American Values: A Speech on Core Principles

Hello everyone! For those of you who do not know me. I am [NAVN A], an exchange student here at this university in Berkeley. I am sure you are wondering, what I am going to talk about. You see my fellow students and teachers. I am going to make a speech about the 9 American values and a little history for you guys. At last but not at least, I will have a quick sum up, and perhaps we will have some leftover time for questions.

As we all know I can not cover all about American values, I will just take a tip from the iceberg. But I am sure it will be successful anyway. The first value is freedom and equality. The understanding of freedom is what the USA is built upon. It goes back to the declaration of independence in 1776. It is based on the principal that freedom and equality go together. The second value is individualism. Everyone wants to be the self-reliant person, who can take care of her- or himself, and not to be depended by others. The third value is idealizing what is practical. It was the robust and enterprising individualist who survived best in the wildness. It is built on the idea of this can-do phantasm. Again, this independency of others. I can do this myself. The fourth value is volunteerism. In American community and political life. It means that, Americans want to help others privately because it is not only the government who must help them. You help each other! The annual Volunteering and Civic Life in America research, released by the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) shows 1/4 Americans volunteered through an organization. Demonstrating that service to others continues to be a priority for millions of Americans. The fifth value is psychology of abundance. If you all will close your eyes for a second and picture America and abundance, not money but resources. you have all what you need. And Americans are continuing by using more than they actually need. It is everywhere. Limits are difficult to acknowledge because they contradict the belief in abundance which has become a substantial part of the American way of life. The sixth value is mobility. As a nation of immigrants, wait let me rephrase. As a nation of a salat bowl. Why is she saying that you might be wondering. Well as you know, we are used to the term melting pot by Israel Zangwill in his famous play The Melting Pot. I think he had the right idea, but the main conclusion is wrong. The term salad bowl complementary identity is frequently used to characterize the immigrant possessing both an ethnic identity and a national identity as an American citizen. In the "salad bowl" metaphor each culture retains its own distinct qualities (the different ingredients in the salad) but has a sense of common national identity in the country of habitat (the salad). Moving from place to place is such a common and accepted practice that I think most Americans takes for granted. The seventh value is patriotism. A consequence of Americans mobility. Americans have a stronger national pride than regional pride. Which means you say, “I am proud to be American.”. We can all agree on that point. No matter where you are from, what size, what collar, you are all proud to be American. The eighth value is progress. Directly associated with the value of freedom. The desire to progress by making use of opportunities is important to Americans. The willingness to work hard and make sacrifices, pass these values on to their children and future. The last and ninth value is as we all know it, The American dream. The American dream is all about, that you can achieve whatever you desire through the virtues of thrift, hard work, family loyalty and faith in the free enterprise system.