A Land of Opportunities

When people think of the American Dream, they often think about the famous phrase “from rags to riches”, which was the main reason for many people to emigrate to the USA. The concept of the American Dream is that everyone can be successful, rich and wealthy.
Before I describe the American Dream, mention reasons for immigration and tell something about the American Nightmare, I will describe a quote and a picture which are related to the American Dream.
In the second picture you can see a little boy who is holding his hand on the hand of the president Barack Obama. The boy is an African-American inhabitant and they are standing in a big room. The message of this picture is that the little black boy wants to feel Obama´s hair. He can´t believe that they have the same hair and a black person with curly hair can become president. If you compare the picture with the following quote you can see a lot of similarities.
The quote is    by Daniel Libeskind who is a famous American architect and who designed the Freedom Tower. In the quote he says that he came as an immigrant to America and when he passed the Statue of Liberty he saw a representation of the substance of the American Dream. The message of this quote is that first of all it does not matter who you are or where you come from because even as an immigrant you can become successful and rich.
The message is also that the Statue of Liberty represents freedom and strength and therefore the American Dream.
In my opinion the quote and the picture show that symbols like the Statue of Liberty make people feel united and it gives them hope that immigrants can also become successful.
After comparing the picture and the quote I would like to continue with writing about why people immigrated to the U.S. in the past.
When Columbus discovered America in 1492 a lot of Europeans and people from all over the world started to dream the American Dream. A lot of Europeans had heard that they would be able to practice their religious faith freely in America and for all of them America became a land of solving problems like poverty and hunger. As a new land America was settled by a lot of people who believed that hard work and ambition will help them to become successful and rich.
When the immigrants entered America they had to pass the Statue of Liberty which is now a symbol for the American Dream and a sign for freedom,liberty and individuality.
In 1981 the former president Ronald Reagan spoke about the power of the American Dream and said that everybody has the right to have goals, dreams and hopes because these dreams will be the dreams of his administration. These words showed that it is really important to believe in your dreams but moreover to fight for your dreams. You have to fight for your dreams because if you want them to become true you need to do something for it because nothing is for free in this world. These are the facts which represent the American Dream.
Nowadays people move to America because it is a society in which man and woman, Black and Whites, Protestants and Catholics have the right to reach their aims. That´s why you can find so many immigrants in America. They feel that they are treated equally and as soon as they have a passport, they are real Americans.
In addition, patriotism and optimism are important aspects of the American Dream. Americans are really proud of their country and that´s why every morning children sing their national anthem in school and always say " God bless America."
Another reason for immigration is the significance of independence and democracy. Everybody has the right to state his or her opinion without any fear. Therefore, a lot of people who grew up in a dictatorships and didn´t have the right to tell their opinion or the right to take their own decisions moved to America because they knew that they would receive all these rights there. Being independent is also really important because it shows that you are confident and strong.
Besides, the American dream represents the innovation of new ideas and a modern life. It encourages you to start your own business and to be our own boss.
However, In my opinion America is not just about the American Dream. It is also about the American Nightmare.
A lot of people relate 9/11 and therefore the terrorism to it. On September 11, 2001, four coordinated terrorist attacks took place in New York City and Washington. Four passenger airliners were hijacked by the Islamic terrorist group Al-Qaeda and tow of them flew into the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center where about 3000 people died. This day was a shocking day for all Americans and they realized that America has a lot of enemies.
Another American Nightmare is that the inhabitants are allowed to have guns for their safety which is in my opinion not acceptable. As a tourist I would feel really uncomfortable to walk around the streets in New York knowing that someone could kill me in one second.
In conclusion, I would like to say that the American Dream still represents freedom, liberty, individuality, optimism, hopes and patriotism but it doesn´t necessarily means that Americans have a better life than others because somehow there still is the fear of terrorism and guns.  (NS)

American Dream

Today, many people immigrate to the United Staates of America in search of the American dream. But what is the American dream? It can be seen in different lights. Everybody has his own opinion. It is the pursuit of happiness, prosperity and freedom. Everybody has the opportunity to achieve his goals. No matter how much money you have or where you are form, you can become rich and famous. But is that real? What are the problems with the American dream?

