Chapter 3: AMERICAN TRADITIONAL BILIEFS AND VALUES

I.                   American ideals & values

1.      American dream

-          “American dream is that dream of land in which life should be better, richer, fuller for every man with opportunities for each according to his abilities & achievement”

-          Segregation & discrimination have barred minorities fr equal opportunities in all spheres.

-          Reasons why immigrants have been drawn to America:

+ Individual freedom (most basic value)

+ Equality of opportunities

+ Material wealth

-          Prices to be paid:

+ Self - reliance

+ Competition

+ Hard – work

2.      American beliefs

·         Progress (keep moving)

-          The desire to progress by making use of opportunities

-          Reflected in family saga: first generation, second generation, third generation….

·         Practicality

-          Survival experiences => idealize whatever is practical

-          What works is what counts

E.g. First west-ward explorers did not know farming or construction but trusted in their inventiveness!

E.g. Great number of do-it-yourself books, self-service

=> Quick, practical

·         Psychology of abundance: US has been regarded as a land of “limitless wealth”

+ East: fertile, cheap land for everyone

       => exhausted, abandoned

+ West: farmer, hunters, fur trappers, gold miners, cattle ranchers

ð  Buffalo almost extinct, forests cut & burnt, polluted rivers

ð  Changing attitudes & adopt new values though hard to acknowledge

·         Mobility = practical + Psychology of abundance

-          Go where  resources are

Þ    Keep moving & make a fresh start

-          Mobility:

+ NOT aimless, with optimism (better life, warmer climate)

+ Take for granted: 4-5 cities / life

+ Buy house:

Ø  Not necessarily well-designed

Ø  high reselling value (practicality)

Ø  Does not immobilize them (lessen their chance for moving for a better life)

·         Freedom

·         Patriotism

-          Mobility => little attachment to a place => national pride > regional pride

-          Flag: National flag more common than state’s flag.

-          Patriotism

o   Other nations: place, landscape, rivers, forests, etc. (geographical)

o   US: freedom inspired the nation’s start (historic event)

3.      American traditional values

·         Individual freedom & self – reliance:

-          History: + early settlers to North America established colonies free fr controls existed in European countries.

+ 1776, British colonial settlers declared independence fr England, established a new nation – the USA.

+ 1789, the Constitution was passed separating church & state.

à These historic decisions have had profound effects on the shaping of the American character.

-          Meaning:

+ Individual freedom means the desire & ability of all individuals to control their own destiny without outside interference fr the Gov., a ruling noble class, the church or any other organized authorities à the most basic of all the American values

+ Self – reliance: individuals must learn to  rely on themselves of risk losing individual freedom à individuals must take care of themselves, solve their own problems, & “stand in their own feet” à 1 of the most difficult aspect to understand

-          Influence:

+ Separating the power of gov. & churches

+ Eliminating a formal aristocracy

·         Equality of opportunity & competition

-          History: US has been viewed as “the land of opportunity” during the late 1960s & 1970, women began to work for equal rights

-          Meaning:

+ Equality of opportunity: everyone has equal chance to succeed in the US, to enter the race & win. It does not mean everyone should be equal. Fair- play is an important aspect of this belief.

+ Competition: it is one’s duty to compete for success. Pressure of competition begins in childhood until retirement. Learning to compete successfully id part of growing up.

-          Influence: causes Americans to be more energetic but it also places an emotional strain on them.

·         Material wealth & hard – work:

-          US appeared to be a land of plenty à pp come to seek for their fortunes.

-          “going from rags to riches” à slogan of American Dream

-          Material wealth: acquiring & maintaining a large number of material possessions if of great importance to most Americans.

Reasons: Americans rejected the European system of aristocracy & titles of nobility, so material wealth has been a widely accepted measure of social status & personal abilities.

·         Idealism & reality:

-          Values are ideals but not always put into practice.

-          However, their importance is not diminished, Americans still believe in these values & are strongly affected by them in their everyday lives.