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"It would have been an age in which self-cultivation construes as a delusion of the American dream. You could build a fortune, then afford to build an identity"

"It would have been an age in which self-cultivation construes as a delusion of the American dream. You could build a fortune, then afford to build an identity" I had always thought the American Dream was rising from a lower class to have a humble house, a few children, a stable Mon-Fri job, and some basic comforts. Where did the idea that the American Dream is about riches come from? Note that I'm not saying the American Dream is unique. I just never heard that it somehow was tied to getting rich.

NineStarPoint 6y ago
Getting rich has been a part of the American dream since at least the gold rush, the idea of striking out west to make your fortune. More generally I’d argue that the American dream is that we made a country with greater social mobility than any other. That from any start, through hard work and intelligence you could become either middle class or rich according to your will. That the only thing holding you back would be your ability to capitalize on opportunities. It is of course, a dream that was either never true or has ended. It is demonstrably false that the US has greater social mobility than many of our contemporary first world countries. While there is still opportunity here, and social mobility is far from impossible, the rich get richer and the poor stay poor is probably closer to the truth of modern America than the American dream of a fully socially mobile society.
- scsilver 6y ago
  What are the countries with higher mobility. Including those for the mobility of immigrants. Just wondering if you still have some sources around to research.
- mechEpleb 6y ago
  >fully socially mobile society. Such a thing has never existed and never will. There's not much space at the top. >demonstrably false Then demonstrate it. And don't use spurious derived measures like some abstract social mobility index, argue an actual case. The US is still the place where you move to if you want to truly make it big in life, even if you've got lottery odds of success. I say this as a resident of a fairly well off European country.

NineStarPoint 6y ago

Getting rich has been a part of the American dream since at least the gold rush, the idea of striking out west to make your fortune. More generally I’d argue that the American dream is that we made a country with greater social mobility than any other. That from any start, through hard work and intelligence you could become either middle class or rich according to your will. That the only thing holding you back would be your ability to capitalize on opportunities. It is of course, a dream that was either never true or has ended. It is demonstrably false that the US has greater social mobility than many of our contemporary first world countries. While there is still opportunity here, and social mobility is far from impossible, the rich get richer and the poor stay poor is probably closer to the truth of modern America than the American dream of a fully socially mobile society.

scsilver 6y ago
What are the countries with higher mobility. Including those for the mobility of immigrants. Just wondering if you still have some sources around to research.
mechEpleb 6y ago
>fully socially mobile society. Such a thing has never existed and never will. There's not much space at the top. >demonstrably false Then demonstrate it. And don't use spurious derived measures like some abstract social mobility index, argue an actual case. The US is still the place where you move to if you want to truly make it big in life, even if you've got lottery odds of success. I say this as a resident of a fairly well off European country.