Nicholas walked on and on for what seemed to be an eternity after writing a letter to Justin, Marcus, and Eliza updating them on his progress. After a long and well-deserved rest, Nicholas returned to his quest and eventually came upon a very high and endless wall that had a single stark rusted metal door in front of him. To the left of the door read a message carved into the heavy thick gray concrete barrier, “Hang on to the hope all ye who exit here.” Perturbed by this cryptic message, Nicholas shrugged off the nonsensical defacement and opened the door and passed through without a second thought. “Welcome to Egaliraria” read a modest sign just beyond the door, the letters were painted in gold and the signpost was surrounded by a brilliant array of colorful flowers, in what seemed like an endless manicured garden. Below the greeting was what appeared to be the motto, “Where happiness is strictly enforced.” How queer thought Nicholas before he proceeded to walk down the golden brick path the led into the horizon. After about an hour Nicholas started to see traces of humanity with a few quaint cottages scattered along the countryside. With his typical humility, Nicholas walked up to the first house and gently knocked on the door. With a shrill squeak from dry hinge a young man peered his head through the crack, hesitated for a moment while inspecting who was interrupting his morning happiness routine, and he blurted out, “Who are you?” Taken aback by the insensitive query, Nicholas politely replied, “Good morning, my name is Nicholas and I have just arrived in Egalitaria and wanted to know if I could ask you a few questions.” Furtively scanning the interloper and inspecting the surroundings, the tall and slender man opened his do... ... middle of paper ... ...fied for their natural abilities.” “Our founders wished to design a social paradise for each citizen equally, but instead our goal of striving for excellence was inverted to striving for mediocrity. Essentially there are unequal rewards for unequal effort. My advice to you would be to save your-self and leave Egalitaria before you are selected for mandatory Happiness Retraining.” Tired from his trek, Nicholas contemplated Waltzer’s advice, “It appears that your perspective of this society is that your government and citizens treat equality as an ends and Retraining courses are a means to the true end. I have hope that one day I will find a perfect world, but I need some time to decide where to go from here.” Peering out of the bland windows Nicholas could see that the sun was setting and a few sparkling stars were appearing as he slipped into quiet contemplation.
“Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness”, three common goals immigrants came to America seeking with hopes of the promise to prosper and gain success. However, during the Gilded Age it seemed as though these were attainable only for the select few, while others left the land they knew to spend their lives toiling away in pursuit of the American dream, many never understanding how unattainable it really was. While the Gilded Age was a time of an industrial boom and a growing economy, those working by the sweat of their brow to make the success of this time possible, were not actually ever grasping this wealth, but rather putting right back into the pockets of the wealthy. The Gilded Age compromised the American Dream by limiting the chances of the immigrant working class, and thus creating a cycle of missed opportunities keeping the immigrants from progressing much further then when they came to America to begin with.
As Equality stops to devour the supper he caught, he notices a, “great satisfaction to be found in the food by which we obtain by our own hand” (Rand 80). For once, Equality puts the hunting skill he possesses to use, and the pleasure that comes with consuming an adequate meal made completely by him is far beyond that of meals prepared by others. And by residing in the Uncharted Forest, Equality experiences joy because he essentially is free and can pursue tasks he desires, like hunting, at any time. Furthermore, as Equality proceeds through his day he, “walks on til the sun had set” (Rand 80). Equality now does not have to conform his life to regulations, such as having a curfew, set by the World Council of Scholars. He has the power to choose where he wants to settle and the time at which he must be home, a decision that would not be left up to him back in the city. Ultimately, Equality for the first time broke the chains of uniformity that bound him since birth, and because of this he scoffs at the idiocy of the Scholars to realize that true happiness is achieved through liberty, not
The struggle between happiness and society shows a society where true happiness has been forfeited to form a perfect order.
Growing up in The United States, people are given this idea of an American Dream. Almost every child is raised to believe they can become and do anything they want to do, if one works hard enough. However, a majority of people believe that there is a separation of class in American society. Gregory Mantsios author of “Class in America-2009” believes that Americans do not exchange thoughts about class division, although most of people are placed in their own set cluster of wealth. Also political officials are trying to get followers by trying to try to appeal to the bulk of the population, or the middle class, in order to get more supporters. An interesting myth that Mantsios makes in his essay is how Americans don’t have equal opportunities.
The pool of opportunity has grown smaller from what it once was, and it seems that opportunity parallels the wealth in capitalist America—a small number of individuals are successful in their endeavors, and the rest must settle for less with disappointment and disillusionment. While hard work and perseverance may push individuals to new heights, the power of optimism and positive thinking can only take a person so far. The great American dream and frontier is only available to those with certain circumstances, and those circumstances are becoming less available to the new generation coming into the
One of the reasons, the so called Utopia fails to exist time and again when attempts are taken solely on the ground of equity is that, even the most idyllic society is somewhat built on the foundation of pain, sacrifice of the weak for the benefits of strong. From the analysis of Omelas and the contemporary North American societies it is clear that there is no Utopia.
