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Jessica Hathcock

Ms. Jordan

Eng 1

The American Dream Over Time

The American Dream phrase was originally coined by James Truslow

Adams, in which he defines it as, “that dream of a land in which life should

be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each

according to ability or achievement. It is a difficult dream for the European

upper classes to interpret adequately, and too many of us ourselves have

grown weary and mistrustful of it. It is not a dream of motor cars and high

wages merely, but a dream of social order in which each man and each

woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature of which they are innately

capable, and be recognized by others for what they are, regardless of the

fortuitous circumstances of birth or position." The American Dream is a

debatable issue in which every person might have their own definition and

while Adams’ definition has so much power to it, there are flaws. This dream

was an ideal hope for many Americans, but was not geared toward America

as a whole, but more toward white American males. Over time the original

dream defined by Adams has changed due to different events and situations

have occurred over the past forty years that has made our society grow and

merge into what it is today because of Americans attempting to achieve their

American Dream. Americans have fought through wars, riots, and risked
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their lives for effective change to occur that will ensure what is defined as

their personal American Dream. The American Dream has changed from its

original meaning for good reasons. A part of the American Dream that has

not changed is the basic human right that every American would like

individually and that is equality. Although Americans might individually have

separate definitions of the American Dream, there are three major

reoccurring components. Over the past forty years the three characteristics

that define the American Dream are equality, education, and finances. When

looking back at these components of The American Dream, it is obvious that

it has changed significantly since 1970. In forty years many rights for

equality have been obtained and walls broken down through the Civil Rights

Act, the Equal Pay Act, The Feminist Movement, and many more historical

achievements. In this time education has improved along with the work place

and finances. The proof of this improvement is in the history from the 1970s,

1980s, 1990s, and has become effective today in the 21st century.

Equality is the number one right that Americans fought for in the past

and still fight for today. The 1970’s was a time when blacks and women

decided to fight for their rights granted by the 14th amendment, “The major

provision of the 14th amendment was to grant citizenship to ‘All persons born or

naturalized in the United States,’ thereby granting citizenship to former slaves.

Another equally important provision was the statement that ‘nor shall any state

deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor deny

to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws’” (Library of
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Congress). Civil rights were still being worked on in the 1970s and for blacks,

basic rights were being fought for to be upheld. This was the decade that

integrated schools arose. “Many Northern school districts had to resort to busing

as a means to achieving integration, which resulted in heightened racial tensions.

Yet despite its problems, integration of the public schools of America was an

important step towards equality among all the races” (Gillis). Although all

Americans did not agree on this issue, it was a huge step for the equality of our

country and was a remarkable achievement for all minorities. The integration

proved to be effective, “By the mid-1970s, only about 12% of black students in the

United States remained in completely segregated schools” (integration: The 1964

Civil Rights Act to the Present). According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 1975

there were a total of 11,185 students enrolled in college. Of those students,

only 9.4% were black. There were not even available statistics prior to that

year, showing how few of blacks at that time were being educated at schools

of higher institution. Another equality factor pertains to finances and was an

unequal issue that white males were prone to a higher wage. There has

always been a wage gap when comparing a working white male to that of

black males and also to women. In 1970 the average black man made 69%

of the average white man’s annual income (The Wage Gap). Even though the

Equal Pay Act was instituted, the statistics did not show a difference.

The Civil Rights Movement helped groups all around because during

the time that blacks were fighting for equality, women were doing the same

thing. The feminist movement, also known as the Women’s liberation, was
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really big in the 1970s. Women wanted the same rights that were granted to

men, which covered a lot of issues, “Social changes have not only included the

right to vote, greater equality in the workforce, as well as reproductive rights but

also the recognition of injustices and the ways in which both men and women can

work to change them” (Hooks 26). It was an overall American Dream for a lot of

American women to be treated as equals. The feminist movement was

around for quite some time before the 1970s, but that is when the

movement really started to grow and attempt to fight for every woman’s

rights. The movement had to grow and change, but just like with everything, it had

to happen a step at a time. Like blacks and minority, college education was a

different scene at that time and while in 1970 there was a total of 8,581 college

enrollments; only 3,537 of them were women (School Enrollment). Having a degree

typically ensures a higher paying job and so it might make sense that the wage gap

during that time was so broad for women in comparison to men. The 1970 decade

showed a wage difference that women were only making 58.7% of the average

man’s income (The Wage Gap). Equality is a basic human right for blacks,

women, children, and every person alike. It is something that almost

everyone would include in their American Dream. For many people, it was

their dream and they fought for it. The statistics and different movements

that went toward fighting for these rights connect back to the main

argument that the American dream has changed since the 1970s. The whole

argument relies on the facts provided in the history of the 1970s, so this

change is not yet foreseeable until the delving in to the 1980s occurs.
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When the 1980s approached, the American Dream of equality was

becoming more of a reality. School integration was past being in the works

and was actually being lived. Blacks and minorities were starting to really put

themselves out there to test the outcome of their previous fights. They were

attempting to get into fields of work that they never imagined before and

were striving for better lives, “In 1984 and 1988, Jesse Jackson campaigned for

the Democratic nomination for president, becoming the first black to contend

seriously for that office” (integration: The 1964 Civil Rights Act to the Present).

