To be an American is to be proud of your flag and country, to be willing to suffer for America, and to never be willing to give up. In John McCain’s essay “Veterans Day: Never forget their duty” he talks about his friend ,Mike, who was in the same prison camp as he was in and showed the pride that he and his fellow prisoners had for their flag. The American Flag is the most iconic symbol of America and to express pride for The American Flag is to show pride in America itself. On page 7 paragraph 8 “Every afternoon, before we had a bowl of soup, we would hang MIke’s shirt on the wall of our cell and say the Pledge of Allegiance. I know that saying the Pledge of Allegiance may not seem the most important or meaningful part of our day now, but I can assure you that for those men in that stark prison cell, it was, indeed, the most important and meaningful event of our day”. John McCain shares with us that the most important part of their day was to say the Pledge of Allegiance. …show more content…
On page 7 paragraph 9 “One day, the Vietnamese searched our cell and discovered Mike’s shirt with the flag sewn inside and removed it. That evening they returned , opened the door of the cell, called for Mike Christian to come out, closed the door of the cell and, for the benefit of all of us, beat Mike Christian severely for the next couple of hours.Mike was willing to be beating for the flag, if he wasn’t then he would have never sewn the flag in the first place but by him doing that he not only instilled pride in himself for America but also in the hearts of those who witnessed
“Land of the free and the home of the brave.” This line has represented the United States for decades. These words were captured in The Star Spangled Banner by Francis Scott Key and since 1913, the United States has adopted The Star-Spangled Banner as its national anthem. We have used the Red, White, and Blue as one of our nation’s symbols. It has fifty stars, to represent the number of states we have in our Union. The military pledges its allegiance to the flag and the country which it represents at all costs. We are the land of the free and the home of the brave, and we are proud to show it.
“I Pledge Allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.” As Americans, we say this to honor our state and because we are proud of what we as a citizen of America have done to make it the America that is today. Americans weren’t the only ones that helped; veterans were a big part of the success that made our country the America that I believe in.
When the flag was finished and he showed the men, they all saluted it and many began to cry. When the guards came across Mike’s treasure, he was beaten bloody. But remarkably, “He recovered in a couple of weeks and immediately started looking for another piece of cloth,” (Thorsness 109). This event is a clear demonstration of the pride each and every soldier feels for America. It demonstrated their ever growing desire for freedom.
The dissenting opinion to the previous idea is that the government's legitimate interest in preserving the symbolic value of the flag is, however, essentially the same that may have motivated a particular act of flag burning. The flag uniquely symbolizes the ideas of liberty, equality, and tolerance -- ideas that Americans have passionately defended and debated throughout our history. The flag embodies the spirit of our national commitment to those ideals. To the world, the flag is our promise that we will continue to strive for these ideals. To us, the flag is a reminder both that the struggle for li...
The literal flag as described in the previous paragraph is a metaphor. After the “perilous fight o’er our ramparts,” our flag is still “gallantly streaming” means that even the chaos of war has not torn our country apart. The flag flying high also represents our victory and triumph over our enemies and symbolizes our freedom and solidarity. Key was interpreting the flag and its meaning.
Inspired by a dream in which he had seen himself painting a huge American Flag, he then decided to do just that. An Army veteran who served in the Korean War, a common view of the painting is that of the utmost patriotism. John’s has stated he doesn’t have a specific meaning in his work, he would rather the viewers create their own interpretation. Considering the military background of its artist, one could very well argue that Flag could be representative of the strength of our country, particularly during a time of war. John’s was said to be named after a military hero, Sergeant William Jasper, who raised a flag in the revolutionary war. Flag could be a symbol of John’s himself, given the history of his name. Opposite to the previously mentioned views, Alfred Barr (Museum of Modern Art) had wanted to purchase Flag, but feared it could be seen as unpatriotic. As such, he had another person purchase the painting and donate it to the museum later. Flag in itself is a statement, as John’s stayed true to the American Flag. One could very easily take a subject and recreate it into something of their own to make a bold and obvious statement. John’s managed to take a commonplace subject and create something else with it while still keeping it true to its
...nd innocent villagers of My Lai, it was a time when American’s questioned their own as being “bad guys” or “good guys”. Were America’s tortuous and cruel acts to be considered patriotic or dishonorable? Some Americans, with bitter feelings for all the American lives lost in the Vietnam War, gave credit to Lieutenant Calley for leading troops in participating in such an atrocious event. History shows that there is still much debate on some facts of the massacre and many stories and opinions, although we will never know the facts exactly, what we do know is that America will never forget this tragic event, it will be talked about in American History for many years to come, and the Vietminh hearts will always fill with sadness when they think of the many lives that were lost on that tragic day in history, their minds will always have unspeakable memories of that day.
