唐兴建 / group leader 、 collect information and divide the work 张虎 / talk about individualism and American heros 杨杰 / talk about American art and sports 王润民 / talk about American movies 、 TV and music 叶思超 / PPT and summary

The emphasize on individuals' value The pursue of democracy and freedom The promotion of exploitation and competition The need of realistic and practicality

The core of American culture : individualism self first, personal need first, pursue of individual benefit and enjoyment, emphasize on achieving individual value by self-strive and self-design. Self-strive Self-design

It gives incentives to people and make them exert on their potential and wisdom and as a result accelerate the development of the entire race and nation. It is difficult to keep good relationship among people if everyone is egocentric thus make the entire society lack of unity.

American citizens emphasize on achievements and respect heroes. They have great sense in their hearts to praise success and heroes. Personal achievements are one of those with the highest value in Americans mind. They believe that one's personal value is equivalent to his achievements in his career

After WWII, the focus of the international art world shifted from Paris to New York. Artists leaving war-torn Europe brought the remnants of surrealism to the Big Apple, inspiring a group of young American painters to create the first distinct American painting style, abstract expressionism.

The relentless ascendancy of mass media gave birth to pop art. Slick, surface-oriented and purposely banal paintings like Andy Warhol's Campbell's Soup Cans are now American icons Campbell's Soup I (1968)

American sports developed separately from the rest of the world and, consequently, homegrown games such as baseball, football and basketball dominate the sports scene. Soccer and ice hockey are runners-up to the Big Three. Urban America also invented the great indoors The Big Three Baseball/Football/Basketball Soccer/Ice hockey Indoors Aerobics/GymIndoor skiing Rock-climbing

The elusive concept of 'Americanness' is often defined by cinema and television. The advent of TV in the 1950s shook Hollywood's hegemony to its core, but both forms of media have managed to coexist, even operating synergistically. The global distribution of American movies and TV shows has shaped the world's perception of the country to a high, if not completely accurate, degree.

The American music industry is the world's most powerful and pervasive, though groundswell movements remain the driving force of American pop. African Americans' influence, including blues, jazz and hip-hop, can hardly be exaggerated. And, rap, America's inner-city sound, places an equal emphasis on an ultra heavy beat, sound montage, street cred and macho posturing. Its appeal to middle-class white America will no doubt bemuse sociologists for decades.

For American people, no matter whether they are native American or immigrants from overseas, have the same dream of changing their social class and making their lifetime dream come true through their own efforts.

The end