What It Means To Be American

Jessica Shahinian
Paper #1
Eng.102
Prof. Tabor
To be American can mean many different things depending on each person, whether if they are an immigrant, alien, or a true citizen. The pure definition of what does it mean to be American is, “To be bored and raised in the United States”. Although it is also said and known that we have free rights, but that doesn’t mean we are a hundred percent freedom free because we are American. For example, say you are watching T.V and a commercial of having a car blow out with amazing prices, comes on; there is always the small print though that states all the real facts of the commercial. With the definition of what it is to be American, there should be a section of the, “small print” to clearly explain
For when my parents were in school, they said a prayer before class started for the day. Now it is totally absurd to do this. Times have changed, and our country and what we are known for have too. In Obama’s Victory speech in 2008, he tells us that we must accept change, that in America we are constantly changing. I defiantly do agree with “change” but if the effect of that change doesn’t result positively to our country, why do we keep making changes that are hurting us? He promised us that he would make sacrifices for us so that Americans didn’t all have to suffer as a whole. As a whole though our country has only developed more debt than both of our past presidents, Bush and Washington combined. We use to have freedom and a happy country, now all you see is minorities and people miserable. Our society is not happy with full of laughs, it’s actually full of depression caused by who and what have become part of our country, America. In the New York Times it tells many about how our country of, America in the 21st century has encountered drastic changes over periods of time. My parents always tell me how when they were growing up, they didn’t have any worries like most kids my age today do. They say that it’s a whole new world out there from what they know and their sorry for me because of what our country has come to being an American in America. For many American workers, work three jobs back to back, both man and woman to support a family, where that is even a sudden change to America. It was known for many years, and till about a minimum of ten years ago that most of the American population got married around the age of eighteen and had already had at least one to three children by the age of twenty one. Now a day’s marriage is not a high percentage of what it used to be, for many either never get married or are waiting till their thirties. I think that this shows a maturity level change also