In the 20^th century, many people immigrated to the United Staates of America because they wanted to life a better life. Right now, It is different. The situation has changed. The gap between rich and poor is huge. Many people don't have enough money. They work hard every day but they are poor. An example for this would be the city of New York. New York is a huge city with millions of inhabitants. There are huge skyscrapers and the Times square. But this is just Manhattan. New York has problems, too. An example for this would be the Broonx. The Broonx has changed a lot. Some parts are very fashionable, today.

Michael Bloomberg, mayor of New York said: „ New York is the city of dreamers where you can achieve the American dream. It has been tested and it has triumphed“. The poor people are able to dream, but they will not achieve it, because they don't have money and education. You need money and education to achieve the American dream in New York. Boomberg said it has triumphed. That is not true. On the one hand, it has triumphed. The people who live in Manhattan are happy and rich. They have already achieve the American dream.On the other hand, it has not triumphed. New York has a poor part, too. The people in the Broonx are poor and they suffer. What I want to say is that it is both true and false. Manhattan is the American dream and the Broonx is the opposite of the American dream. Terrorism is an American nightmare. In 2001, two airplaines flew into the World Trade Center. 3000 people died.

Picture number 5 shows a wall next to the World Trade Center after the attack. The twintowers are in the centre. The American flag is on the top of the left tower. The towers are surrounded by writtings. In the middle is a sentence with states that Osama must die. The people want revenge. Osama was the chief of the perpetrators. On the picture are peace signs and sentences to the people who died on September 11. The World Trade Center represented capitalism. 3000 would not have died, if the World Trade Center had not been there. Capitalism is a following of the American dream. Consenquently, they died because of the American dream. Another point is that America has a big problem with illegal immigrants. They want to come to America to achieve the American dream. But they are not allowed to pass the border. Consequently, they immigrate without permission. In America they work hard under bad conditions. They will not achieve the American dream. They will stay poor. What it want to say is that they work hard but they are not able to be succesful, because they do not have money or education. The American dream is possible, but it is pretty unlikely.

In my opinion, the American is not alive anymore. People come to America with the dream of the American dream. But they will not be succesful. You need money and education. If you do not have money or education, you have to be extremely lucky. There would not be the huge gap between rich and poor without the American dream. (LH)

New York, the Mirror of the American Dream.

Life, Liberty, Pursuit of happiness. The American Dream, the dream of becoming rich, being individiual and living free. Year after year, day after day people come to America to find their personal American Dream. They come from all over the world to find peace and happiness. The probably most famous place of the American Dream, where it can be seen most clearly, is New York City.
New York represents all sides of the American Dream in one big city. Michael Bloomberg, mayor of New York City from 2002 until today said in his quote that New York is the place for dreamers and the biggest Dream the American Dream has been tested and triumphed there. The quote shows how important New York City is for the American Dream.
It is a place full of people from different countries and cultures, skin colours and religions. But exactly that is what makes this city so special. All cultures melt together to one big culture, a process which is
called 'melting pot'.
New York is defined by the American Dream, but is has also had bad times 9/11 was one of these, two planes flew into the twin towers and thousands of people died.The city was in shock, a nightmare for all of America. 9/11 is also an example for the fact what happens in America, to America or
what America does is mostly reflected in New York City.
Another example are the polticial fights in the American goverment, that are happening at the moment. America could be bankrupt any day and also this can be seen in New York. The statue of Liberty and Ellis Island have been closed down for a few days or weeks. On picture one you can see exactly this problem. You can see a sign in front of the river,with the statue of Liberty in the background. The sign says 'Important Gouverment shut down' and probably explains the closing of the statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. Three men are looking at this sign. How this nightmare will end, we will only know in a few days.
New York is a city of dream and dreamers, of fulfilled dreams and hopeless dreaming, of the American Dreams and American Nightmares. It is a living example for the American Dream and like Bloomberg said, it 'has been tested and has triumphed' in this magical city, but has also had downs.
New York, New York.

