[Ads-l] Antedating of "American Dream"

[Peter Reitan]

I guess my question is, is the early (1895) example that seems to focus 
on the potential of the country as a whole "count" as an example of the 
"American Dream," the individual, aspirational ideal?  Or does the one 
necessarily anticipate the other?

------ Original Message ------
From: "ADSGarson O'Toole" <adsgarsonotoole at gmail.com>
To: ADS-L at listserv.uga.edu
Sent: 3/1/2019 3:44:26 PM
Subject: Re: Antedating of "American Dream"

>---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
>Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>Poster:       ADSGarson O'Toole <adsgarsonotoole at GMAIL.COM>
>Subject:      Re: Antedating of "American Dream"
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>
>I think multiple definitions are possible for "the American Dream".
>Here is the definition chosen by the editors of the Oxford English
>Dictionary.
>
>[Begin excerpt]
>American dream n. (also American Dream) (with the) the ideal that
>every citizen of the United States should have an equal opportunity to
>achieve success and prosperity through hard work, determination, and
>initiative.
>[End except]
>
>On Fri, Mar 1, 2019 at 6:28 PM Peter Reitan <pjreitan at hotmail.com> wrote:
>>
>>  Is there a distinction between the "American Dream" as used here, in
>>  which the "dream" appears to be that of the country's prospects and
>>  fulfilling its potential as a whole, as opposed to the "American Dream"
>>  to which individuals aspire?
>>
>>  The concept of the prototypical individual American's dream existed
>>  before 1895, if not the expression, as such.
>>
>>  In an article about the Life of the industrialist, Jay Gould, "His life
>>  is the incarnation of every live American's dream.  He was born in a
>>  little farm house, began life without a penny, but by virtue of his
>>  enterprise and the laws of his country he accumulated the greatest
>>  fortune ever gathered by one man in a single lifetime, and died the
>>  richest man in the world."
>>  Pittsburg Kansan (Pittsburg, Kansas), December 8, 1892, page 4.
>>
>>  Interestingly, earlier that same year, a cartoon on the back cover of a
>>  Puck magazine expressed a kind of cynicism of "The American Boy's Dream
>>  of Greatness - The Old Ideals and the New."  It illustrated that, "The
>>  Boy of Other Days Dreamed of Becoming a Great General or Statesman,"
>>  whereas, "The Boy of To-Day Dreams of Being a Big Monopolist or a
>>  High-Salaried Official.
>>  Puck, Volume 31, Number 782, March 2, 1892, back cover illustration.
>>
>>  Still not quite the aspirational, individual "American Dream"
>>  represented (as I've always understood it) as the acquisition of a home,
>>  good career and better economic circumstances than one's parents (or
>>  something like that), all because of the personal freedoms and
>>  opportunities available by America's unique political system and
>>  circumstances.
>>
>>
>>
>>  ------ Original Message ------
>>  From: "Shapiro, Fred" <fred.shapiro at yale.edu>
>>  To: ADS-L at listserv.uga.edu
>>  Sent: 3/1/2019 1:08:56 PM
>>  Subject: Antedating of "American Dream"
>>
>>  >---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
>>  >Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>>  >Poster:       "Shapiro, Fred" <fred.shapiro at YALE.EDU>
>>  >Subject:      Antedating of "American Dream"
>>  >-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>  >
>>  >American dream (OED 1916)
>>  >
>>  >
>>  >1895 _Sunday Inter Ocean_ (Chicago), 28 Apr. 1895 in Sarah Churchwell _Beho=
>>  >ld, America_ (2018) 25  Oh, critic and cynic, dreamer and doubter, behold A=
>>  >merica, as this day she stands before her history and her heroes.  See her =
>>  >millions of people, her free institutions, her equal laws, her generous opp=
>>  >ortunities, her schoolhouses and her churches; you see misfortunes and defe=
>>  >cts, for not yet is fully realized the American dream; you surely see her m=
>>  >ighty progress toward the fulfillment of her philosophy.
>>  >
>>  >
>>  >Fred Shapiro
>>  >
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