AMERICAN DREAM: THE GAME OF LIFE

AMERICAN DREAM

THE GAME OF

The American Dream narrative has The original American Dream empha- of freedom, perseverance and the “selfpowered the hopes and aspirations sized personal freedom, a strong work made man” predates 1931. Before the U.S. of Americans for generations. Pop ethic and the overcoming of obstacles as was established, British settlers were imculture classics like “Leave it to measures of success. Dr. Deanna Sharpe, migrating to North America to escape the Beaver,” a ‘50s sitcom about the everyday a professor at the University of Missou- religious persecution they faced in Europe, life of an upper-middle class family, helped ri—Columbia who teaches the course “As- and they built their new lives in search of paint a picture of the perfect American life: sessing the American Dream,” said Adams the same ideals Adams wrote about. But a beautiful family, an expensive house and envisioned a change in direction from the Adams’ version of the American Dream the lack of want for anything. traditional caste-like social structure of Eu- promoted unity over competition and en-

The norm of what the ideal life in Amer- ropean countries, where the circumstances couraged Americans to work together to ica looks like plays a major role in individ- someone was born into predetermined their improve life for the masses. In the context ual financial decisions and large-scale gov- quality of life. of the Great Depression and World War ernment policies on housing and business. “Adams was familiar with a social sys- II, this shared dream brought comfort and But the American Dream is elusive and tem where who you were and what you hope to Americans, giving them a common hard to define, as the definition has evolved could achieve were defined by to whom goal they could all strive for, Dr. Sharpe over the decades and left each generation you were born. Once a peasant, always a said. with a different perception of what it means peasant,” Dr. Sharpe said. “Consequently, “Adams wrote his now famous descripto “make it” in he was amazed by tion in the midst of the Great Depression — the U.S. a social structure think [COVID-19] lockdown and shortages

The term that allowed one to going on for five years versus a few months American People desperately needed hope and be the best they can to get a small sense of what that was like,” Dream dates there was honestly no way to go but up. be and move up in Dr. Sharpe said. “People desperately needback to 1931, His comments may have inspired others social and econom- ed hope, and there was honestly no way when James to keep on going in hope of better days ic class status. The to go but up. His comments may have inTruslow Ad- ahead.” core of the Amer- spired others to keep on going in hope of ams first used ican Dream is that better days ahead.” it in his book, - Dr. Deanna Sharpe, by taking personal As WWII came to an end, the country “The Epic of Professor at the University of Missouri — responsibility for entered a period of optimism and economAmerica.” Columbia oneself and apply- ic prosperity. Government programs for He described ing diligent effort, veterans helped them earn a college eduthe American one can achieve cation, find jobs and buy homes, leading Dream as the “dream of a land in which meaningful and significant goals that bene- to the creation of the modern-day middle life should be better and richer and fuller fit oneself and those in one’s circle of care class, RBHS history teacher Maranda Musfor everyone, with opportunity for each ac- and influence.” toe said. cording to ability or achievement.” The American Dream’s original premise “WWII veterans, particularly white vet-

erans, came home to programs to help them From 1947 to 1973, the U.S. GDP grew gests Americans are moving away from settle back into civilian life,” Mustoe said. 2% per year on average. After 1973, the wealth acquisition as a standard for success “They used the G.I. Bill to get a college ed- economic growth slowed to 0.2% per year, and are once again focusing on less materiucation. They used federal grants and loans according to the Bureau of Economic Anal- alistic factors, such as freedom and fulfillfor veterans to purchase homes. And they ysis. ing one’s potential. moved out of crowded cities and into the By the end of the 20th century, the According to a 2014 survey conducted newly established suburbs.” American Dream had become almost en- by the Center for a New American Dream,

Combined with the Industrial Revo- tirely conflated with homeownership. The 78% of Americans said they considered lution of the 1950s, the meaning of the government incorporated the increase of personal freedom extremely important in American Dream started to shift away from home sales into public policy; in 2003, their vision of the American Dream, while equality and community and more towards President George W. Bush signed the only 23% said they considered achieving materialism. Rather than building a life for American Dream Downpayment Act, sub- affluence as very important. RBHS history oneself from humble beginnings, Ameri- sidizing home loans. The pressure to buy a teacher Austin Reed said while the paths cans began to measure success in terms of home and be viewed as successful would to success are becoming increasingly diwealth — who lived in the nicest neighbor- eventually have unfortunate consequences, verse, the original premise of the American hood, who had the newest technology or especially as credit became more common- Dream should still be a common unifying who drove the most expensive car. place and Americans accrued more debt in goal.

During this time businesses also began search of the Dream. “The heart of the American Dream is to frequently use Cheap credit something that we can all buy into,” Reed the American and lax lending said. “We all want a better life. We all want Dream term in advertisements We all want to, if we have children, be standards fueled a growing housto, if we have children, be able to hand something to them and say, ‘I've made to make the pur- able to hand something to them and say ing bubble in the something of myself in my career.’ It's not chasing of their 'I've made something of myself in my ca- early 2000s that a house in a white picket fence, necessarily. products seem reer.' It's not a house with a white picket eventually col- Maybe it’s starting a barbecue restaurant, patriotic, espe- fence necessarily." lapsed and led to getting another [doctoral] degree, writing a cially within the real estate indus- Dr. Deanna Sharpe, the mortgage crisis of 2008-2009. book. We all can hang our hat on this idea that we can be better.” try. As a result, most Americans Professor at the University of Missouri — Columbia The recession that followed cost Dr. Sharpe said she has also noticed an increased awareness among younger genbegan to associ- many Americans erations about disparities and injustices that ate the term with their jobs, savings have historically made it disproportionateconsumerism, which RBHS history teach- and homes. ly more difficult for certain populations to er Matthew Johnson said is a problematic In President Barack Obama’s inaugural achieve the American Dream. For many, definition. address in 2009, he spoke of the American the Dream now includes movement to-

“I think an issue with the definition Dream and young people’s loss of confi- wards equity, wider opportunity and broadof the American Dream is that it is often dence in it. He suggested the Dream was er acceptance of difference, which brings put alongside money. In America, we see not entirely lost; it was people’s under- the American Dream closer to where it was money as success as opposed to family, standing of it that had to change. when Adams first defined it, Dr. Sharpe legacy [or] community,” Johnson said. Although Generation X (those born be- said. “That's why when we talk about someone tween 1965-1980) and millennials (those “Adams challenged us to recognize the achieving the American Dream, we focus born between 1981-1996) have continued responsibility we have for creating our fuon a rags to riches story like Oprah instead to face economic challenges, there seems ture. My recent students have responded of looking at other, potentially more ful- to be a shift in younger generations’ per- to his challenge by saying that for them, filled, individuals. I think this leads to a ceptions of the American Dream, perhaps it’s more about self-actualization than lot of people overworking themselves and in part due to the recessions they experi- ‘stuff-acquisition,’” Dr. Sharpe said. “I spending money they don't have in order to enced in their youth. Millennials, for exam- wonder if my next group of students will look flashy, which only hurts them, and the ple, are generally waiting longer to buy a have a wider lens for the Dream, not just a overall economy, in the long run.” home and have incurred far less debt than better for me Dream, but a better for ‘we’

The baby boomer generation (those baby boomers, excluding student debt, Dream. Ironically, if they do, aren’t we sort born between 1946-1964) grew up with according to the Federal Reserve Bank of of back where we started in defining the this materialistic perception of the Ameri- New York’s Center for Microeconomic Dream — making decisions and taking accan Dream. They faced different econom- Data. tions today that we hope will yield a brightic conditions, however, than their parents. Research from the last decade also sug- er tomorrow?”