Ariel Seligman Delgado

English III H

Ms. N

7 October 2018

The American Dream

“For many, The American Dream has become a nightmare.” said US senator Sanders, as

he discussed the topic of oligarchy in a Senate floor speech. This statement is ironic since the

term "American Dream", invented by historian James Truslow Adams in 1931, was originally

defined as "That dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for every

man, with opportunity for each according to his ability or achievement."(Planetizen) So, how

could a term with such motivational value now be contradicting its own purpose? Since 1931, the

definition of the American dream has changed, and now focuses on the attainability of high

status and materialistic needs. Due to our wealth inequality, corporate personhood, and

perception of moral values, the American Dream is no longer in reach for any middle or lower

class Americans.

As the American working middle class disappears, the gap between lower and upper class

widens, and the dream of succeeding and moving up the social scale becomes a frivolous

misconception. The price of housing, healthcare, childcare and college have gone up at a

tremendous rate while the income of middle class households suffers. The elite top 1% of

America own 38% of the overall financial wealth of the country, while the bottom 60% owns

2.3%. (Businessinsider) Meaning that, even though there is an effort being made by the bottom

60% to increase their financial wealth, factors such as the decrease of wages are holding them
back. An income estimate made by Berkeley economics professor Emmanuel Saez, shows that

95% of income made since 2009 have gone to the elite top 1%. (Businessinsider) Proving the

statement previously made about effect of decreasing wages on the lower class to be true, since

they are only receiving 5% of the income. The diverse and lush middle class is what made the

American dream possible, it provided stability to thriving members of the lower class, which is

now an opportunity that is barely in reach for them.

American democracy has been said to be bribery on the highest scale, this foreshadowing

statement became true once corporations where given the same rights as individuals. The power

of free speech enables corporations have the ability to influence legislation and donate to

candidates. In other words, they have been able to change the law in their favor and donate to the

candidates whose views benefit them the best. Corporate personhood also gives corporations the

right to buy and sell property to other companies, sue individuals and other corporates in court,

protection from searches, as well as protection from double jeopardy and self-incrimination.

(Theatlantic) Corporate personhood gives corporates an identity of their own, separating it from

the shareholder. Even though corporate personhood benefits the capitalist market and increases

national wealth, Steven Brill - award-winning journalist and best-selling author- ensures that

corporate personhood is the pinnacle of the down fall of the American Dream. In an interview

with Vox, Brill stated, “That (corporate personhood), in turn, gave companies much more power,

and it weakened labor unions, which consequently undermined support for a real program for job

retraining in the face of automation, and in the face of global trade. There were several things

like this that made sense at the time, but in retrospect, they kick started a chain of events that led

to disaster.” (Vox) In other words, these acts promote greed upon the corporate realms which put
the people working for them at disadvantage, more specifically one that unable them from

moving up economically.

“Make America Great Again” is an example of an empty, yet powerful, phrase that has

called the attention of millions. Unlike Donald Trump’s campaign slogan, the term American

dream does have some truth behind it. By definition, a dream is a strongly desired goal or

purpose. To be considered a dream it must maintain the sense of desire, therefore if the American

Dream was achievable it would be more of goal than a dream. As human morality changes the

American dream has stopped focusing on core values and now focuses more on materialistic

needs such as money. Since we have stopped focusing on moral values, we can no longer define

whether or not we achieved the dream based of factors such as happiness, it has to be defined by

financial wealth. As wealth become the measuring unit of the American Dream, it becoming

more difficult for people to be able to abstain it.

Our economy, corporate personhood, and change in morality are factors that prove that

the American Dream is unachievable because too many people have already accomplished it and

they are not willing to sacrifice their power for the gain of others. Now, the American Dream it is

just an empty motivational phrase that will soon become an obsolete term.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qWApW2eliRM

Eskow, Richard. “7 Facts That Show the American Dream Is Dead.” Alternet,
www.alternet.org/economy/7-facts-show-american-dream-dead.

Barro, Josh. “95% Of Income Gains Since 2009 Went To The Top 1% - Here's What That Really
Means.” Business Insider, Business Insider, 12 Sept. 2013, www.businessinsider.com/95-of-income-
gains-since-2009-went-to-the-top-1-heres-what-that-really-means-2013-9.

Greenfield, Kent. “If Corporations Are People, They Should Act Like It.” The Atlantic, Atlantic Media
Company, 2 Feb. 2015, www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/02/if-corporations-are-people-they-
should-act-like-it/385034/.

Illing, Sean. “An Autopsy of the American Dream.” Vox, Vox, 6 Aug. 2018,
www.vox.com/2018/6/28/17469080/american-dream-steven-brill-inequality-poverty-tailspin.

“The U.S. Economy Just Got Hit with a Disturbing Piece of Bad News.” The Washington Post, WP
Company, 30 Mar. 2017, www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2017/03/30/the-u-s-economy-just-
got-hit-with-a-disturbing-piece-of-bad-news/?noredirect=on&utm_term=.a86b5fd12bd6

So Long, Middle Class: Middle-Income Jobs Are Disappearing the Fastest.” NBCNews.com, NBCUniversal
News Group, www.nbcnews.com/business/economy/so-long-middle-class-middle-income-jobs-are-
disappearing-fastest-n623886.

“The Real Meaning Of The ‘American Dream.’” Planetizen - Urban Planning News, Jobs, and Education,
www.planetizen.com/node/30899.