2. What includes the American Dream?
The concept of American Dream is very old, but the term was explained much later, in 1931 by historian James Truslow Adams in his book “Epic of America”. He wrote:
“The American Dream .......” (muss man nicht korrigieren)
America was once seen as a land of opportunity, because of an abundance of land and resources. It is also opportunity to make individual choices without the restrictions of class, caste, religion, race, or ethnic group.
The idea of the American Dream is also rooted in the second sentence of the Declaration of Independence which states that "all men are created equal" and that they have "certain inalienable Rights "including "Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."
Now, in the 21st century the immigrants come to the United States to study at its well-known universities or work in its market leader industries for generally higher salaries than in their home countries. They also came to see democracy and to have liberty.
They want to realize their American Dream, like many of borne Americans.
Famous people prove that the expression “American Dream” is still alive: ........
2.2.1 Difficulties about achieving the American Dream for a foreigner:
- In America most immigrants experience culture shock , especially if they have never visited or spent much time in a country very different from their own. First they see through rose coloured glasses. The new culture provides fun and adventure for them, they dream about a new easy life, about welfare and prosperity. Soon, though, the fact that they really must adapt to the new culture, the second stage of culture shock begins. This is characterized by a desire to run away from the whole experience. The third stage of culture shock involves even more resistance. The person in culture shock fights with the ideas, values and expectations of the new culture. The last stage is acceptance. Typical symptoms of the culture shock are sadness, loneliness, melancholy and confusion. Some immigrants may romanticize their home country and get nostalgia.
- Living in obscurity how to start a new life, find necessary departments; bad or wrong knowledge and idea about the life in USA.
- The language barrier is a big problem for the most immigrants, especially for adults and the elderly. It has a negative influence on the job, finding friends, talking to the police or understanding social workers.
- Finding a job and working in America is also a difficulty. In the country of unyielding hope people work hard and work often. Americans generally work an average of 42 hours per week and take an average of 16 vacation days per year. As a result, Americans are often considered workaholics by the rest of the world.
- Take a risk to lose everything (family, friends, money, job in the home country, peace of mind and hope for a better life).
2.2.3 Other problems in the life of U.S. citizens:
For many people the American Dream is far from reality.
The number of homeless people within the United States continues to grow.
Many people lose their homes to any variety of natural catastrophes including but not limited to: floods, forest fires, storms, and earthquakes. In 2005 hurricanes Katrina and Rita displaced over 1 million Americans. Tornadoes destroyed entire towns in Tennessee in 2006.
The next problem is debt. One billion Visa credit cards are used worldwide, and nearly half of that number is carried by U.S. consumers. Americans addiction to "buying now" and "paying later," has a negative effect in the life of the United States citizens.
About 43% of American families spend more money then they earn each year.
Average households carry some $8,000 in credit card debt.
Consequently being in debt may even affect you when you apply for a job or to rent an apartment. It is become more and more common for prospective employers and landlords to check your credit history when making a decision about hiring people or renting apartments to them.
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