The American Dream

Keiser University eCampusJulie Book, Sharon Linne, Eileen O’Grady

Adapted from: The American Dream: Overview. (2007). In A. M. Hacht (Ed.), Literary Themes for Students: The American Dream (Vol. 1, pp. 3-23). Detroit: Gale. Retrieved from http://ic.galegroup.com

Week 1

Origins of the American Dreamand the

American Identity

The Plymouth Colony

August, 1620: The Mayflower set sail from Plymouth, England, with 102 passengers aboard.

40 of them were Protestant Separatists, who called themselves “Saints.”

October, 1620: The Mayflower arrived in the New World, and the Plymouth Colony was formed.

William Bradford was one of the Saints, and he eventually became the governor of the Plymouth Colony.

Text of the Mayflower Compact - 1620… solemnly and mutually in the presence of God and one of another, covenant and combine ourselves together into a civill body politick, for our better ordering and preservation, and furtherance of the ends aforesaid; and by virtue hereof to enacte, constitute, and frame such just and equall laws, ordinances, acts, constitutions and offices, from time to time, as shall be thought most meete and convenient for the generall good of the Colonie unto which we promise all due submission and obedience …

Facts to note:

1. The Mayflower Compact established a system of government and pledged allegiance to the King of England.

2. The Compact expressed the idea that people needed to work together for the common good.

3. It also expressed their commitment to America and its promise.4. There is also an emphasis on God.

Events Leading to American Independence

Boston Tea Party (1773): Rebellion by the Sons of Liberty, a group that included Samuel Adams and about 100 other Bostonians. More than 300 chests of tea were dumped into Boston Harbor to protest tea taxes.

Patriots: colonists committed to gaining independence from Great Britain

Loyalists (or Tories): colonists devoted to English rule

The British retaliated by closing Boston Harbor to all shipments except food and firewood. Town Hall meetings were also banned.

Events Leading to American Independence

September 5, 1774: The first Continental Congress was convened at Carpenters’ Hall in Philadelphia. Delegates from 12 of the 13 colonies met to discuss and document their grievances with Great Britain. Georgia was the only colony not to send representation.

Tensions continued to build between the colonies and the British. Following the Boston Tea Party, the British instituted military rule in Massachusetts and forced its residents to house British soldiers.

Massachusetts began forming its own militia.

Events Leading to American Independence

April 18, 1775: British soldiers marched from Boston to Concord, where the Patriots had a cache of weapons.

Revere and William Dawes rode on horseback ahead of the British, warning the colonists of the impending British action.

Paul Revere devised a signal for fellow Patriots to use to let the colonists know which route the British soldiers were taking. They were to light lanterns in the Old North Church: one if by land, and two if by sea.

The Shot Heard ‘Round the World

April 19, 1775: The British arrived at Lexington. About 50 Patriots had gathered. It’s not clear who fired the first shot, but when it was over, eight Patriots were killed. The British continued to Concord, where more casualties occurred (on both sides). The war had begun.

America’s Path to Independence

January, 1776: Thomas Paine publishes Common

Sense

Early summer, 1776: eight colonies support

independence

June, 1776: The committee of five

appointed to work on the

Declaration of Independence

July 4, 1776: The Declaration of Independence

was debated by Congress and

approved

The committee of five: John Adams, Roger Sherman, Benjamin Franklin, Robert Livingston, and Thomas Jefferson. Franklin wrote the primary draft of the Declaration of Independence.

Common Sense: Paine’s pamphlet laying out reasons for American independence

Declaration of Independence- 1776

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. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed…

The Declaration of Independence emphasizes equality and the belief that everyone can achieve liberty and happiness. This is the heart of the American Dream. As in the Mayflower Compact, the Declaration of Independence establishes a government to secure those rights and contains a clear focus on God.

Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790)

Known as:

• Printer• Statesman• Primary writer of the Declaration of Independence• Inventor• Diplomat• Scientist• Businessman• Writer

Franklin’s “The Way to Wealth”

Franklin was an example of the successful American Dream. In “The Way to Wealth,” the preface to the 25th anniversary of Poor Richard’s Almanac, he documents some of his ideas for achieving success, such as

• God helps them who help themselves• Early to bed, and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise

Franklin concludes that hard work is the only way to achieve wealth. This leads to the idea that anyone can achieve success with hard work. This is the hallmark of the American Dream.

Points to Ponder:

How does hard work lead to the acquisition of wealth?

What is the “self-made man,” and is that idea still valid today?

Washington Irving (1783-1859)

• Named for George Washington

• First American writer to achieve international success

• Wrote about “historical transformation and personal dislocation” (Baym et al, 2013, p. 467).

Irving’s “Rip Van Winkle”

Rip Van Winkle sleeps through the Revolutionary War. When he wakes up, he is part of the newly formed America.

Because he has “missed” the war, he is in the position of being able to view the new society through the mindset of the old society.

Points to Ponder:

• What are some of the differences Rip observes between himself and the “new” American citizens?

• How does Irving describe American identity?

Nathaniel Hawthorne (1804-1864)

Known for:

• The Scarlett Letter• “Young Goodman Brown”• House of the Seven Gables

Famous friendships:

• Henry Wadsworth Longfellow• Franklin Pierce• Ralph Waldo Emerson• Henry David Thoreau• Herman Melville, who dedicated

his famous novel Moby-Dick to Hawthorne

Did you know???

Hawthorne is a descendent of John Hathorne, one of the three judges of the Salem Witch Trials. Hawthorne added the “w” to distance himself from his ancestors.

“Young Goodman Brown”

The story is set in 17th century Puritan New England. Brown goes on a late-night journey and discovers new aspects to his society that challenge his beliefs. The story challenges strict moral codes and addresses hypocrisy.

Points to ponder:

• How is the American Dream linked to religion, and how is the idea of religion different from the ideas in the Mayflower Compact and the Declaration of Independence?

• How can one live “by the grace of God” or rely on the “protection of divine Providence”?

The American Dream via Expansion and Land Ownership

By the 1800s, the American Dream had become associated with land ownership.

Manifest Destiny: America was “destined” to expand from the East coast to the West coast.

The American Pioneer

Laura Ingalls WilderDaniel Boone

People such as Daniel Boone made their way across unexplored territory.

Laura Ingalls Wilder and her contemporaries exemplify the free-spirited, hard-working pioneer. Community and individual dreams came together for the common goals of settlement and survival.

Wilella “Willa” Cather (1872-1947)

• Born in Virginia and moved to Nebraska when she was nine years old.

• A regionalist writer who is best known for her novel My Ántonia.

Regionalism: literature that focuses on a certain region and incorporates customs, dialect, history, and tradition.

“Neighbour Rosicky”

Anton Rosicky is a Czech immigrant who lives in Nebraska, and the story focuses on the meaning of Rosicky’s life.

Points to Ponder:

• How are land ownership and the freedom that goes with it preferable to city living?

• How are the American Dream and the protagonist’s identity associated with land ownership?