The United States of America has been dubbed the land of opportunity and freedom; and over the course of history immigrants have fled to escape prejudice and oppression. America has become a melting pot of cultures, where opinions and beliefs that intermingle with each other lead to conflict and pride. Average Americans have an innate personality that sets them apart from the rest of the world, that the country created today has become an entire world in itself. To be an American is to have a great sense of patriotism, to value ones individualism, and to be materialistic.
Patriotism is a trait that all Americans express. Theodore Roosevelt explains in “True Americanism” that “the fact yet remains that to be a first-class American is fifty-fold better than to
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Bharati Mukherjee writes in her essay titled “American Dreamer” that “[citizens have] the chance to acknowledge that … values are likely to change”. She references “those values” as the ones from her strict Indian heritage and appreciates the freedom that America gives her to recreate her own identity as an immigrant coming to the U.S. Not one American is exactly alike due to the freedom that allows them to pursue individualism. Citizens are allowed to have different opinions and beliefs from one another, which imbeds the value placed on being individual. Moreover, Colin Woodward writes in his article “Up In Arms” that “in every town, city, and state you’ll likely find a full range of political opinions and social preferences”. Though seen as a country in itself, the United States is divided into multiple nations based on lifestyle and opinion. The individuality that citizens value is powerful enough to create divisions in the country. People can easily differentiate one from another and some are even open to adapt to even more change. Americans understand and emphasize their differences well enough to value the nation as independently
Each having different experiences and back story’s, that help them mold their own idea of what American spirit is. In Anthony Burgess’s article “Is America Falling apart?” , he talks about America as a country that is in trouble. In the
What makes the United States unique and great is not a pledge, a flag, or a song, all of which are more properly labeled culturally temporary symbols of patriotism. The United States is the summation of many ethnic, religious and political backgrounds. David Brooks’ reason for writing “One Nation, Slightly Divisible” included the goal of finding the underlying cause of the divide between the social and economic aspects of our society.
So with this I believe that most Americans have about the same values they may have a slight difference of opinion on different subjects but I don't believe this constitutes our nation as being as polarize has some may believe. Americans definitely debate and discuss the issues but I agree with the author when he states that America is not
In some of the pieces of literature like “I, Too, Sing America,” “America and I,” “The Bill of Rights,” and “Veterans Day: Never Forget Their Duty” the authors have different ideas of what it means to be American. They also express their ideas using different strategies: negation, classification, and function. With these ideas and strategies a more complex definition on what it means to be American was developed. Being an American means being patriotic, having freedoms, and believing in a dream of something amazing. Having patriotism is part of being American.
Within the early revolutionary epoch of American history brought various interpretations of the country. Thomas Paine characterized this country in an excerpt from his work the Rights of Man. Unfortunately, Thomas Paine’s characterization of America does not entirely hold truth today, and can be evident in our country’s political and identity ideologies. The key points within the excerpt implies that America is a country where a multitude of cultures, religions, and languages coexist. Paine suggests that our government, which was created “on the principles of society and the rights of man”, is able to overcome the differences of political and racial beliefs.
As of the year 2016, there are an estimated 324,118,787 people living in America. 324,118,787 people consider themselves to be Americans and 324,118,787 people have decided that America really is worthy enough to be called home. These people, whether they were born within the country or emigrated from another country, comingle in this melting pot of a nation, sharing grocery stores and hospitals and neighborhoods and all the ideologies that make up American society, and each of these people have their own lives and opinions and personal beliefs. All of these people, all (roughly) 324,118,787 of them, fall under the definition of an American – a person who lives in America, because there is simply no other way to define what an American is when
The actual definition of American is relating to, or characteristic of the United States or its inhabitants. Being proud of who you are and the place you live. Americans have defined themselves not by their racial, religious, and ethnic identity but by their common values and belief in individual freedom. An American says the Pledge of Allegiance and understands that voting is important to Democracy, individually Americans value freedom and are proud citizens, and the freedom of human right.
The citizens who strive for greatness are often the ones who embody themselves to the value of hard work. How Americans view their identity is based on the foundation of economic development and opportunities in the
To be an American Americans often look to the American flag when thinking about what defines Americans. Despite that, being an American is much more than the flag. Various authors around America write about their experiences in America and how different people are treated. “America and I” by Anzia Yezierska and “Growing up Asian in America” by Kesaya E. Noda both write about their different experiences moving and growing up in America. “America'' by Walt Whiteman, however, talks about people in America being treated equally despite having differences.
The United States of America, is known to be one of the richest and most powerful countries in the world. It has often been referred to by many as a global melting pot or as locals may say callaloo, due to the amassing of diverse ethnicities, cultures and nationalities. Within its borders, resides immigrants or descendants of immigrants from almost every region in the world, and each has in some way added to the American culture and way of life. America is known for its stance on freedom, it is a nation that values equality and justice, this can be noted in the last few words of their national anthem ‘indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.’ However, for many, high levels of economic and social inequalities are daily struggles, a battle that has been fought for decades to claim the most basic rights, in the pursuit of achieving the American Dream.
We all go through life in varying manners, some choose to challenge the everyday laws, others cling to the authority hoping not to get noticed, we have different jobs, go to different schools, live in different neighborhoods, some of us have hundreds of family members, and some have none, theres no telling the situation. So the question in general is hard to answer because every American has a different view of living in america. Some people see it as shameful to live in such a cruel country, some are proud to be a part of something that is constantly evolving, there are endless feelings towards America and all are found in the people of this country. What does it mean to be an American? It is a very difficult question to answer and it seems impossible to get the right answer, but is there a right answer?
Being an American can mean many different things all depending on the different perspectives of different ethnic or religious groups. So what does being an American mean to me? Being an American to means that everyone can live a happy stress free life where they don’t have to worry about being discriminated against or feeling like they don’t have equal rights. To start with, being an American can range in definition depending on a person 's perspective of America. Personally, I would say being an American is when you can live a happy life where you don 't have to worry about being treated differently because of the color of your skin.
The American person has no true ideals, or beliefs that make him or her up. Americans are free to believe in what they want, think what they want, preach what they want, and most importantly say what they want . Authors such as Ralph Waldo Emerson, Frederick Douglass, and Walt Whitman show in their texts such as “Self-Reliance” , The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass , and “I Celebrate Myself” that there is no true definition of the American identity. The American identity can be seen in the many aspects of peoples lives, and a a quality that many Americans portray is the ability to have individual thoughts and emotions as well as the capability to not conform to society because they stand up for their own individual rights. A
The United States of America is a big, powerful and wealthy country in the world. The division of class, individuality, religion, and race are but a few of the embellishments within the society. The blend of these numerous diversities is the crucial ingredient to the modern nation. America has been formed upon them, with that said the “average American”- have a single means in common; a single concept; a single goal; the American Dream. The Dream consists of a seemingly simple theory; success.
When a person hears or sees the word America, what do they think? America is a country that almost everyone in the world knows about because there are certain words and phrases that can be used to describe it. Some common terms are sports, equality, the melting pot, powerful, freedom, hard working, and some more. All of these words make up what is known as the American Identity. This American Identity has been built up over time by people’s actions and thoughts.