What does it mean to be American?
The word "American" means different things to different people. A dictionary definition would certainly include language that links the term to people, food, etc. in North and South America. Most of us, however, have strong emotional connections (both positive and negative) to the word that transcend dictionary definitions. What connotations does the word have for you? Explore the question in a well developed paragraph. Please use at least one short quotation from an outside source and give credit to that source. It may help you to read and respond to your classmates posts. I am excited to hear what you have to say on the subject.
posted by Jared at 8/17/2006 09:53:00 AM
9 Comments:
The Preamble of the United State's Constitution says,"..In order to form a more perfect Union, establish justice, secure domestic tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general welfare, and secure the blessings of liberty to ourselves and our prosperity..." To be American means to uphold all these freedoms that our forefathers wanted in place. To be American is to be free, have an equal oppourtunity to life, sustain peace, and keep ourselves armed in case anyone wants to take away our freedoms. Essentially, to be American is to live without binding laws and constricting authorities and know that you will never have the right of freedom taken away from you.
Being an American is about freedom and a little room to voice your own opinion, isn't it? Or is it just easier to say that as a middle to upper class American yourself? Gloria Steinem once said that "America is an enormous frosted cupcake in the middle of millions of starving people." Taking a step back and looking at America from afar, we see that with such and enormous population and a strong government, we are a world power. That puts us in a situation where we are obligated to help other countries who need our help. Holding so much power however, shouldn't we also help our own country. There are poverty stricken, homeless, and dying people in other countries around the world, but there are those people here too. So being an American can mean being free, having oppotunity, and fighting for your own success. Being an American can also mean having to fight to help yourself in a country that chooses to put you lower on their list.
Being an American, to me means that we are indicted with unalienable rights of freedom, which differ us from those of other cultures, descents, and countries. Yet this freedom that we hold to be so valuable is also what causes our society to have the evils that we encompass today. On Friday, in my Western Civilizations class we discussed the way of life in other countries that do not grant the citizens the luxury of Freedom, yet since the government withholds such a force upon the people, the crime rate and problems of the society are such a miniscule number that it seems that this system is almost a better way of life. So the question is should one be given the “happiness” of freedom that America offers, with a side order of rape, crime, murder, and violence, or be chained to the government’s regulation but live with a safer society. “The fact, in short, is that freedom, to be meaningful in an organized society must consist of an amalgam of hierarchy of freedoms and restraints.” ~Samuel Hendel
John Adams once said, “Liberty can not be preserved without a general knowledge among the people.” The definition of liberty is the condition of being free from restriction or control. An American is someone who will stand up fortheir liberty and what they think is right. They know that they have the right to express themselves because they are American, no matter what race, religion, or sex they are. They also know they can speak their mind about what they believe and try to change things in their country. It is important that Americans know their rights, because as the quote by John Adams says, liberty and freedom can not be preserved without people understanding and standing up for their rights.
John Adams once said, “Liberty can not be preserved without a general knowledge among the people.” The definition of liberty is the condition of being free from restriction or control. An American is someone who will stand up for their liberty and what they think is right. They know that they have the right to express themselves because they are American, no matter what race, religion, or sex they are. They also know they can speak their mind about what they believe and try to change things in their country. It is important that Americans know their rights, because as the quote by John Adams says, liberty and freedom can not be preserved without people understanding and standing up for their rights.
John Adams once said, “Liberty can not be preserved without a general knowledge among the people.” The definition of liberty is the condition of being free from restriction or control. An American is someone who will stand up for their liberty and what they think is right. They know that they have the right to express themselves because they are American, no matter what race, religion, or sex they are. They also know they can speak their mind about what they believe and try to change things in their country. It is important that Americans know their rights, because as the quote by John Adams says, liberty and freedom can not be preserved without people understanding and standing up for their rights.
John Adams once said, “Liberty can not be preserved without a general knowledge among the people.” The definition of liberty is the condition of being free from restriction or control. An American is someone who will stand up for their liberty and what they think is right. They know that they have the right to express themselves because they are American, no matter what race, religion, or sex they are. They also know they can speak their mind about what they believe and try to change things in their country. It is important that Americans know their rights, because as the quote by John Adams says, liberty and freedom can not be preserved without people understanding and standing up for their rights.
Being an American does not come with any proud nationalistic feelings nor much negativity either. I do feel fortunate to be here rather than in the middleast, where women are mistreated and there is lots of poverty; however, I still don't see any reason to brag so much about being an American. The number of wars we've been in and learned nothing from is kind of embarrasing. Why can't we just not get involved in violence like Switzerland or Canada? Also, I do not believe we have as much freedom of speech as originally thought. The Declaration of Independence says, "That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government..." Currently, I think many citizens are just "letting things slide" and not standing up for what's right, because they'd probably be put in jail. On the other hand, I know my opportunities for jobs, schools, and pretty much anything, are open in America. Another bonus, life on the homeland is pretty peaceful and I feel safe.
The connotation that 'American' has for me is just another way to say group. If you think about it in any other way, then you become racist toward another group. French are French because of their culture. That does not mean that their culture is wrong because they are not dong it the 'American' way. The 'American' way is always changing. “America has changed since we first came here (1964). It's almost unrecognizable, to be perfectly honest. It's very hard to imagine what the United States was like 40 years ago. It wasn't like this and the Super Bowl wasn't like this either. We've grown with American culture changes and America has changed a great deal. Hopefully both of us still have our core values intact.” In the 30's the way at the moment was to pull your self up by your boot straps. In the 40's to fight for you country. 60's to spread peace. The 'American' group changes with every generation, so the messages that other groups gets changes too. If you want to judge another culture then you need to live in that culture for a long time. I haven't been an American long enough to know what it means, but I do know what it means to be part of America.
Post a Comment
<< Home