Whenever a person thinks of the American dream, they think of accumulating as much money as they possibly can because in this great country, there is no limit to how much money you can earn in your lifetime. It is up to you and how hard you work to achieve this wealth. However, some people have a different definition for wealth and i am one of those people. I look at the American dream and i don't solely see dollar signs. I think of being happy with my life and being surrounded by family and loved ones. In order to obtain such a vast amount of money, a person has to work extremely hard and pretty much give up every other aspect of their life. Sure, i could become a lawyer and make over $100,000 a year and most likely more than that after several years. But few people realize what an individual has to give up in order to obtain this. While they are putting in 70 to 80 hour work weeks, they are not spending time with their families and friends. They are not putting themselves out there to find that special someone they want to live the rest of their life with. To me, wealth and living a good life is not solely the amount of money you have (even though this is a large part of it). It is more about who you decide to surround your life with and what makes you happy.
Law and Economics philosophers argue about if it's the governments job to ensure happiness in society. I feel that is up to the individual to use the resources they have available to them to be happy.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
That's true, but again you have to take into account that happiness is subjective. If for some reason accruing all that money is what makes someone truly happy, then I guess being a lawyer is right for them after all.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Evan. "The best things in life are free." However, some people judge their happiness on the amount of money they have in their wallet.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you, we live in a capitalist country and putting are working more hours to get more money. Some people actually enjoy work. For me I would like to find a job that I would enjoy going to everyday. Money doesn't solve everything but I would prefer to have some money and live comfortably. Happiness like Evan Jim said is subjective.
ReplyDeleteI agree. Money is too much a part of the definition of the American Dream. When you look at it objectively, money does not buy happiness, but for some reason we tend to think that it is going to. I am not really sure what this says about us as a society, and I am kind of afraid to ask.
ReplyDeleteI agree that money does not equate to happiness, yet in modern society, is it possible to acheive "the American dream" without capitalism? Due to our capitalistic society, money is essential for bare necessities that we take for granted on a daily basis. Although the meaning of happiness is subjective, money must be a factor in the equation due to reliance upon it.
ReplyDelete