Achieving The American Dream Essay

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The American Dream is a life of personal happiness and material comfort as traditionally sought by individuals in the U.S. (dictionary.com). Americans and immigrants alike are often raised to chase after this way of life without fully understanding the effort it takes to meet to this high standard. Achieving the American Dream has obstacles for many people including those in low economic status, ethnic groups, and even those that have obtained financial success but are not happy with their fortune. American’s with a low income face many challenges in making ends meet on a daily bases. Many jobs do not pay enough salary for an average person to survive working just one job and additional jobs or other forms of income become a necessity to pay for food and housing. Families earning minimum wage salaries are often not able to afford luxuries like nice clothes, vacations, and eating at restaurants. These luxuries are considered material comfort and part of the American Dream that is desired but not within reach. Examples of the real struggle of a low income American is taken from ‘Serving in Florida’ by Barbara …show more content…

A stanza from the poem ‘I, too, Sing America’ by Langston Hughes speaks to the segregation of African Americans, “I am the darker brother./ They send me to eat in the kitchen / When company comes, / But I laugh, / And eat well, / And grow strong.”(Hughes) Martin Luther King Jr's famous ‘I Have a Dream’ speech addresses the movement away from segregation in America and describes the hopes and goals of an ethnic group and their pursuit of the American Dream, “It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident; that all men are created

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