As Americans we are raised to believe that every individual has a chance to succeed; that is to succeed financially and economically, but not an equal chance. Ultimately, at...
A large part of this problem is that many Americans buy into the ploys of capitalism, sacrificing happiness for material gain. “Americans have voluntarily created, and voluntarily maintained, a society which increasingly frustrates and aggravates” them (8). Society’s uncontrolled development results in an artificial sense of scarcity which ensures “a steady flow of output” (78).
They do not try to exceed what is expected from them or to better themselves because they are happy in the position they find themselves in. The people love what they are doing they do not desire any change in their lives what's there more to want when you are doing what you love everyday. Eliminating the class struggle by having the people love their class is the method used for achieving the utopian society found in Huxley’s Brave New World.
Ayn Rand's classic story of one man's desire to become an individual in a nameless society presents a compelling refutation of collectivism in all forms. The hero, labeled "Equality 7-2521" by the State, chooses to challenge conventional authority as he learns the joys of experimentation and discovery, the ecstasy of human love, the challenge and fairness of liberty, and the happiness of self-interest. Equality 7-2521 writes three unique phrases in his journal: 1. "My happiness needs no higher aim to vindicate it. My happiness is not the means to an end. It is the end.", 2. "We know that we are evil, but there is no will in us and no power to resist it.", 3. "The word 'We' . . . must never be placed first within man's soul.". These phrases will be discussed individually in the remainder of this essay.
One would expect that social equality would just be the norm in society today. Unfortunately, that is not the case. Three similar stories of how inequality and the hard reality of how America’s society and workforce is ran shows a bigger picture of the problems American’s have trying to make an honest living in today’s world. When someone thinks about the American dream, is this the way they pictured it? Is this what was envisioned for American’s when thinking about what the future held? The three authors in these articles don’t believe so, and they are pretty sure American’s didn’t either. Bob Herbert in his article “Hiding from Reality” probably makes the most honest and correct statement, “We’re in denial about the extent of the rot in the system, and the effort that would be required to turn things around” (564).
Few people would take issue with the statement that America faces monumental challenges both to its own well-being as well as to its self-imposed duty to become "a more perfect union". Over the years, many speakers, authors, and dreamers have used the dirty facts of this nation's (and its predecessors') seemingly unrepentant capitalism, paternalism, belligerence, and tendency toward cultural assimilation to declare the entire enterprise bankrupt and to focus, not on where, exactly, the USA went wrong, but instead on what the truly ideal civilization would look like. They have created, in speech or on paper, entire realms of happiness and harmony, free of injustice, crime, and any other negative social vice. They have failed, however, in most cases, to free themselves from the trap of the nature of the human animal and his uncanny ability to absolutely avoid accurate prediction or even adequate description. It is my suggestion that, out of the bulk of utopian proposals the world has seen, the Constitution of the United States does, in fact, come the closest to creating "no place" for the greatest number of people through its pragmatism, its admission to not knowing the nature of every man, and, most importantly, its allowal of alternate visions of Utopia.
America has always seen as the symbolic ideal country of prosperity and equality. This is the reason why people come to America hoping to become successful, but in matter of fact we all have an equal plan field to be successful is not entirely true. For there are social boundaries that keep use limited based upon our own status. Whether we are born of a low class or of a high class the possibility of economic mobility in a sense are predetermined by two factors of social class and success together they both affecting one’s another opportunity of success. In order to achieve success, we must know that it is made up of two main concepts and they are fortune and position.
The concept of the American dream is so rooted in our culture that the Framers of the Declaration of Independence even included in the document that it was a self-evident truth: “All men are created equal” and are “endowed by their creator with certain unalienable Rights,” which include “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness” (US 1776) While the authors were certainly hopeful in including the phrase in the Declaration, they neglected to define the pursuit of happiness. Instead, when looking deeper into the meaning the phrase the “pursuit of happiness,” it seems the Framers were suggesting that happiness can’t even be achieved, but rather it is a goal, seldom attained. Yet, some seem to have attained happiness through the American dream. In Benjamin Franklin’s Autobiography, Franklin embodies what many suggest as the portrait of the American dream (Packer-Kinlaw 5). He believed, that in order to achieve financial success and an esteemed place in society one must pursue the virtues of morality, industry, and frugality. Yet, during the turn...
Through the eyes of Nick Carraway, which in this case substitutes the narrator as well, the author depicts the majestic life of those who, by pure coincidence or happenstance, were born more advantageously than the rest of society. Their life is full of riches and placed in a fairy tale decorous. However, despite all that, their life is not a fairy tale in the least. On the contrary, it is far from that.