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Did the "American dream" change over time, or was it just my interpretation of it? (lemm.ee)

submitted 1 year ago by [email protected] to c/[email protected]

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So growing up, I had this idea that the American dream was about that if you put in an honest amount of work, you would be rewarded with a good life. This would mean you would be able to take care of yourself and your family, afford a car and a house. In my view, working one job would probably be enough.

Nowadays, I get the idea that the American dream has become about working your ass off in order to have a chance to become a millionaire. Somehow glorifying “the grind” appears to be a part of it too now.

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[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

The american dream was for the boomers who were promised pensions and social securitybin an era where the dollar had some semblance of value.

No, the phrase was coined in the early 1900s, and became popular when used in 1931 by a historian named James Truslow Adams, who was writing about the great depression and its aftermath. At the time, it was almost the opposite of what most people mean when they use the phrase today - he was saying Americans were too focused on money, and the American Dream was a better life for all its citizens, regardless of race or wealth - basically about everyone being treated fairly.

It was that kind of thing until world war II when FDR described it as people achieving freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of want, and freedom from fear. But it quickly shifted with soldiers coming home from the war, using the GI bill to get cheap mortgages and who started buying up all the convenience appliances that cropped up in the 50s.

That's when it became more about buying a house and having lots of stuff, but even that's before most boomers were born.