Engelsk - The American dream - Argumentative essay

The predominant emotion among the majority of the American citizens is dissatisfaction1. This feeling of dissatisfaction stems from the fact, that most Americans do not feel they get what they deserve, in terms of wealth and opportunity. But how can Americans feel dissatisfied, when they live in the land of opportunity? In this argumentative essay, I will discuss if the American dream does exist, and how America is trying to support the concept. The definition of the American dream can be described as the following “A social order in which each man and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature of which they are innately capable”2. Therefore, many people perceive the American dream as moving up in social class, have opportunities, and wealth. In other words, having somewhat easy access to social mobility. However, for others's the American dream could also be perceived as being financially secure, happy, and simply having a happy family life. So, the actual concept of the American dream depends on the dreams of the individual citizen. There has been plenty of anecdotal evidence documented, which supports the existence of the American dream. Joel Contartese is a great example of anecdotal evidence that shows that American dreams still thrives in America3. That hard work brings you far in life, despite one's social, academic and ethnic background. This is because Joel Contartese is an immigrant who showed that working hard, creating a network, taking the best routes and learning from your mistakes, brings you the success you desire in America 4. However other experts say, that the existence of the American dream is only backed up by anecdotal evidence (like Joel Contartese’s story), where the empirical data shows a much grimmer state of America5. A study over 2000 American citizens shows that less than 20% of Americans feel like they are living the American dream6. It is quite difficult to measure how a citizen is living the American dream because as mentioned previously, the actual concept of ‘The American Dream’ is quite complex in its essence. However, Hearth's chief executive officer believes that the ownership of real estate is a good tool to utilize as an indicator for who is living the American dream7. Data from the U.S. Census Bureau shows that 40% of Americans do not own their homes, whereof, 50% of millennials rent8. These statistics show quite nicely why the American dream is dying for several reasons. The first being, that half of our new generation is struggling to gather the financial status needed to own a house. This is because millennials are facing sky-high student tuition, bank loans and overall pricing in the real estate market. This all shows that it is extremely difficult to mobilize your societal position because of the impracticality of getting a good education, taking loans, and getting a house in today’s America. The republican party mostly agrees with the argument that America is in a downward spiraling state and that it no longer supports the American dream as it ones did. That is the main reason why, the republican representative Donald J. Trump, created his whole presidential campaign around “Making America Great Again” in the presidential race in 2016 9. His party focused on lowering personal tax, to create more financial stability in American homes 10. Not only that, but also cutting business tax to stop outsourcing labor to other countries, which would raise possible job positions for the American people11. This should all, in turn, create more jobs and freedom for the American citizens. This could also create more jobs for the lower-class society. With more job position, the lower class’s overall income could rise12. This