The American Dream, a belief that everyone has equal opportunity, is the basis of the American Dream. Both racial inequality and economic inequalities have plagued the United States. Importantly, the problem of race can increase the chance that an individual will be able to experience social mobility. This is despite the fact that The American Dream was meant to illustrate how social and administrative systems can facilitate equality. This raises questions about the value of the American Dream, which is still popular but cannot perform its original function. While the American Dream might not be attainable for many, Americans use it to fool them. Langston Hughes’ poem “Let America Once Again Be America” attempts to highlight this topic. In the poem, Langston Hughes depicts a sad situation in which the author seems to suggest that people would prefer this imagined America. Poetry and ongoing divisions in American society undercut the American Dream. It seems that it is a rhetorical tool to soothe racial animosity.
While the American Dream sounds like a utopian ideal, its realization is impossible due to flawed systems. Langston Hughes’ poem reveals that America was always based on dreams. In Line 7, he says, “Let America be the dream that dreamers imagined.” Langston writes in Line 7 that America’s desire to transform has been there since the beginning. This is especially true in relation to the American Dream. It is beautiful on paper but cannot be put into practice in the real world. Individuals believe everyone has the same opportunities when they read about America’s Dream. But, “O Pioneers” shows that this is not true. Willa Cather. Alexandra Bergson was given property by her father. Land seemed to be the best way of attaining economic independence. Many immigrants doubted that they would be able to make a living from their property’s income. Cather shows in the narrative how, even though immigrants had land, it was difficult for them prosper. The opportunities to succeed were not the same for immigrants even if they had land. If immigrants from Hannover view land as irrelevant, it could make the American Dream less possible.
The American Dream is only a benefit to a small subset of Americans and cannot be used as a rallying call for the nation. It seems that there is a common theme to the American success story. Hughes, for example, writes in the poem, “Where monarchs and tyrants never plot… That any man by another.” (Lines 9 to 10). Hughes refers to two socioeconomic categories in the poem. They are the leaders and wealthy. Hughes says that the leaders in America must not restrain the social mobility for the poor. Hughes also states that the wealthiest will follow their lead.