The American Dream has been the equivalent to climbing Everest for many success hungry immigrants for hundreds of years. This dream has been the symbol of hope and being the motivating factor to the hard work of many individuals. However, over the past decades, the American Dream has been under analysis as challenges such as economic inequality, stagnant wages and systematic barriers are continuing to make the finish line less unattainable. Nowadays, financial security increasingly sounds like a delusion to most of the population. This essay provides analysis describing the downfall of the American Dream through economic inequality, changes in cultural value and a declining social mobility highlighted by statistics and various sources.
The book, The Epic of America, written by historian James Truslow Adams quotes “a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement.” This quote shows that a future of a child is most likely to be bright when certain conditions are met. David Leonhardt, New York Times magazine,
highlights that the net worth of a typical family in 2019 is slightly lower than the net worth of a similar family in 2001. Since the Great depression, 2001 is the longest period of financial stagnation. This situation in which the economic state was not developing disproves the ideal in the American Dream that each generation would do better over time. Many basic needs are becoming milestones that are out of reach such as home ownership and retirement savings.
As stated before, one of the main factors of the declining American Dream is economic inequality. Robert Reich, former U.S. The Labor Secretary mentions, “The earnings of the typical American have barely budged over the past 40 years.” On the other hand, the CEO compensation has increased dramatically 300 times the pay of their worker. As a result, the top 1% of earners are 31% of the nation’s wealth. However, the lower 50% of earners are only 2.5%. The gap between the rich and the poor are continuing to contribute to economic inequality which makes it more difficult for the working class to yearn towards mobility.
Furthermore, new economic policies implemented over the last few years have amplified economic instability. Reich highlights that influence and wealth are possessed by the corporate officials which resulted due to the shift from democratic capitalism to laissez-faire economics. Consequently, wage growth amongst labor unions is weakened, enhancing the wealth imbalance even more. The result is a major blow on the average American’s upward mobility. The stark changes made in the economy, as noted by Harvard economist Raj Chetty, have led to this situation in reality, that “it is no longer easy to get ahead, even through hard work.” Also, this is embodied in the Wall Street Journal/NORC poll, which shows a decline from 53% in 2012 to only 36% of voters agreeing with the belief that “if you work hard, you’ll get ahead.”
Another main factor of the American Dream is social mobility. Social mobility has also been on the decline. The Brooklyn institution introduced a report in 2022 that the United States is ranked below other countries that are developed in economic mobility. The report states, “Wealth inequality is high, and wealth status is sticky..” This shows that the people born into poverty are less likely to escape it. Simultaneously, the people born into wealth are less likely to become poor. This perpetuated cycle of almost guaranteed wealth and poverty is further contributing to less people believing in the American Dream. In order to escape this cycle, there needs to be equitable socioeconomic changes which focus on the distribution of opportunities. To explain, marginalized and low income communities need to be presented with opportunities that they can use to their advantage to escape the cycle of poverty that is most likely inevitable.
Usually, education would be the remedy to the gap between the rich and the poor. However, this trump card has failed to cover these gaps. Since opportunities to higher quality education is contained by socioeconomic status, it creates an unfortunate event of marginalized backgrounds being served with lesser opportunities and higher opportunity cost. Raj Chetty, Harvard economist, proves this unfairness by inscribing the economic and geographic factors that have a huge role to play in a person’s success. Open to Debate adds on, “ High mortgage costs mixed with low housing inventory and elevated prices have put that dream out of reach for a sizable number of Americans.” Home ownership often symbolizes stability, security and financial freedom. When an individual is unable to possess these basic assets, it highlights the financial challenges such as living costs and wages that aren’t likely to be increased. The American Dream continuously increases to be less realistic with the absence of affordable housing. It is not only economic factors and social immobility that are causing this disappointing decline. Cultural shifts are also determining the livelihood of the American Dream. To quote the article “Open to debate”, the American Dream is now shifting its goal from being financially capable to focusing on community and personal growth. This change in mindset illustrates that the hopes of a home, career and wealth are becoming to decay for many.
A very alarming issue that is killing the American Dream is the stagnation of American life expectancy particularly among the working class. David Leonhardt mentions, “in 1980, the U.S. has a typical life expectancy for an affluent country..” In the present day, life expectancy has decreased in relation to other poorer countries. This event is associated with economic inequality. Evidently, people in the working class region are more likely to experience health problems. With limited access to healthcare, they are most likely to live a shorter life. The welfare of a society is often determined by life expectancy. Its stagnation illustrates those systematic barriers that prevent many Americans from realizing the Dream. The absence of health care compared to the wealthy, leads to a lesser chance of leading a healthier lifespan for many.
