The american dream
is the American dream over?
Yet the opportunity to live the American dream is much less widely shared today than it was several decades ago. While 90% of the children born in 1940 ended up in higher ranks of the income distribution than their parents, only 40% of those born in 1980 have done so.
This video features a skit where two Chinese immigrants come to America in order to start a restaurant. However they are faced with discrimination and racism. Through their bad experience, they realize that the American Dream was nothing more than a "pipe dream".
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We featured a failed attempt at the American Dream because of The Great Gatsby. Gatsby is the embodiment of the American Dream, rags to riches. However it does not matter how far he gets as he will eventually be shut down by society (in his case, the old money crowd).
Minimalism Documentary
in relation to the American Dream
As stated by Joshua Field Millburns, “The American Dream is a template, not the template.” What he means by that is we all have dreams, dreams that can be accomplished. I think the most desired vision in this millennial age is the consumption of greed. We’re in such grave danger because of this. The mass amount of purchases that people make isn’t necessary toward their goal. Sure it may do so, but is it the key to your happiness? Absolutely not. Our brains are destined to dissatisfaction. Such imperfection could lead to debt, distress, and anguish. We’re the type to want more, which makes us ludicrous. In this day and age, advertising has infiltrated and polluted culture towards children and adults. It revolves around popular culture such as film, TV shows, books, etc. The result of this brought humans to be on top of trends and be like their ideal model. Example, the fashion industry. With luxurious brands like Gucci and Louis Vuitton, they’re the leading brand to pollute the system. This means that millennials would buy it for status purposes. Another one would be fast fashion. They’re the most leading in inexpensive clothing and they keep up with the latest trends. Brands like H&M, Zara, Forever 21, and Fashion Nova embody this. In the documentary, the people being interviewed talk a lot about how the fashion industry affects the economy. In fact, it does. Studies show that fast fashion pollutes the environment by its cheap material and it’s not made for them to last a while. Majority of people buy fast fashion so they feel what the expensive piece is like. It’s an effect of being somebody you’re not. As a person who is into clothes, it’s better to buy pieces that have quality over quantity and go to thrift stores and vintage stores; that way, you’re saving the environment.
Remember, the original American Dream was to bring equality among gender, race, religion, and overall freedom across the nation, not buy things to bring status. The only way you can build your dream, is if you remove the distractions from you hand and get straight to work. In order to be, you must become.
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​By: Christian Padua and Brian Nguyen