The American Dream Revision

The American Dream Revision
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation
The American Dream Revision
The Transformation of the American Dream
“Transformation of the American Dream” is an essay by Robert J. Shiller, a Sterling Professor of Economics and Finance, and a Fellow at the International Center of Finance in the Yale School of Management. Shiller argues that the American Dream keeps changing and is determined by the prevailing value system. He argues of the possibility that the dream might have been the cause of the housing bubble that resulted in the 2008 financial crisis. According to him, “… the meaning of the term changes through time as culture changes, and as opportunists try to redefine to their own advantage” (Shiller). Shiller is right in his assertions since the world is continuously changing and what was valuable in 1931 is no longer of value today. For example, while in the past, people desired to have freedom to access basic services like education and the freedom to vote, in the modern world, we are free to vote and some do not even perceive it as a privilege that the forefathers fought to be granted. Currently, wealth is the most cherished aspect and thus people perceive living the dream as amercing immense wealth.
Assessment of the Original Draft
In my draft account of the American Dream, I argued that the dream drew its inspiration from wealth. From time immemorial, people have always chased after wealth and every activity that people engage in, has wealth as the ultimate goal. The search for wealth is what drove many immigrants to the United States as it was known as the Land of Opportunities. Therefore, whatever has been changing has been the forms of wealth, which have in turn changed people’s dreams. The change in wealth, which has led to the change in dreams, explains Shiller’s argument of the transformation of the American Dream.
One of the strengths in my previous submission is the idea that the American dream has been the driver of both the political system and popular culture, and that this dream varies from one person to the next. In the essay, I stated that “everyone, irrespective of their place of birth or the class in which they were born, has the potential to attain their own version of success through their sheer efforts.” Unfortunately the dream has continued to be unrealizable in the eyes of many Americans. Shiller also confirms this statement by stating, “…even in 1931, many were losing sight of this dream.” Therefore, I am right ...