Education for some reason seemed to take a back turn. In the year 1980 there were

12,097 students enrolled in college, but only 9.2% of them were black (School

Enrollments). Scholarships were popping up everywhere that was aimed

specifically toward blacks’ education so it doesn’t make sense why their enrollments

were so few. Later years show how our society has grown because at this time,

college wasn’t necessarily pushed as hard as it would start to be. More men were

focused on working and automatically entering into a job. The wage gap that blacks

had faced in the previous decade changed ever so slightly, increasing from 69% to

70.7% in the 1980s (Wage Gap). Although their voices were finally being heard,

there was still a lot of change to occur.

Women’s rights seemed to be taking off at a quicker pace than the

minorities’ fight for equality in the 1980s. The feminist movement was still

going on and women were mostly fighting for political laws. There were riots

and protests to express how they felt and how they wanted more equal

rights. There was a specific incident at one of the Miss America pageants

where a feminist group protested outside and threw all of their womanly
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items (such as bras, make-up, high heels, etc.) into a “freedom” trash can.

“Someone suggested lighting a fire, but a permit could not be obtained, and so

(contrary to the subsequent urban legend) there was no burning, nor did anyone

take off her bra”. After this occurrence, however, many women quit wearing bras as

a way to express their equality to men (Wikipedia). According to the Women’s

bureau of the U.S. department of labor, women began to join the work force

in increasing numbers. College enrollments were also increasing. Of the

12,097 students enrolled in college, 6,223 of them were women (School

Enrollments). By the 1980’s multiple-earner families became normal. During

this time women made 63% of the average man’s wage (The Wage Gap).

The change from the 1970s to the 1980s goes to show that more people are

striving for higher education and to better themselves as a person. Our

sights are being set higher and as a nation we keep growing. The American

Dream has changed drastically because in the 70s, education wasn’t pushed

as hard as it is today and so it wasn’t expected nor strived for as much as we

see now. Every decade, more people strive for that education and it has

become much more average for a higher education to be considered into the

American Dream. This part of the dream is also becoming more attainable

because of the increase in diversity. Where some issues show the

extravagant change appearing, not everything has worked out as hoped.

It seemed, by the 1990s, that life was at a plateau. Equality was slowly

working itself into every day life, it appeared, but during that decade there

were a couple of unfortunate events that occurred. “In the last decade of the
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20th cent… race riots have occurred; the most violent was in Los Angeles following

the acquittal (1992) of the police officers accused of brutality in the Rodney King

case” (integration: The 1964 Civil Rights Act to the Present). After decades of

fighting for equal rights, this event seemed like a step backwards. Although the

event was a devastating outrage, it only brought more awareness to their cause.

More laws were going to be upheld and the majority of Americans were jumping on

the band wagon that was on its rightful way to a more rounded nation. “The Civil

Rights Act of 1991 reaffirmed a government commitment to affirmative action, but

a 1995 Supreme Court decision placed limits on the use of race in awarding

government contracts. In the late 1990s, California and other states banned the use

of race- and sex-based preferences” (integration: The 1964 Civil Rights Act to the

Present). Although some might have seen this as a down fall, I see it as an

achievement. It means that even the government was no longer placing people into

groups labeled by race or gender. This meant that everyone was going to be treated

equal, not preferential. By 1990, there was an increase for blacks getting a college

education. They still only made up 9.0% of the 13,819 students enrolled in college,

but considering the overall student enrollment had increased makes one take into

consideration that the 9.0% is now part of a larger number (Student Enrollments).

There might have been higher hopes for a larger increase, but the outlook is still

bright and sometimes when things change, it is a slow ride. The most positive

outcome of the 1990s for blacks was the narrowing of the wage gap. In 1990 black

males were earning 73.1% of the average white male’s wage, but by 1999 they

were earning 80% on average (The Wage Gap).

