One For All and All For One?

                                                      

I remember in one of our previous blogs, we had to define what we believed was the definition of the American Dream. I came to the conclusion that there are two Americans Dreams, one being materialistic and, I defined it as abstract because I couldn't think of better definition at 11pm. I brought up how most Americans are obsessed with achieving individual wealth and success and then there are some that believe the American Dream consists of being concerned with others, that they practice Noam Chomsky’s principle of “solidarity”. Clearly, I was not the first one to come to this conclusion. Walter Fisher claims that there are two different American Dreams: a materialistic and moralistic.

Fisher makes the claim that both of these types of dreams are considered myths but “without dreams or myths, a man or nation is without a past, present, or future.” I believe Fisher meant that dreams and myths shape the way people view society and the world as a whole. Each of these myths have power in shaping our society.

The materialistic myth consists of the idea of that individual worth ethic and self reliance provides you with success. Fisher says that “the myth is not believed by those who have tried to live by it and found in practice that it is flawed by favoritism and corruption.” I find this true in society today because many individuals do not live or possess the same experiences in life and depending on the life experiences an individual can succeed or fail. Life’s just not fair. For instance, favoritism in the workplace can come in the form of prejudice, discrimination or sexism and can set someone back from achieving their materialistic dream. In addition, a good example of corruption would be if for instance a son got a CEO position over someone who has worked hard to get that position just because their father created the company.

The moralistic myth “serves to inspire cooperative efforts to benefit those who are less fortunate than others”. Because the moralistic myth is meant to bring about unity and take in the opinions of society as a whole, this type of dream is more appealing to others. It is natural for most common people to put the needs of others at the same level as needs for themselves. It is human nature to care for one another. However, Fisher also adds that “in order to be moved by moralistic appeals, one must condemn himself in some way or another.” I found this claim to be evident in today’s society as well. Fisher uses the example of McGovern showing how immoral the Vietnam War is by making his followers realize their guilt for allowing it to continue. Today, for instance, many people are supporting the victims of the recent terrorists attack because they feel some kind of guilt for allowing it to happen.

Fisher allowed me to understand that both of these types of American Dreams are necessary to have; they balance out each other. In order to have a realistic goal, a balance of the qualities of both types of dreams such as self reliance and compassion for other.

Is What We Value Really All That Valuable?

Growing up, I would watch the news or see on tv show stereotypes Americans follow and would mock them or talk down about them for it. It wasn't until I got older when I realized that I fit into a lot of these American stereotypes as well. Gary Althen discusses some of these stereotypical values such as competition and materialism in “American Values and Assumptions”, a chapter in the his book American Ways: A Guide for Foreigners in the United States.

I don't know about you all, but I am obsessed with ‘90s television shows and one of my favorites was The Fresh Prince of Bel Air. If you know this show, you know Carlton and Will are always in competition with each other and the outcome is always bad. For instance, when Will and Carlton were competing for the spotlight on the basketball team in Season 2, Carlton got jealous and costed the team the winning shot.

Although Alten tells his readers, “it is also obvious in schools and extracurricular activities for children, where games and contests are assumed to be desirable and beneficial” he goes on to prove that they end up being alone because they spend the majority of their lives comparing themselves to others who are better than they are in a particular area (8). Carlton, left alone in the gym after losing the game, admits to Will that he basically spends his time comparing himself to Will. It is human nature to want to compare yourself to those who are better than you but many people forget to not dwell on the idea of being someone else.

Another example of competition is evident in school. There is always the really smart kids who always strive for straight A’s and who are only concerned with their grades. I’ve noticed that a lot of the times, those kids don’t have many friends or isolate themselves from everyone else. I recently did this when I was preparing for my speech in my communication class. I isolated myself from all of my suitemates and only focused on my speech and I missed out on my opportunity to go to the mall that weekend and just have overall fun with them. I did well on the assignment, receiving a high A, yet I was bummed that I missed out on the fun. Alten concludes the competition section saying, “People who are competing with others are essentially alone, trying to maintain their superiority and, implicitly, their separateness from others” (8). I believe Alten is trying to show the readers that competition is good to an extent, meaning it shouldn’t drive you to loneliness and cause you to miss out on life opportunities.

A value that has a profound presence in society is materialism. Everywhere I go, I see Supreme, Nike, Pink, Thrasher or Ray Bans. It is so present in California culture and walking around you feel the need to conform to this materialistic culture. I hate to say it but I’m guilty of it and kind of ashamed. The argument that Alten says most Americans believe is that it's a good thing to be able to possess more materials; that it shows some measure of success (12). However, I do not agree with this American value. I don't think it should be considered a value. Yes, it is nice to have nice things but to make others feel as if they are not socially accepted because they value materialism is just ignorant.