Many argue that the American Dream is not on the decline but instead rebuilt itself to adjust to the changes in society. The people with the contrary view argue that the development of technology has made entrepreneurial businesses and education more democratic. Platforms such as Depop, Ebay, and even Amazon provide opportunities to start a business without the need to have the resources in hand. The contrary beliefs argue that new career paths are opening, keeping the American Dream alive. Additionally, it is believed by optimists that living standards have increased despite inequality simultaneously increasing. With the increase of technology, the infrastructure to healthcare, education and business are improved. Thus, being more accessible. According to The week, the advancements in technology and economic growth help people seek their personal forms of success. This means that an individual’s definition of success may not be wealth. With this mindset in hand, they insist that the American Dream is more about indepent dreams which means it is very much alive.
While this point of view of the American Dream provides ambition, it does not offer solutions to systematic barriers. The economy built by technological advancements can surely provide opportunities for entrepreneurship, but often opens the door to exploitation. Even though gig economy jobs are stable, they fail to provide proper wages and benefits. According to the Wall Street Journal, only 36% of Americans believe hard work will guarantee upwards mobility. The following analysis highlights the persisting reality of economic instability and the huge gap in wealth that technology cannot fix by itself and will not. To add, the new opportunities provided by technology are not equitably available and up for grabs. Quality online education, faster internet access, and access to additional resources to take advantage of this technology driven economy does not benefit the marginalized community. Going back to Robert Reich’s statement in The week, “Wealth status is sticky” and inequality remains high. These disparities highlight how systemic inequities prevent the majority of Americans from realizing the promises of an evolving American Dream.
The cultural shift brings along a complicated situation in which personal meanings of success paint importance on the ideals of the American Dream. Nevertheless, making success an individualized ideal erases the very same collective ideals that once made the country a whole. Reich claims that community organizations and labor unions have disbanded due to the difference in collective goals. In consequence, individuals are left stranded without the support from their community to know how to adjust to this unequal economy. It is as if this separation in communities revokes the “United” adjective from the United States of America and the American Dream. Such as the Newsletter: Is the American Dream in Decline? by Open to Debate discusses the idea of a “rigged system” in which the privileged pay their way to make it. It is a commentary on how the lesser confidence in institutions comes from the unfortunate feeling of disconnection and hopelessness in the working-class Americans. Feelings that deepen those valleys make it yet harder to develop a common vision in social progress.
The systematic challenges repeatedly mentioned throughout the essay shrieks for changes in policy. To remedy the jam regarding an individual’s well being and upward mobility, affordable health care and quality education needs to be implemented. Policies which empower labor unions and ensure decent wages could help address such stagnation in the incomes of working class people.
Increasing apprenticeship and vocational training will bridge skills gaps and pave new, alternative pathways to financial security. There was traditional recognition, according to David Leonhardt `in The Week`, of how much economic restructuring has limited access to time-honored pathways toward success. We need to prioritize these reforms for policymaking in restoring public faith in that promise of the American Dream.
The video “Why You’ll Never Achieve the American Dream” from Second Thought essentially conditions its viewer upon some systemic issues like inequality of income and corporatism with adequate statistical evidence backing. The video states that the top 1 percent of Americans control more wealth than the 90 percent below, pretty much illustrating the extreme contrast of economic power within itself. These statistics reinforce the argument in the essay, not least that from Robert Reich’s analysis of wealth concentration which inhibits opportunities for upward mobility. The video also deals much with stagnation in wages, reflecting that whereas productivity has increased greatly among workers over the last decades, wages have not kept pace. This video makes arguments similar to David Leonhardt’s which showcases the average US family possessed less wealth in 2019 than in 2001.
The arguments made in this essay does not necessarily mean that the American Dream is at a point of no return. The apparent description of the decline of the American Dream is a wakeup call for changes that need to be made. In order to keep the dream stable, policies are in need of altering to establish equity and equality for all Americans. There are certain measures policymakers could go to in hopes of bringing the American Dream back. For example, increasing the minimum wage, more accessible healthcare and affordable upper level education make the common people have a better chance at reaching the finish line. Furthermore, enforcing labor laws would make it easier for labor unions to have a chance of fighting for better wages and conditions.
This could also reimagine the Dream through sustainability, community, and well-being. It would, however, not stop the change in track for systemic barriers, but do reflect a different reality in which the people find themselves today and may indicate a way forward for that person who seeks fulfillment but is not necessarily material wealth. The American Dream dies for many reasons inclusive of economy and social mobility loss as well as cultural changes. All measures, in assessment by experts or statistics, these quagmire-lingering wages, rising wealth inequality, and an inaccessible home ownership stagnation regarding life expectancy. But, it is still possible to bring the much-needed dream hope back and ensure that a future which actualizes the promise of a better life may attain such expectations again-even if this requires some systemic problems regeneration and reimagining that dream to live up to today’s standards in living.
Decline of the American Dream is not among the easy issues. This situation conditions long-run developments such as economic inequality, social mobility declines, and changes within society. Numbers and experts’ reports reveal the depth of stagnation in wages and increase of wealth inequality while homeownership remains an inaccessible bar for many. With the reimagining of the American Dream to reflect modern realities, it could be possible to bring hope back into a future made once more for promises of a better life. Though waning, the American Dream can be reinvigorated by well-thought-out policy changes and by a renewed commitment to equity.