For women, the effects from the 1970s and 1980s were meaningful

because during the 1990s there is not a lot of history on the feminist
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movement. The women of the previous decades were inspirational and

changed life as we know it for the American woman, “The work of these

women also changed the popular understanding of marriage and the very meaning

of life; women came to want more out of their marriages and from men, education,

and themselves”(Hooks). Women really took advantage of the opportunities that

were being extended to them. The most spectacular overturn happened with the

education of females. Of the 13,819 students enrolled in college, women made up a

total of 7,535 (School Enrollments). They were enrolling at more than half the rate

of men. They were educating themselves, and perhaps because of it, every decade

women’s’ wages increased. By 1990 the percentage compared to men was at

70% and by 1997 rose to 72% (The Wage Gap). Statistics show that the

wage rose from the 1970s by about 15%. The American Dream of equality

for those women and men that were fighting for it is a miraculous feat,

especially when you compare the past findings to the present.

The 21st century has brought more diversity than ever before. President

Barack Obama is the first black man to ever be elected president. His running

nominee was a white woman named Hilary Clinton. These facts show that our

country is growing as a whole. The 21st century has to be the best by far because

education has increasingly risen. In the year 2000, college enrollments rose to

15,000 and by 2007 were at 18,000. The percentage of black enrollments rose with

this number from 11.3% in 2000 to 13.1% by 2007 (School enrollments). The

increase is astounding when in retrospect the first number’s in the 1970s were an

average of a mere 800 black students enrolled in college. Surprisingly, the wage

gap for blacks widened a little since the 1990s, decreasing to 72.1% (The Wage
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Gap). This number could have many reasons behind it, especially since the United

States economy is at one of its lowest points. This singular number does not change

at all the equality that has been brought to our country.

The women of the 21st century have come quite a way in forty years. There

are now many laws that prohibit discrimination based on both race and

gender. These laws are extended in equal housing laws, job opportunities,

and education. Women are breaking down “glass ceilings” and are more

frequently obtaining higher positions of power within corporate companies

and in politics. Statistics prove how women have changed for the better and how

our society is also better as a whole. More women are going to school now than

ever before. In 2000 15,312 students enrolled in college and 8,591 were

women. By 2007 student enrollment increased to 18,248 where women

made up a total of 10,432 of them (School Enrollments). Looking back at the

1970s is almost mind boggling to see that during that decade there was only

about 3,000 female students and today females make up more than half of

the student population. Women have come so far and have narrowed the

previously talked about wage gap that has been an issue. There is still some

area to gain on the matter because by 2004, the narrowing of the wage gap

increased the percentage of women’s earnings to 76.7% (The Wage Gap).

This means there was a rise of about 20% since the 1970s. This dream of

equality that many decades of Americans fought for has instilled the hope

that is needed for current American Dreams. In the book “On Paradise

Drive”, the author talks about being able to achieve dreams for any purpose.
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He talks about dreaming big, whether it be to cure cancer, ridding the world

of starvation, following the word of God, or in this case diversifying our

country to rid it of inequalities. No matter how big the dream, he ensures

that anyone can achieve it ,”They all demand impossibilities and in this way

are fit objects of hope. Each is an incorruptible dream that would redeem the

normal material efforts that inevitably occupy many of our everyday hours.

None can be achieved within a single lifetime, so each connects its bearer

with the flow of history and the lives of those yet to be born” (Brooks 185).

The promise of this statement is refreshing because the work of people past

has not been lost. The point is that history has a place in every dream and it

shows through the difference that has been made over the past forty years.

Our country and the American Dream has emerged and grown so

much over such a short time. The dream has grown to accustom a much

wider variety of Americans and we have almost overcome discrimination and

our country as a whole is becoming more educated. The overall achievement

of equality for blacks and women presents a whole new American Dream

because the people that fought for those rights made a better country for

everyone. Equality is still the number one right that every American

individually not only wants, but expects. Because the past generations

fought for these rights, our generation does not have to fight as hard as they

did. We can focus on the matter at hand and Bell Hooks describes this very

adequately, “Feminism is a struggle against sexist oppression. Therefore, it is

necessarily a struggle to eradicate the ideology of domination that permeates

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Western culture on various levels, as well as a commitment to reorganizing society

so that the self-development of people can take precedence over imperialism,

economic expansion and material desires” (Hooks 26). We owe thanks to those who

fought for civil rights, women’s rights, and just equality over all. Now, we are able

to focus on education and (yes) occupational salaries to be able to afford

those materialistic items. We are the spoiled generation because we have

more rights than ever and so we are able to focus on bettering our

surroundings and, as Bell Hooks wisely pointed out, our personal selves with

higher education and the “little things in life”. Every person has their own

definition of the American Dream and when it comes to achieving it, I

suggest thinking about it in the words of Dr. Seuss, “And will you succeed? Yes

indeed, yes indeed! Ninety-eight and three-quarters percent guaranteed.”

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