1. Agenda for today Goal: Review the American Dream Essay
QOD: What does the American Dream mean to you?
Agenda:
Review essay assignment
Turn It In
PowerPoint and WS
HW: Thesis Statement due tomorrow!

2. What is “THE AMERICAN DREAM”?
Powerpoint adapted by Suzanne Conti

3. Is FREEDOM?

4. EQUALITY?

5. INDIVIDUALISM?

6. MOBILITY?

7. AMERICAN DREAM Land of Opportunity
Rags to Riches—Anyone can become rich, famous, and powerful.
Jobs and education are available to all who want them.
Meritocracy (rewards) = skill + effort.
Through hard work, courage and determination, one can achieve prosperity. Americans can live better than their parents did.
Emma Lazarus--"Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore, Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

8. Emma Lazarus is best known for "The New Colossus", a sonnet written in 1883; its lines appear on a bronze plaque in the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty[1] in 1912.
"Give me your tired, your poor, Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, The wretched refuse of your teeming shore, Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

9. Coming to America
America is called the “Melting Pot” because of the immigration here from all over the world. Even though immigrants spoke different languages, had different cultures, and held different beliefs, the one thing they all had in common was to pursue the “American Dream”…life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

10. The American Dream is the dream of a land where all people can succeed through hard work. It is also an idea that suggests that all people have the potential to live happy, successful lives.

11. Let’s view a few a view song lyrics about “The American Dream”….
Lil Wayne - "God Bless Amerika”: "My country tis of thee / Sweet land of kill em all and let em die / God Bless America / this ol' godless America”
Bruce Springsteen, "Born In The U.S.A.”: "Nowhere to run / ain't got nowhere to go / Born in the U.S.A., I was born in the U.S.A.”
Green Day - "American Idiot”: "Don't want to be an American idiot / One nation controlled by the media / Information age of hysteria / It's calling out to idiot America”
Neil Diamond - "America”: "Everywhere around the world / They're coming to America / Every time that flag's unfurled / They're coming to America / Got a dream to take them there / They're coming to America / Got a dream they've come to share / They're coming to America”
Toby Keith - "Courtesy of the Red, White and Blue”: “My daddy served in the army / Where he lost his right eye but he flew a flag out in our yard / Until the day that he died / He wanted my mother, my brother, my sister and me / To grow up and live happy / In the land of the free”
Anything in common?

12. Originally, the focus was on hard work and religious freedom
Originally, the focus was on hard work and religious freedom. Today, however, the focus seems to be on material prosperity and fame.
The American Dream is deeply rooted in American society.
Several critics have pointed out that this dream is not attainable to all because of the inequality rooted in class, race and ethnic origin.

13. The phrase “The American Dream” came into the American vocabulary starting in 1867 when writer, Horatio Alger used it in a story. It was a rags-to-riches tale of a poor orphan boy in New York City who saved his pennies, worked hard and eventually became rich.
It became the model that through honesty, hard work and strong determination, the American Dream was available to anyone willing to make the journey.

14. Dream Makers
“If one advances confidently in the direction of his dreams, and endeavors to live the life which he has imagined, he will meet with a success unexpected in common hour”.
- Henry David Thoreau

15. Arnold was born to a police officer and housewife in Austria, and later emigrated to the U.S. speaking no English He went to community college and started acting. Now he is a multi-millionaire, married into one of the most elite families in America—the Kennedys, and is a former governor of CA. He has said “In this country, it doesn't make any difference where you were born. It doesn't make any difference who your parents were. It doesn't make any difference if, like me, you couldn't even speak English until you were in your twenties.”
She is best known for "The New Colossus", a sonnet written in 1883; its lines appear on a bronze plaque in the pedestal of the Statue of Liberty[1] in 1912.

16. Ralph Lauren—maker of Polo; son of Russian immigrants who became a fashion mogul billionaire, started working in his teens to buy fashionable clothing.
Ralph Lauren—maker of polo; son of russian immigrants who became a fashion mogul billionaire, started working in his teens to buy fashionable clothing.

17. Oprah, raised by her grandmother in rural poor Mississippi, is a billionaire with a book club, television show, several charities, and many other endeavors.
Oprah—raised by her grandmother in rural poor mississippi

18. Benjamin Franklin, a founding father of the U. S
Benjamin Franklin, a founding father of the U.S., was famous for his Witicisms and for discovering electricity. He was born the son of a candle maker and was one of 17 children.
Benjamin Franklin—a founding father of the U.S. famous for his witicisms and for discovering electricity using a kite. He was born the son of a candle maker (one of 17 children) and came to stand before kings and presidents. He is also on our $100 bill.

19. Finally—Tei Fu Chen is a Taiwanese immigrant who went from living in his car to building a billion-dollar herbal foods empire.
Finally, Tei Fu Chen is a Taiwanese immigrant who went from living in his car to building a billion-dollar organic foods empire.

20. The Declaration of Independence was written in 1776 by Thomas Jefferson.
The general sentiment is that people are better off than their parents and that it is possible to start out poor and work hard to become rich.

21. “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness”
Declaration of Independence written in 1776 by Thomas Jefferson.
The general sentiment is that people are better off than their parents and that it is possible to start out poor and work hard to become rich.
Is it true that people are free to pursue success and financial security in the U.S.? Do some have an easier time pursuing success than others? Do people have an equal chance in life to pursue their dreams and goals?

22. It all begins with a Dream . . .
You see things and say, “Why?” But I dream things that never were and I say, “Why not?”
~George Bernard Shaw

23. Chinese Stowaways die while trying to enter the U.S.
WHY
TAKE
THE
RISK?

24. American Dream?...
Shining city on a hill
Or, a Tale of Two Cities?

25. Let’s read an article about Do We Need $75,000 a Year to Be Happy?
By Belinda Luscombe Monday, Sep. 06, 2010
Time Magazine Article

26. REFLECT : How accurate is the “American Dream”?
You will work in groups of 3-5 to decide:
*What does the “American Dream” mean in today's world? Is it the same for all Americans? Is it a myth? Is it simply a quest for a better life?
*Why do some see their dreams fulfilled, and others see their dreams wither and die? *How has the “American Dream” changed over time? *What factors affect these major events in history (political, economic, educational, social, etc.)? * What is your personal “American Dream”? What is your groups personal dream, as a whole?
Use large paper to complete your answers