In an opinion piece for the bostonglobeNeal Gabler suggests that the idea of the “American dream” has changed dramatically in recent years.
As conceived in the late 19th century, the American Dream was about opportunities. The idea, Gabler writes, “was that anyone in this pragmatic, classless society of ours could, by dint of hard work, rise to the level of his aspirations.”
the last 50 years or so, the American Dream has changed. The Dream “is no longer about seizing the opportunity but about achieving perfection…the career has to be perfect, the wife has to be perfect, the children have to be perfect, the house has to be perfect, the car has to be perfect, the social circle has to be perfect”.
And we’ll apparently do whatever it takes to achieve this perfection, from “plastic surgery to McMansions gated communities and professionalizing our kids’ activities like soccer and baseball to expensive preschools preparing 4-year-olds for Harvard.”
O well. At least that’s how we feel. Because inherent in the new American Dream is a new competition from those who also strive for perfection, and they may have already achieved it. People “whose wives will always be beautifully coiffed and dressed or whose husbands will be power brokers, whose children will score 2400 on their SATs and play competitive level tennis, whose careers will soar, whose fortunes will grow.” ”
So if you are not in perfection, you not only fall behind, but you are second rate.
Let’s talk about pressure.
So, Gabler concludes, welcome to the new American Dream. Not where all girls can have the opportunity to be educated and strive to reach their full potential, limited only by their hard work, persistence and dedication. No, nowadays it is every girl’s birthright “to be a rich, beautiful, brilliant, powerful, Ivy League educated, Mistress of the Universe who will live not just a good life but a perfect life.”
I think Gabler is right. But I’m not sure he’s gone far enough. If the original American Dream was “opportunity” (Horatio Alger’s rags-to-riches story) that later became “perfection,” I’m not sure it hasn’t become “right.”
Law goes beyond perfection. Yes, that is our goal, but instead of the Dream striving for perfection – and achieving it – the newest Dream seems to be demanding it as a right. That is, it must be provided to us regardless of whether we have earned it or not.
It would be hard to eavesdrop on our culture and not feel this change; how the great American Dream has become the great American Right. “I’ve got law the perfect car, house, spouse, children, and job.”
What if perfection is not achieved? Then comes the latest American Pastime. No, not baseball. Fault. Anything but seize the old American Dream.
Good old fashioned opportunity. And then do the best you can with what you have and find fulfillment.
James Emery White
Sources
Neal Gabler, “The New American Dream” The Boston GlobeMarch 31, 2011. Read online.
editor’s note
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