Американская мечта и возможность её осуществления в России (The American Dream like a social phenomenon and the possibility of it's realization in Russia) — страница 3

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reached fame wealth. Silicon Valley initiated the Computer Age and the dot-com boom. Companies such as Hewlett-Packard, eBay, Yahoo!, Intel, Google, Apple, and Oracle remain headquartered there. In the 20th century, the American Dream had its challenges. The Great Depression caused widespread hardship during the Thirties, and was almost a reverse of the dream for those directly affected. Racial instability did not disappear, and in some parts of the country racial violence was almost commonplace. The comfortable, not very hard life in the family circle became the main idea of the American Dream in the 50s of the XX century. Since the end of World War II, young American families have sought to live in relative comfort and stability in the suburbs that were built up around major

cities. This led to the rise of the relatively conservative 1950s, when many pursued the "perfect family" as a part or consequence of the American Dream. This period was shattered by a new generation of young people who embraced the hippie values of the 1960s, denying traditional values such as the American Dream. In modern times, the American Dream is seen as a possible accomplishment, as all children can go to school and get an education. Though the drive to it waned during those years, the dream itself has never died out. In the 1990s, the pursuit of an even newer version of the American Dream could be seen in the Dot-com boom. People in the United States, as well as the world poured their energy into the new Gold Rush - the Internet. It was again driven by the same

faith that by one's ingenuity and hard work, anyone can become successful in America. Ordinary people started new companies from their garages and became millionaires. This new chapter of the American Dream attracted many entrepreneurial people from China and India and elsewhere to Silicon Valley to form startups, and seek fortune in America. Another recent example of the American Dream being realized is the case of Tamir Sapir. An immigrant from the former Soviet republic of Georgia, Sapir arrived in America in 1973 and started as a taxicab driver in New York City. Saving up to buy an electronics store, he catered primarily to Russian clientele. Eventually he made contacts with the Soviet contingent to the United Nations in New York, and traded electronics for oil contracts,

which he then sold to American companies. Investing the profits in Manhattan real estate, he became a billionaire by 2002, less than thirty years after arriving penniless in America. Like many rags to riches stories, his is a unique one that would be hard to replicate. Yet today Sapir is becoming known as America's "billionaire cabbie". Criticism of the American Dream Nowadays the American Dream is often regarded as wrong conception of style of life, and it's ideas – errneous as it propagandizes low moral standards. The argumets proving this point of view are the following: It propogandizes consumerism and economic materialism. Its emphasis on material possessions as a way of finding happiness is seen by critics as being somewhat superficial or meaningless. Many

literary works level exactly that criticism at the American Dream, such as Arthur Miller's play Death of a Salesman. The play, a classic American work of literature, finds the main character Willy Loman struggling to come to grips with the fact that his American Dream is unattainable. The American Dream is criticized as promoting an ethic of selfishness and promoting social inequality. The American Dream is criticized as a useful ideal for social control by encouraging people to spend their time and energy working hard for material possessions rather than working to change the balance of power and the way that society is structured. The concept of the American Dream also ignores other factors of success such as luck, family, language, and wealth one is born into. Proponents of

the dream argue that starting wealth is irrelevant because of the belief that there is no level of poverty from which one cannot rise with hard work and determination. Some consider the American dream to be having two children and living in a house with financial security. Currently this iconic middle class lifestyle is however not lived by the majority of the population but rather only by a sizable minority. Certain laws allow the wealthy to keep more of their money. For example, the recent cuts in the estate tax and capital gains taxes may work to further solidify wealth once it is earned. A counter to this argument are studies that show that "great family wealth" is nearly always lost in three generations. It can be difficult to successfully start a business. One