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"First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out — because I was not a Socialist. Then they came for the Trade Unionists, and I did not speak out — because I was not a Trade Unionist. Then they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out — because I was not a Jew. And then they came for me — and there was no one left to speak for me. – Martin Niemöller „Eloször a szocialistákért jöttek, és nem emeltem fel értük a szavamat – mert nem voltam szocialista. Aztán a szakszervezetek tagjaiért jöttek, és nem emeltem fel értük a szavamat – mert nem voltam szakszervezeti tag. Aztán a zsidókért jöttek, és nem emeltem fel értük a szavamat – mert nem voltam zsidó. Aztán értem jöttek, és már nem volt, aki felemelje a szavát - értem.” – Martin Niemöller Als sie die Sozialdemokraten einsperrten, habe ich geschwiegen; ich war ja kein Sozialdemokrat. Als sie die Gewerkschafter holten, habe ich nicht protestiert; ich war ja kein Gewerkschafter. Als sie die Juden holten, habe ich geschwiegen; ich war ja kein Jude. Als sie mich holten, gab es keinen mehr, der protestieren konnte. – Martin Niemöller ** To sit back hoping that someday, some way, someone will make things right is to go on feeding the crocodile, hoping he will eat you last - but eat you he will. - Ronald Reagan

Note: I, as the author of this website, don't agree with everything in this article and I hope to discuss them in the future. This article was also rewritten by the young girl's father and then again by me and now shows a strong level one would expect from a native English speaking high school student. 

Written by: Raeann Dias (USA)
High school English
7 April 2008


The American Dream

What exactly does the American Dream mean?  The most famous phrase in the Declaration of Independence is “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.”  However, the pursuit of happiness does not guarantee the American Dream – it only means that we have the freedom to pursue it.  It was said that the true American Dream was having a car in every garage, televisions in every room, half empty house, dryers, heaters and dishwashers.  This is still true for the vast majority of Americans.   For most, the American Dream is attainable through individual ambition, hard work, determination, and luck, but for a few, the American Dream remains only a dream.

America has become synonymous with the “good life”.  Ferenc Máté states in his book A Reasonable Life  “For decades we North Americans have convinced ourselves that we were the best and had the most” (Máté 1).  A nice house, a successful job, and the ability to support a family were the measure of success. People from every corner of the world came to attain what was impossible to reach from their own country of origin.  “The world has embraced almost everything we North Americans could think up, from lawnmowers and junk food to Hula-Hoops and Nautilus machines” (Máté 4).  The world recognized our prowess.  We had the best standard of living, and we produced the best products.

America is known as the land of opportunity.  Lee Iacocca explains in his book Where have all the leaders gone? “Every immigrant, legal or illegal, comes to America because he wants to improve his lot in life. Most immigrants work hard and make great sacrifices to create better futures for their children. It’s the American Dream” (Iacocca 120).  Immigrants come to America to pursue their aspirations.  They understand the sacrifices they might have to endure, but at the same time, they understand nothing comes easy. “When I think of the middle class, what comes to mind are the hard working people I’ve known in my life who have dreams and aspirations for themselves and their children” (Iacocca 186). Iacocca sees the hard working people who work for him continuously striving to get ahead in life. His parents were Italian immigrants who came to America with nothing, and it is through their eyes that he sees the hopes and dreams of the middle - class. Lee Iacocca is an American Industrialist and ex-CEO of Chrysler Corporation, but he would have never have had become the man he is today without the guidance and strong-will of his parents. He witnessed the backbreaking work of his parents they endured to give him a future. His parents were foreigners making their way in a foreign land.  This enabled Iacocca to identify with the working class,  especially those who worked for him. Iacocca believes that only aspiring to greatness can one hope to reach his/her potential.  The aspirations for a better life push people to work harder and not to give up. He states, “Anything is possible if you worked hard and got a good education” (Iacocca 186).   America was no longer constrained by class, race or ethnicity. It is hard work and education that are the essential components for having opportunities in life.  One can make the choice of being lazy or not going to school, or one can make the choice of getting a good education. The American Dream is not easy, but it is attainable.  According to the 2006 Census Bureau, the average high school dropout will make 23,400 dollars a year.  The average college graduate with a bachelor’s degree will earn 52,200 dollars a year; more than double an individual without an education.  Lee Iacocca explains it this way;

“Stop to think about how lucky you are to have been born in this era, in this great country. If you’ve made it to retirement, you’re in a good place. You won the lottery just by being born in the U.S.A. If you’re really lucky, you have your health and are surrounded by family and friends” (Iacocca 248).

