One of the many ideas/questions that occasionally comes up in the conversation in our course is the idea of “the American Dream.” What is the American Dream? Where did this idea come from? How has this idea evolved over time and how does this evolution reflect our changing culture? How has the evolution of our consumption (and the impact of our consumption on our values) changed our understanding of the meaning and function of this “American Dream”?
This evening I have just listened to a really excellent show on NPR from American Radioworks that explored these questions in a very comprehensive and fascinating way. I really appreciate the way that this program explored the evolution of the idea of the American Dream and its impact in the context of the evolution of our society and inequality in our society. This show also has a well thought out website. Check this out and let me know what you think… http://americanradioworks.publicradio.org/features/americandream/
