Also I can never remember my dreams, which is very frustrating for me because everyone else gets to talk about their cool dreams but I'm just over here like the closest thing to dreaming I've had this past year is the occasional episode of sleep paralysis.
Anyways, I should probably get on task and write up this blog post about the American Dream.
The heck is the American Dream?
I would describe the American Dream as this outdated idea that in the United States all citizens can work to get a nice house with a yard, pursue the nuclear family dynamic, and overall be prosperous and successful. So if you work hard, you can get yourself a wife/husband and have tons of kids that you'll be able to support financially all while paying for your sweet house and other necessities. In the end you'll be pretty well off and can definitely splurge on some material goods or upgrading your appliances. In reality this outlook is super optimistic and probably can only be reached by white rich or upper middle class individuals. Not to mention the ideal family dynamic is exclusively for heterosexual couples even at this day in age.
If I could describe my American Dream is that by some miracle I'll be able to pay off my college debt before I'm middle aged.. That'd be sweet.. Oh and also not become homeless at any point, that's extra sweet.
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| Oh my god this is the first picture that comes up when you Google search "American family." I'm going to cry over this forever probably.. |
What is my definition of wealth?
I'm going to go the monetary route with this first off. I think a wealthy person is somebody who, first off, isn't in debt. If they have more money in their bank than they owe, that's really sweet and I wish they would adopt me. I guess I can look at other ways to define wealth though, such as personal satisfaction: that could be considered wealth. If you feel good, and are okay with where you are in life, you probably have some sort of wealth.
What is America's ideas towards wealth and poverty?
Everyone wants to be wealthy, as a kid it is driven into you that if you work hard you will get wealthy. Some of America doesn't seem to get, however, that there is more to getting wealthy than just hard work. I've heard people say "well they wouldn't be homeless if they got a job," which is the most naive thing you could say about people who are poverty stricken. Those who are wealthy can just say that "get a job," but if you are homeless and you have one outfit that you've worn for, as it's smell would tell you, way too long, chances are you are going to have a hard time getting near a job interview. When you look at the statistics for homeless people, many of them are veterans, mentally ill, people of color, or queer- society has even more barriers impeding their ability to become employed. America seems to be afraid of those in poverty in many cases, or are so in fear of their own wealth that somehow if they try to help these individuals financially in some way, they too will fall into poverty. So I'd say overall wealth is extremely significant to the lives of Americans since it determines who actually survives in our society to an extent.
My attitude towards wealth and poverty:
One time somebody told me to "live for your work," when I was uncertain about a future career path. I thought this was really bizarre "live for your work," enjoy it I guess is what they meant, and I'm pretty sure I laughed at him. It was the most ridiculous thing I had been told since my dad would always remind me that in the future I would be working to live. I would be working for myself to live and I would be working to make sure my brother could live. I've always been told when my parents kick it, I'm going to be taking care of my mentally ill brother. Right now, it still feels like I have until this school year's end before I really start thinking about wealth and poverty, but right now what I do know is that I'll be working till I'm on my deathbed. Which is okay, because I'd probably get bored if I retired, but realistically I am aware of the cost for medication and living, and I want to have enough money to not only survive but make sure my family is comfortable. I've seen how poverty can hurt people and I don't want my loved ones to suffer. Honestly, I'm not sure if any of this makes sense, I kind of zoned out while writing, so sorry.
Whoa okay.. that's all the questions... sweet. Oh yeah, check out when you Google search American Family, go to images and see how it has related searches and it's like "traditional american family," "american family insurance," and then, "white american family." Like okay, who the heck loves mayonnaise flavored families that much- that's the only category by race that pops up. Like white people must have searched "american family" and then for some reason decided that the few families with people of color were impeding their search so they had to make it more specific?? I just imagine something like, "MY DISGUSTING EYES CANNOT STAND THIS, I NEED PURE WHITE FAMILIES ONLY," being screamed as they bash their fingers into the keyboard to search "white american family" like when the hell are ya gonna need that? Go look at your own family picture or something.
I totally agree with you that the American Dream is outdated and should be assessed critically. I also agree that the idea of the American Dream is whitewashed and should not be homogenized.
ReplyDeleteFirst off, just wanna say that although being able to remember dreams can be sort of cool, it's also probably a huge waste of time so you're not really missing out on that much. I have to agree that the American Dream as it is usually portrayed is representative of the actual wants of only a small group of people, and trying to apply it as a measure of success or happiness for everyone doesn't make any sense. I like how you actually brought in the real consequences of poverty and happiness as far as job choices go, because I think that it's stuff that we all know is the case but we don't like to think about it very often or very critically. Awesome post!
ReplyDeleteFirst off, and unrelated to the task, I could not figure your site out! The "post a comment" thing is like black, and those skeletons are dancing everywhere! You did add those, right? And it's not me, or my computer?
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I think your post is very honest, and reveals a lot of truth about the society. As much as people don't want to admit it, America is dominated by a small percentage, and those people are "wealthy" in the ways that we see it, and they're probably white. Look at the IB programme, most of us are white! There is hardly any diversity! And I guess most of us have a goal, using it to our advantage to pursue a higher education. I would also agree with you about how those who are poverty stricken aren't always able to get back up and restart. I've known some remarkable people thus far in my life, and some of them only had a little suitcase of belongings and that was what they called theirs. They went through ten months living out of a bag, but they made it..eventually it got better. But I've known them forever, and they still are struggling, even at their best. Anyway, I think your comments are well thought out, and that you approached it by using data. Nice job!
Okay so to start out I thought your commentary was spot on like 10/10. I really like what you were saying about the "live for your work" thing because I think we get that a lot. Like I've been told countless times that finding a job we love is important and I can definitely see both sides to that argument. Living in the US is expensive and that's not taking into account any illnesses or other things that can happen that cost a lot of money. It's important to be able to not be homeless and to be able to make sure that your family can afford to be healthy. And that pursuit can be very, very expensive in the US. So expensive that people have started seeking healthcare outside of the US to make it affordable (this is a good way of explaining it, although it's wayyy oversimplified http://imgur.com/gallery/jkSI7v9). But, on the other hand, I've seen what it's like to work in a job that isn't at all good. That causes a lot of stress and isn't good for anyone involved. There are those lucky few who actively want to be in a job that they'll be able to realistically support themselves on. It's a crappy situation to be in where you have to choose financial stability or long term happiness in a job.
ReplyDeleteLuv the new background.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, really good post! It was a good idea to answer all of the guiding questions like you did, since you seemed to have a lot to say for each of them. The "live for your work" bit is especially good. Optimal society: everybody is able to be paid for doing what they love.
My favorite part of your post is that picture. The man in the middle looks like he doesn't belong in it.
I absolutely believe that what you've said about the American dream being outdated is right, and agree that the American Dream as was seen say, 80 years ago definitely needs to change and be more up to date with the times. I also think that you were spot on in describing how difficult it is to achieve wealth for some nowadays, and the lack of understanding that those in privileged situations have for the position of those who would happily work for their own betterment, but frequently find obstacles. I've heard a number of people talk about the poverty issues so many are facing today with total lack of comprehension of how difficult things are when the very specific steps of achieving American status and wealth are restricted to those who never had or have lost their access. I really loved this post.
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