Preview

What Makes America, America?

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1043 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
What Makes America, America?
What makes America, America?
Since America has been created, tons of people have been travelling here and starting new lives striving for the success they deserve. Different aspects can add up to the identity of America. America has been widely shaped by citizen’s uniqueness, their ethnicity, and chances they have to become successful. Though there is a lot that molds American Identity, America has been shaped due to different lifestyles, which is illustrated through people’s individuality, religions and race, and opportunities. Everyone has a different lifestyle, which in the big picture creates American Identity.

Individuality creates everyone’s uniqueness and shows what people can bring to society. In “American Identity: Ideas, Not Ethnicity,” author Michael Jay Friedman explains the difference between the “Melting Pot or Salad Bowl” metaphor. Friedman states, “They strain at first to overcome their differences, but by film’s end all have bonded – as Americans” (Friedman). This quote clearly explains the strain that Americans have overcome to create a bigger whole, which has become America. No matter how many differences each and every American has, they can all come together to create something much greater than anything else, a free country with a lot to offer. In another part of “American Identity: Ideas, Not Ethnicity,” Friedman defines how there is no picture perfect American. Friedman expresses,
“There simply is no one picture of a ‘typical’ American. From the powdered-wigged Founding Fathers to the multiracial golf champion Tiger Woods, Americans share a common identity grounded in the freedom – consistent always with respecting the freedom of others – to live as they choose” (Friedman).

In the text, Friedman explains how everyone is different, but in his or her differences Americans can respect the freedom of others, letting people be as unique as they please. In this nation, people have the freedom to do whatever they like, but it’s up to

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    One of the main ideas of this book, commonly associated with America and the way we live, is that there are a wide range of people living in this country. America has been well known as the "melting pot" of the world. We have many ethnicities and races, and countless cultural differences. Within our melting pot people have different lifestyles and ambitions in life. Some work hard for what they get, and others try to find a quick way of getting what they want.…

    • 576 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    On the essay “People like us” David Brook’s main purpose is to discuss the increasing diversity in America. This essay is a master piece of intelligence and organized ideas. A reader can grab that in his first sentence. “We all pay lip service to the melting pot, but we really prefer the congealing pot.” The writer uses relative concept with very effective language. He uses strong diction, logical tone and complex syntax.…

    • 404 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Many individuals interpret diversity differently specifically in the United States because of its melting pot of distinct cultures and lifestyles. In his essay “People Like Us”, David Brooks’ argues that although the United States is a diverse nation as a whole, it is homogeneous in specific aspects like interactions between people. To some extent, his observation is true; people tend to stick to what or who they are comfortable with. There are also exceptions where the American people attempt to establish relationships with others because of their desire to expand out of their norm. For instance, Brooks excludes the explanation of diversity integration in the United States, where instead focuses on racial integration as the definition of diversity in America. He also makes assumptions that people purposefully intend to segregate themselves and underestimates their capability of living together because of their location, political values and personal appeal.…

    • 1403 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Summary Of A Melting Pot

    • 1091 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Many cultures from different countries have come over to America and made it a “Melting Pot.” Each year in America, many immigrants come from different countries and shares their unique cultures with America. As Marin used the term Melting pot in his essay “Towards something American,” it describes as an unused furnace that does not burn until imported values and lives stop being fed into the system; moreover, Marin mentioned that Americans have no culture. On the other hand, Taylor describe in her article “Analogies for America: Beyond the Melting Pot “that different melting pot is actually a blend of our different cultural and ethnic background because Americans can and do come from all ethnicities and races; therefore, we all…

    • 1091 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    As tolerance in each other’s differences begins, so does our hope of progress. America being built upon the foundation of all men being created equal is often questioned for it truly is the unique diversity that impacts the country. In fact, many would agree on the “little point… [of isolating] anything… resembling nation character” as it is…

    • 616 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    New England Colonies Dbq

    • 980 Words
    • 4 Pages

    The American identity started with a dream. That dream grew from a hope to find new trade routes to an economic stronghold to an entire country full of people who now claim dreams of their own. The American Dream began by people wanting to follow their own religion.…

