These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor’s lecture. GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes, not as a substitute. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!Lecture!3!!Outline(of(Last(Lecture((I. Myth!and!Symbols!Approach!II. The!Critical!Approach!a. Ideology!!III. The!Melting!Pot!a. The!myth!IV. Critical!Analysis!Paper!Outline(of(Current(Lecture((I. Review!of!Last!Class!II. The!American!Dream!a. Income!Inequality!in!the!US!III. Criticisms!of!the!American!Dream!(Current(Lecture(Review!of!last!class!(1/21):!The!idea!that!the!US!is!a!melting!pot…!• The!melting!pot!is!both!a!myth((powerful!influence!on!the!was!people!think!and!act)!and!an!ideology!!(ideas!about!what!society!should!look!like)!• The!melting!pot!is!an!ambiguous!symbol,!so!it!can!be!interpreted!in!different!ways!(but!cannot!just!mean!anything!to!anyone)!!• The!melting!pot!theory,!like!multiculturalism!(preserves!certain!symbols!of!culture!but!still!requires!other!areas!of!the!US!to!assimilate),!can!be!seen!as!a!way!of!domesticating!difference!(multiple!lines!of!difference!in!the!US!and!claiming!it!as!something!that!defines!and!is!unique!to!the!US,!acknowledges!that!the!US!is!a!heterogeneous!society)!!The!American!Dream!• There!is!no!singular!American!dream!• They!tend!to!focus!on!a!tension!between!opportunity!and!exclusion!!!!((AMST:A100((((((1st(Edition(! !• Typical!American!dream!(social!justice!version):!the!chance!to!strike!it!rich!or!become!famous,!or!the!opportunity!to!rise!up!from!a!lower!class!through!hard!work!and!merit!!!(Income!inequality!in!the!US!• Household!income!for!the!top!1%!has!shot!up!between!1979!and!2007!• Whereas!the!share!of!wealth!of!60%!of!the!population!is!going!down!• Income!inequality!is!getting!worse!in!the!U.S.!(out!of!balance)!• The!US!has!the!largest!income!inequality!in!developed!countries.!This!contradicts!the!“American!dream”.!!The!rich!stay!rich!and!the!poor!stay!poor!Ragged!Dick!By:!Horatio!Alger!Jr.!• This!story!represents!the!idea!that!anyone!can!achieve!upward!mobility!from!hard!work!• Perky,!optimistic,!practical!wisdom,!the!American!dream!Criticisms!of!the!typical!American!Dream!• The!American!dream!is!based!on!material!acquisition.!There!is!more!to!life!than!this!kind!of!success!• Middle!class!disillusionment!with!material!success!!• Spiritual!emptiness!!• African!American’s!challenge!this!American!Dream!and!focus!rather!on!their!exclusion!from!opportunity.!!• MLK’s!“I!Have!a!Dream!Speech”!critiques!the!American!dream!and!points!to!social!exclusion!•
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