The American Dream

The concept of an "American Dream" has long been prominent in American society. But not only has this dream played a significant role in America's history, it has also proven to be a beacon of hope for outsiders. The American Dream is rooted deep in American society: This idea has not only been merely a non tangible thought, but has manifested itself on pages of american literature. Being expressed through writing has also allowed the dream to open itself up to more interpretations. An example of this would be "The Great Gatsby" were there conflict over what the American Dream actually means. In this novel, Gatsby the "new money" protagonist, strives to get the hand of his crush Daisy. This longing to have Daisy's hand has been titled as Gatsby's American dream. He had to climb the social class system to even get a chance at Daisy. Coming from the ground up and becoming rich. While this interpretation of the American Dream did not work out for Gatsby, I believe I know someone that has successfully lived their American Dream. 

My Grandparents came to America with nothing. They fled a war torn country in order to fulfill a more prosperous life. You cant even start to imagine the amount of courage y grandparents had coming to America in the late 1960's. Having little to no knowledge of America, my grandparents acted on hope and put their faith in God. Hope was the driving factor that was able to motivate them to come over to the Americas. When coming over they were processed at Ellis island and were sent out into the foreign country. Even to this day they still have a very loose concept of english, but even when they first came over they did not know any english at all. They truly were at ground 0, but soon enough they were able to get afloat in this new life they had. After working hard and getting a house, they were able to settle down, and bring my dad and my uncle life. Growing up my father, uncle, and grandparents were going to actually move back to Croatia. But after reconsidering they stayed and decided that would be the best option for their children to succeed in life. 

Fastforward and both my father and uncle got their degrees from college and both were able to find spouses. Settling down and then having 4 children combined. Now for my grandparents, having grandchildren was ultimate goal in life. To see their children bring life to this beautiful world was truly what life meant to them. Ontop of having 4 grandchildren, my father and uncle both got god jobs and are economically comfortable and able to support their families. But the grandchildren is definitely more important to my grandparents. Still to this day they say when I was born, it was the happiest day of their lives, as I was the first grandchild. In a way I believe that this was their American Dream. To come over to the Americas and eventually to see their grandchildren. Seeing them achieve their dream is truly inspirational, overcoming crazy odds to live a perfect life in their eyes. 

I personally believe that the American Dream is a vital part of America. It has rooted itself within America's society and still to this day has effects on what decisions people make. I believe that I have a similar if not identical American Dream as my grandparents did. Nothing cray I just want to be able to provide my father and mother with grandchildren. While my personal American Dream is not the same as some one else's dream, it doesn't take away the fact that it is still an American Dream. It's what I want to do in America, to live a comfortable life with children and a spouse. In this way the American Dream is a attractive concept becuase of its flexibility to be whatever a person strives for. Having an American Dream is what makes America what it is, a land of hope and opportunites for all. And I believe that my grandparents achieving their American creed greatly exemplifies my American Creed.