Just because you are not of America decent does not mean you can not be American. If you love American as much as your home country, you are an American. if you wake up everyday happy to be in America, you are an American. If america changes your life for the better, you are an American. Being an American is simply being proud of your country. It is wanting your country to succeed. Being an American is standing behind your country in disasters. It is helping your country to overcome major disasters. Being an American is being
...o captivating. Additionally, it does make an extensive number of appearances at various ceremonies and great events, such as the opening ceremonies of sporting events and national holidays such as Independence and Memorial Day. However, “The Star Spangled Banner” embodies a much broader and more abstruse, cryptic connotation. It illustrates America’s attitude of perseverance when facing seemingly indomitable adversities or unachievable ambitions. It represents America’s unfaltering faith, traditional values, and ethical laws that have come to characterize America’s individuality. It signifies America’s past, a historic reminder that unites the people and instills, in their hearts, a profound sense of patriotism and glory. Most of all, “The Star Spangled Banner” symbolizes the truth of what America truly means–“the land of the free and the home of the brave”.
Like any other country America has national symbols such as the American Flag, the Pledge of Allegiance, and the “Start Spangled Banner.” To be an American means that you support these things to fullest extent and hold them in the highest regard. This means that When the National Anthem is played or the Pledge of Allegiance is recited, it is our duty as Americans to stand, remove our hats and cover our hearts as a sign of the utmost respect. These symbols are a sign of our heritage. They stand for what we believe in, who we are, and where we come from. We are Americans. We believe in life liberty and the pursuit of happiness. True Americans speak the national language, English, and know that America is a one of a kind country that cannot be beat. We have worked hard over the years to become the wealthiest and the most prosperous country in the entire world. As Americans we have the right to drive a Hummers, the right to live in luxurious houses, because after all we’...
The definition of an American, is someone who is a citizen of the United States. Many African Americans, and immigrants struggled to become actual Americans in their lifetimes, because others didn 't see them as actual people; and based it on the color of someone. In today 's world people who live in America consider themselves as Americans, but to me there is certain qualities that make a person an American. To me being a true American is not based off of what Country they were born in, or what race their parents are, or even if they were immigrated to the United States. People from all over the world would say that maybe people could base this off of someone 's family heritage, or where they were before they came to America. If you were asked what makes an American an American what would you base it off of? To me there are four specific characteristics that make a person a true American; those three things would be, freedom, individuality, belief in the country, and happiness.
It means to me to a true American is to stand up for the pledge and honor our troops that fought for us. Without the troops fighting for us, we would not be free and we would probably not be here or if we were it would not be same. Some people do not care about the people who are fighting us. Pretty much everyone takes everything they have for granted.
“Some folks are born to wave the flag, ooh, they’re red, white and blue.” Creedence Clearwater’s song “Fortunate Son” is commonly misinterpreted as a very patriotic, country glorifying song. However, it is in fact the opposite. Many people make this mistake because of the first two lines which evoke patriotism yet they fail to see the deeper message that lies within the rest of the song. Creedence Clearwater wrote this song in 1969 as a protest against America’s involvement in the Vietnam War. Even though “Fortunate Son” is a protest song, the main issue addressed is the inequality between the social classes.
In America, long before we fell in love with a technology that executes wars by remote control, before patriot became synonymous with commerce, careless consumption and indifference, we used to embrace with pride our beloved “Old Glory.” Now, and for a long time, this flag of brilliant colors and stars and stripes we have desecrated with the...
Riding on the same wave of patriotism, it is unquestionable that men in combat strive for the love of their country. War veterans, in particular, tend to hold close to their patriotic values even after the end of their battle. As a returned war vet, Walt Kowalski is constructed to be patriotic and have a strong love for America throughout the film. This is established through the film’s incorporation of the American flag in its setting of Walt’s house. Hanging solidly over his square patch of lawn, the flag symbolises Walt’s display of patriotism and his loyalty to his country as well as his imperishable traditional American beliefs. Viewers are constantly reminded of his patriotic sentiment through the consistent use of long panning shots of the American flag outside his house. This reinforces the idea that war veterans still have a compelling faithfulness for their country by expressing it through a simple display of their national flag. However, as much as strong patriotic views are worthy, war ...