A Dream Deferred By Langston Hughes

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The American Dream: Consistently Unequal In the poem, “A Dream Deferred” by Langston Hughes, Hughes questions the American Dream and what it has to offer the individual. Does it fade away, gradually become more promising, or bring self-esteem down over time? The phrase the American Dream can often merely seem like a cliche because of its commonality, but it is nothing to scoff at. The American Dream is a very broad view of a guide to happiness and success in American life. It says people should work hard and be determined in order to find a good job that theyenjoy doing to be successful. It is a way for all Americans to face turmoil and overcome it through hard work and determination. This is obviously much easier said than done because of just how futile life may seem at times; in order to achieve the American Dream, theymust first possess the will. The American Dream today has held the same meaning since its origin and is still not available to all Americans equally. …show more content…

The American Dream, according to Margaret Freeman in her book The American Dream: A History, “came into the American vocabulary starting in 1867” (21). Horatio Alger came up with the phrase a mere 149 years ago, and a change of society takes significantly more time. The American Dream is also very broad in its meaning. Because of its broad meaning, it is susceptible to interpretation of what the phrase means to the individual. This causes a perceived notion of vast variety, but the underlying values remain constant. Overcoming life’s obstacles by using one’s talents, skills, and traits to be successful is not only the American dream, but a dream that arguably all humans

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