The American Dream. Success, Failure and the Female Dreamers

Bachelor Thesis from the year 2011 in the subject American Studies - Literature, grade: 107/110, , course: American Studies, language: English, abstract: In this work, what will be analyzed is the evolution over time of the famous phenomenon known as the American Dream. The next three chapters will mainly focus on whether or not the dream led more immigrants to success or failure, and also paying particular emphasis to how the dream was and is interpreted by most of the women living the American Dream. This work is divided into three chapters, starting from the discovery of the continent where the dream is best associated: the United States of America. Secondly, understanding the meaning of the term 'American Dream', its formation and who has used it throughout the course of its history. It will also focus on how the dream will be analyzed in a more current twentieth century context and understanding, nevertheless assessing the female dreamers through close analysis of a novel and a poem. People have always had dreams. We could acknowledge that today's dreams might be unrealistic because of corruption, however, the dreams that people had in the past were of a different nature. Success only meant having the bare necessities: a job, food for your family, new clothes a couple of times a year, a house or an apartment, and maybe even enough money to commute by transit. Achieving this success, implied much struggles, sacrifice and hard work. Looking back at the scenario, it appears to have been a very harsh experience for those who had immigrated to America. As a result of the many sacrifices that were made in pursuit of their own personal and familial goals; such as monetary success and a better life of freedom and opportunity for their descendants. Their goals consisted of only the basic life values such as personal freedom through equal rights and opportunity that we today consider to not only be essential to life, but entitlements. Thanks to the millions of hard-working immigrants, and the hundreds of thousands of soldiers and protestors who have died in the name of democracy and the rights and freedoms that today allow us to live a better life: in pursuit of their own personal and familial goals, it was the first immigrants to America who also helped build and sustain what is today a global economic and military powerhouse and international authority - the United States of America.