    • 980 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Americans, as a people, are very unique and as such have very unique traits and mannerisms that make all Americans who they are. Personal freedoms, being accepting of other cultures, and being able to choose one's own path in life distinguish Americans from the rest of the world.…

    • 444 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Myia Peterson Mr. Dalton What It Means To Be An American 16 October, 2015 America was founded in the beliefs that it would become a land of opportunity, filled with hardworking individuals who wanted to state a claim in this world. Today, these beliefs are still strong, and being fulfilled on a daily basis. Americans have accomplished far more than anyone ever imagined they would within the past 4 decades or so, and are still working to achieve more and more today. To be an American means to be proud of your country, and that any person can have big dreams, and through hardwork and determination, can accomplish them. “When an American says that he loves his country, he means not only that he loves the New England hills, the prairies glistening in the sun, the wide and rising plains, the great mountains, and the sea.…

    • 468 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Best Essays

    Americans believe they live in a beautiful country. There are many advantages to living in America, such as having a secure government, a controlled military, a judicial system that works, breathtaking landscapes, cleanliness, and the many freedoms that are granted to citizens in the U.S. Constitution. America became a rising power early in its life, allowing for these benefits. Although the United States of America is one of the great world powers, and perhaps the most supreme, its economic practices are driven toward the idea of spending and consumerism and the population’s values have become entirely reconstituted since its founding.…

    • 2205 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Good Essays

    What does it mean to be an American for you? We use “American” word so freely but do we know what it exactly means to be an American? Only living in America does not mean that you are an American. Millions of people migrate into the United States of American in order to achieve their dream and earn the name of an American. For hundreds of years the United States has been attracting immigrants from a variety of different countries, races, and religions to come live in a land full of freedom and opportunity. This freedom, opportunities and responsibilities for each other make us a true American. Being an American is about being free and loyal. It's about having freedom of religion, rights, and justice. It's also about being about yourself.…

    • 949 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Identity is both necessary and important and to all, promoting individuality and characteristics that make each person their own. The countless books telling stories of dystopian societies, where one person is no different from the other, represent the way a society would become in the absence of individual identity. It is the defining quality that makes one human, molding morality into its distinct and unique forms. One such example of identity that is impactfully associated with all Americans, is that of the American Dream. This dream encompases the idea that all Americans have the opportunity to achieve the lifestyle that they want to live. It is highly associated with a drive for success. People from all walks of…

    • 1559 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    On July 14th, 1776, America’s founding fathers established the United States of America. In doing so, they had created a unique country that today holds together and unites many people from many different regions of Earth. As many say, America is really just one giant “melting pot.” The reason that statement exists however is because of the way this country was established - with ideas in mind that benefit the citizens. These ideas have existed throughout the centuries enticing more and more people to come and experience what is known as “The American Experience.” This so-called “experience” is the direct answer to the common question, “What is America?”. People come to America for a new start, a new life, and potentially great success. The…

    • 166 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Throughout US history, there were many occurrences performed by people that helped define American Identity. Some of the many aspects that helped evolve characteristics of American identity are civil disobedience, freedom of religion, and immigration. Historical happenings throughout time helped create how the US is today, and why certain freedoms are allowed.…

    • 520 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Many people dream about being an American. They dream because they envision America as the land of peace and prosperity. But is it? At times it has been, and at times its not. It is hard for the United States to be correct all the time because they have been unwilling designated as the "World Police". Throughout history there have been examples politically, economically, and socially, where being an American is rewarding and times where it is embarrassing. To be an American means progress. We evolved from a world ruled by white men to a world of equal opportunity.…

    • 740 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    American individualism is far more complex than our national myths, or the soap-box rhetoric of right and left, would have it. It is not individualism in the libertarian sense, the idea that the individual comes before any group and that personal freedom comes before any allegiance to authority. Research suggests that Americans do adhere to a particular strain of liberty — one that emerged in the New World — in which freedom to choose your allegiance is tempered by the expectation that you won’t stray from the values of the group you choose. In a political climate where “liberty” is frequently wielded as a rhetorical weapon but rarely discussed in a more serious way, grasping the limits of our notion of liberty might guide us to building America’s future on a different philosophical foundation.…

    • 737 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays