The American Dream: Franklin’s and Douglass’s Perception

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Table of Contents

Introduction
About American Dream
Franklin and Douglass Perception of dreams
Conclusion
Works Cited

Introduction

Dreams have always played a fundamental role in people’s life as it is characterized by a driving force that pushes one to achieve the end results. Ideally, life can be rather meaningless without dreams because there is always a need to improve a livelihood. Unfortunately, there are some people who have never realized the importance of having their own dreams. In America, the issue of dreams did not start yesterday because it has existed ever since the country was a colony. The American dream dates back to the past years when they focused on land which would benefit everyone. Founding fathers in the country mainly concentrated on achieving a land that would provide an opportunity for every American. The objective of this paper, therefore, is to discuss the topic of the American dream and how both Franklin and Douglass, each exemplify this dream. The paper also addresses the potential for its attainment in Eighteenth, and then Nineteenth-Century American life and culture.

About American Dream

The American dream can be traced back to the years around 1600 when people had inspirations and expectations. Most of their dreams were based on acquiring land and venturing into innovative activities that would generate income for them (Franklin 117). Notably, this American dream still exists although it has taken diverse dimensions among citizens of the country. Unlike the old days, Americans have developed new and more inspiring dreams that they aim to achieve. The journey of achieving dreams has never been easy as it calls for hard work and determination. People have different ideologies about the American Dream as there are those who believe its all about living successful and happy lives. To some people, The American dream is all about living better than how the earlier generation lived (Franklin 125). Thus they believe that today’s dreams should be geared towards successful life that was not achieved by one’s parents. Although people have varied dreams, the underlying factor is whether the dream is really achieved. In other words, it would be needless to talk about dreams that can not be achieved. The important factor is to achieve a dream whereby a person can be perceived as living the dream. Other critics suggest that attaining the American dream may not be easy mainly because the country has quite a number of inequalities. For instance, they argue that it is in America where there is a racist social class that may prevent people from achieving their goals (Douglass 34).

Franklin and Douglass Perception of dreams

In his autobiography, Franklin discusses the American dream and how he managed to achieve his goals (Franklin 82). Initially, Franklin was a slave but this did not last forever since he set up dreams that elevated him from his previous way of life. According to Franklin, the American dream meant that everyone had the right to acquire knowledge freely and get equal education (Franklin 28). The author believed that the American dream was free from discrimination even within the class differences. During the colonial period, the dream was also perceived as having educational institutions that created more funding for learning purposes. Franklin was successful in attaining his dreams because he was able to express his thoughts and beliefs in his autobiography. His autobiography was about the American dream that was based on writing and literacy. Through his dream, people were able to express and represent themselves freely. In the eighteenth century, the American dream was fueled by the need for expansion. This dream could only be achieved through hard work and determination (Franklin 124).

Douglass on the other hand was a liberated slave who was working for different masters before fulfilling his dreams. One unique characteristic about Douglass is that he always changed his name whenever he went to work for another master (Douglass 48). Thus he did not stick to one name but kept on replacing new names until he eventually maintained his current name. Douglass’s dream was based on attaining freedom which could be achieved by acquiring education (Douglass 74). The author’s dream revolved around the ideology of inter-dependence and the spirit of brotherhood. Fundamentally, Douglass had a dream of abolishing slavery by seeking freedom, equal rights, and social rights. Although Douglass achieved his dreams, it was not that easy because he had to face many challenges (Douglass 80).

Conclusion

Ultimately, the American dream is an issue that has always existed and most probably will never end. Thus, people will continue having dreams that normally vary from one person to the other. In their writings, Franklin and Douglas have expressed their dreams and how they achieved them. Similarly, both authors believe that dreams must be acquired through hard work. This is mirrored in the way they struggled to achieve their end results without giving up.

Works Cited

Douglass, Fredrick. Narrative of the Life of Fredrick Douglass. Boston. Biblioabazaar, LLC. Print. 2010. Web.

Franklin, Benjamin. “The Autobiography of Benjamin Franklin.” Charles W Eliot Ltd P F Collier & Son Company: NY. Nov. 2008. Web.

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The American Dream: Franklin’s and Douglass’s Perception

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