American Dream - Your Perspective: American Dream and American Nightmare. DA

American Dream and American Nightmare
What actually is the American Dream?
The American Dream is a strong part in the American society. It says that every person can improve his life with hard work and determination, whether he is black or white, healthy or sick, young or old. In other words every American can work hard to gain prosperity, without a single dollar. This has become the proverbial term: ,,from rags to riches”.  The American Dream is not exactly defined; it is based on the dreams and wishes of different people. At the beginning I will tell you something about the American Dream.
When America was found many Immigrants came to America, with the hope that they would be part of the whole American Dream. They wanted independence and the feeling of being free. The Immigrants came with the hopes that they have the right to state their opinion without fear and they could express their religion. Some of the main elements of the American Dream are individual freedom, self-confidence, equality of opportunity, hard work and success. Therefore, a lot of immigrants moved to America. They wanted to change their life. The American people are very proud of their country and have also a strong connectedness to the country, which you can see well on their national anthem.
There is still another side of the American Dream; it’s called the American Nightmare. But before telling you something about the dark side of the American Dream I will compare a picture and a quote, which show the two sides of American History very well.
In picture five you can see a wall with sentences, for example ,,be strong”, ,,peace”, ,,freedom”, ,,be good to each other”, ,,America forever” and much more. All these sentences are main elements of the American Dream. But on the wall you can also see words like 9/11 or a picture of the Twin-Towers with the sentence: Osama must die. That shows the horrible side of America. The terrible event on 9/11 forced the people to rethink their Dreams. Many people lost their family, their house or their job. On 9/11 four airplains were hijacked by the terrorist group Al-Quaida and two of the airlines flew into the Twin-Towers of the World Trade Centre. Many people died and this event has roused many people. But the words like ,,America forever” or ,,freedom” on the wall, shows that the Americans still fight for their luck and have hopes. Their still going on and doesn’t give up.
If you compare the picture with the following quote you can understand exactly what the American Dream means.
In the Quote Barack Obama, the US president said, it’s time to reclaim the American Dream. It’s part of us and make us to one big family. He said exactly what the American Dream means. He said we must believe in it and not give up.
I think, today it is difficult to implement the American Dream. Many people lost much because of the horrible events (Nightmares) for example 9/11 or the depression. They don’t believe that the American Dream existed. But there are some people who believe that the American Dream is still alive and can be achieved. I can only agree, but I personally also think that the American Nightmare destroyed the Dream for many people.

"Argo"

This is the movie about the Iran hostage crisis I mentioned today. It is indeed based on a true story!

Preparing for Klausur on October 17, 2013

Composition: American Dream, American Nightmares

You'll get images and quotes

You pick at least one picture and describe it.

In your essay, you refer to at least one of the quotes.

Make sure your composition consists of:

an introduction, main body, conclusion

Leave space between paragraphs!

Preparing for this Klausur:

- review your essay on 9/11

- reread the article “Dreams in a Land of Opportunity”

- reread the article “Focus on Facts” on American core values, make sure you understand the concepts of “American Dream”, “Frontier Spirit” , “Protestant Work Ethic” (= Benjamin Franklin, the thirteen virtues and the lightning rod .-))!)

- make sure you understand the preamble to Declaration of Independence (“life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness”)

- listen/review the short talks on American history

- review/do worksheet “describing a picture”

How I will grade:

- Content and language count 50:50

- I value individualism and I like structured writing. Please hand in your best effort at making a coherent (zusammenhängend) statement! That means, spend some time (at least 15 minutes!) at the beginning of the Klausur to organize your thoughts.

 (That also means, you will be well prepared if you think and/or talk to your class mates now about questions like: Is the American Dream still alive? If yes, where do I see that? If no, why not? Are the U.S. still an “exceptional” nation, as Obama insisted in a speech before the U.N.? Which challenges did the American people have to overcome in their history that I find interesting?...)

You will have monolingual dictionaries at your disposal.

Whenever in doubt, use common sense! You can write about many different things, and I am sure you’ll do your best! Keep in mind that I always focus on what you are good at, even though I have to grade you. So if you know a lot about  American involvement in World War I, for example, find a way to compare and contrast what you know with an image or quote. If you find the events of 9/11 interesting, find a way to describe that in relevant detail. Surprise me!!! 

Welcome to English, Class of 2015!

Hi Everbody,

We will work in the computer room once in a while. I would like to use this blog to share information, especially links to good pages to study grammar and vocabulary.  If you're interested we can also use this to share the essays you'll write (of course, correct versions!)

For now, this is the link to the vocab learning system I mentioned:Anki