Iacocca analogizes being born in the United States to winning the lottery.  It takes luck to win the lottery, and he ascribes that same luck to being born in the United States of America.  Just as the lottery makes one’s life easier, so too does being born in the USA. 

For some, however, the American Dream seems always to be out of reach.  On the Statue of Liberty at Ellis Island are inscribed the words, “Bring me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to be free.” This inscription is an invitation to participate in the American Dream. John Steinbeck in his novel Of Mice and Men reveals how some may dream but success always seems to be one step away.  The invitation is a hollow invitation. Lenny and George, the two protagonists of the story possess the determination and individual ambition they need to pursue their American Dream, but it is not enough. George and Lenny find the pursuit of the American Dream complicated by different circumstances as the novel unfolds. George and Lenny are two companions that go through a journey of overcoming hardships to reach the goal of owning a farm.  The two watch as other people strive to build better lives.  George believes that they will never achieve success:

“I seen hundreds of men come by on the road an' on the ranches, with their bindles on their back an' that same damn thing in their heads. Hundreds of them. They come, an' they quit an' go on; an' every damn one of 'em's got a little piece of land in his head. An' never a God damn one of 'em ever gets it. Just like heaven. Everybody wants a little piece of  lan'. I read plenty of books out here. Nobody never gets to heaven, and nobody gets no land. It's just in their head. They're all the time talkin' about it, but it's jus' in their head” (Steinbeck 81).

Throughout the novel, George is the pessimistic one of the two.  George uses his cynicism to justify the hardships that people are willing to overcome to fulfill their dreams. Lenny, on the other hand, is to a greater extent more optimistic. Lenny’s optimism gives them greater hope for their dream.  “O.K. Someday we’re gonna get the jack together and we’re gonna have a little house and a couple of acres an’ a cow and some pigs and –” (Steinbeck 16).  The objective of George and Lenny is to own their own land. Throughout the novel George and Lenny dream about their ranch and the house they are going to own, but George and Lenny never realize their dream.  

Still, the goal of the American Dream is “the good life” however elusive.  George in Of Mice and Men explains to Lenny: “Whatever we ain’t got, that’s what you want. God almighty, if I was alone I could live so easy. I could get a job and work, and no trouble, no mess at all, and when the end of the month come, I could take my fifty bucks and go into town and get whatever I want” (Steinbeck 11-12). Lenny is explaining the difficulty of being around George because he always wants what they do not have.  George’s priority is himself, and he uses Lenny to get what he wants, as do most people. They use others for their own convenience. 

Happiness always seems to elude Lenny and George.  “If I was alone I could live so easy.” (Steinbeck 115).   George believes he is a burden to everyone. This built up anger in George causes him to lose confidence in the dream.  Each time Lenny and George would talk about their relationship with each other and their lives together, George would become more insecure.   George’s insecurities plant the idea in Lenny’s mind that their dream will never come true.  George and Lenny always need to talk about their dreams to each other to build up their hopes and remove their insecurities and doubt they hold inside, “We got each other, that’s what, that gives a hoot in hell about us” (Steinbeck 116) Lenny cries out, but George no longer believes in their dream.  In the end, George puts a gun to Lenny’s head killing him instantly and shattering the American Dream forever. For George and Lenny, it is the death of the American Dream.

The American Dream is achieved for some, but for others the dream is just an illusion. In A Reasonable life, Ferenc Máté states that as Americans we believed we were the best; this is the perception we wanted the world to see. Iacocca expands on Máté’s assertions, and tells the reader why this is true. Iacocca understands it takes hard work to achieve success. Because of his parents as role models, he is able to identify with the people who worked for him. He looks at his employees and he sees their hopes and aspirations. We then analyze, the relationship between George and Lenny in John Steinbeck’s novel Of Mice and Men, George and Lenny are two individuals who searched in vain for the American Dream. Iacocca’s path was different then George and Lenny’s path. Even though George and Lenny were fictional characters, we can still learn from these two examples.  Iacocca’s world and George and Lenny’s world were very different. Iacocca had role models to get him through life. He was raised in an era of prosperity, and he made the right choices. George and Lenny had no role models and they lived during the dustbowl era when life was much harder and no one was there to tell them they were making the wrong choices. The American Dream is still possible, but the choices we make, the circumstances we encounter, the role models we seek, and even luck all play apart in how successful we will be in realizing that dream.