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The '''American dream''' is the easy availability of upward mobility for [[American]]s. It means an open society with considerable movement up and down in an indivivual lifetime, and across the [[generation]]s, as opposed to tightly structured society in which the status of ancestors determines one's life chances.

The '''American dream''' is the easy availability of upward mobility for Americans. It means an open society with considerable movement up and down in an indivivual lifetime, and across the [[generation]]s, as opposed to tightly structured society in which the status of ancestors determines one's life chances. For those who like to worry, the idea that the American dream is fading away for the middle class has been a common trope for over 75 years, including today, and has never been true.<ref> David Brooks (a conservative) and Gail Collins (a liberal), debate "Is the American Dream Over?," [http://opinionator.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/12/09/is-the-american-dream-over/?ref=opinion ''New York Times'' Dec. 14, 2009]</ref>

==Origins of phrase==

==Origins of phrase==

James Truslow Adams (1878-1949), a conservative historian, was the first to name "the American dream" and interpret it as the full realization of human potential:

[[James Truslow Adams]] (1878-1949), a conservative historian, was the first to name "the American dream" and interpret it as the full realization of human potential:

:The American Dream is that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement. It is a difficult dream for the European upper classes to interpret adequately, and too many of us ourselves have grown weary and mistrustful of it. It is not a dream of motor cars and high wages merely, but a dream of social order in which each man and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature of which they are innately capable, and be recognized by others for what they are, regardless of the fortuitous circumstances of birth or position.<ref> Adams, ''Epic of America'' (1931) p.214-215 </ref>

:The American Dream is that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement. It is a difficult dream for the European upper classes to interpret adequately, and too many of us ourselves have grown weary and mistrustful of it. It is not a dream of motor cars and high wages merely, but a dream of social order in which each man and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature of which they are innately capable, and be recognized by others for what they are, regardless of the fortuitous circumstances of birth or position.<ref> Adams, ''Epic of America'' (1931) p.214-215 </ref>

==Meaning==

==Meaning==