself to education and hard work is not bound to poverty for life. Our success is not promised but at the same time it is unlimited. I love the idea of being able to go as high as you can, it’s what inspires me to keep working, to keep studying and to pursue a meaningful degree. Without the potential to achieve success, there exists no motivation to push forward or to try to achieve more. People become stagnant and apathetic when they believe their fate is out of their hands. It is undeniable that some will have to work harder than others to achieve their success but at least in American the ability to get ahead is a possibility for everyone.