Idealizing What Is Practical

Many historians believe that most of the beliefs and values which are characteristically American emerged within the context of the frontier experience.

Survival in the wilderness was best achieved by individualists. Survival experiences also explain the American tendency to idealize whatever is prac­tical. In America, what works is what counts.

Frontier:in American history the frontier was the edge of the settled country where unlimited cheap land was available attracting pioneers who were willing to live the hard but independent life in the West.

They hadnot trained themselves in farming or house construction, but they trusted they would be able to devise workable solutions to the daily problems and dangers they faced. Inventiveness was necessary for survival.

This "can-do" spirit is something Americans are proud of today. They like to think they are natural-born do-it-yourselfers. In which country does one find such a variety of "how-to" books and self-service opportunities? There are do-it-yourself books on everything from how to build and repair your own engine to how to be your own best friend. Self-service arrangements include time-saving clerkless airline ticket counters and do-it-yourself telephone install­ment kits. These kinds of solutions appeal to Americans' preference for what­ever is quick and practical.

Volunteerism

The do-it-yourself spirit is known as volunteerismin American community and political life. Volunteerism means people helping people through privately-initiated, rather than government-sponsored, agencies. Volunteers, usually unpaid, are highly motivated workers who organize themselves and others to solve a particular community problem or meet an immediate social need, rather than waiting for someone else—usually the government—to do it. Vol­unteerism is pervasive, arising wherever social services do not cover com­munity needs. When a high school football team requires money for uniforms, parents and students form an athletic association which organizes car washes and bake sales to raise money for uniforms. Volunteer fund-raising groups step in to help the needy in all spheres: there are groups that hold clothing drives for the poor and homeless as well as groups that organize expensive money-raising dinners to save a symphony orchestra, for example. Where there are gaps in federal social programs, volunteers provide services such as adult education, psychological counseling, and legal aid.

The willingness to participate in such groups is so widespread that six out of ten Americans are members of a volunteer organization. Volunteerism reflects Americans' opti­mistic pride in their ability to work out practical solutions themselves.

Psychology of Abundance

It is easy to be an optimistic do-it-yourselfer in so many spheres when one takes for granted an abundance of resources. Historically, Americans have regarded their country as a land of limitless wealth. The first colonists of the New World wrote letters back home, contrasting the riches of America with the poor lands from which they came.

The buffalo was hunted to near extinction, millions of acres of forested land were cut and burned, and rivers were polluted from mining. Still America is rich in natural resources. But attitudes toward wastefulness are changing. While some Americans still believe in the inexhaustibility of the nation's resources, others reluctantly recognize that the era of cheap and plentiful resources is over. They realize that America must adopt new values to cope with a shrinking world. Today, America's Mountain West, the least populated region of the country where resources seem barely tapped, is suf­fering from a severe water shortage. Westerners are faced with the need to restrict population growth and reconsider uses for water. Limits such as these are difficult to acknowledge because they contradict the psychology of abundance which has become so much a part of the American way of life.

Mobility

The pragmatism of Americans and their trust in an abundance of resources relates to the American habit of mobility. As a nation of immigrants, Americans have from the beginning shared the assumption that the practical solution to a problem is to move elsewhere and make a fresh start. After all, this is the attitude that settled the West. Mobility in America is not a sign of aimlessness but optimism. Pioneers made the arduous journey westward because they believed they could establish a better life for themselves and their children. Now, Americans move from place to place with the same sense of optimism, hoping to secure a better job or enjoy climate.

Moving about from place to place is such a common and accepted practice that most Americans take it for granted that they may live in four or five cities during their lifetime, perhaps buying a house and then reselling it each time they move. Consequently, when Americans go house-hunting, their foremost concern is usually how profitably they will be able to resell the house. A comfortable, well-designed house is not necessarily desirable unless it has a good resale value. Americans hate to feel that buying a house might immobilize them forever, thereby inhibiting their chances of bettering their lives.

The American habit of mobility has been important in contributing a degree of homogeneity to a society of such extreme cultural diversity and spaciousness. Cultural differences still exist from region to region, but they are becoming increasingly less distinct as mutual exchange occurs.

A further consequence of Americans' mobility is that they develop relatively little attachment to place. In this century, national pride has become generally stronger than regional pride.

Patriotism

Patriotism is like religion. Patriotism and nationalism are identical twins. They infect people with a feeling of superiority, of pride, that translates into war slogans easy as apple pie.

"Patriotism is the most primitive of passions," Jorge Luis Borges has observed. It's been around for thou­sands of years, and these days the sentiment is transmitted in the home, the classroom, the assembly hall, the athletic field, as well as on the radio waves and television screens. No day passes without our being bombarded by some patriotic message or symbol.

It's a tough bug to shake, but that doesn't mean we should celebrate the disease. Nothing justifies a salute to patriotism. It is too dangerous a con­cept to be toyed with. And by playing the silly game of capture the flag, we only capture ourselves.

Foreign visitors to America are quick to observe the prevalence of patriotic symbols: flags fly in suburban neighborhoods, bumper stickers announce "I'm proud to be American," the national anthem is played at every sporting event. National holidays such as Thanksgiving and Independence Day intensify the sense of national identity.

Yet patriotism in America is in some ways distinct from patriotism in other countries. In many nations, patriotism is essentially the love of the land. Songs celebrate the scenery of certain rivers, valleys, and forests. American patriotism is concentrated upon the particular historic event of the nation's creation as a new start and upon the idea of freedom which inspired the nation's beginnings.

Thanksgiving Day: a national holiday celebrated on the fourth Thursday of November to give thanks to Cod for the harvest, remembering particularly the first successful harvest of the early settlers who had suffered a terrible winter when they arrived.

Independence Day: July 4, a national holiday celebrating the anniversary of the adoption of the Declaration of Independence in 1776.

Progress

Directly associated with the value of freedom is the ideal of progress. The desire to progress by making use of opportunities is important to Americans. In this immigrant society, progress is personally measured as family progress over generations.

Many Americans can boast that with each succeeding generation the family's status has improved. The classic American family saga is all about progress. The great-grandparents, arriving from the Old World with nothing but the clothes on their backs, work hard and suffer poverty so that they can provide a good education for their children. The second generation, motivated by the same vision of the future and willingness to work hard and make sacrifices, pass these values to their children.

American Dream

The term “American Dream”, used in widely different contexts from political speeches to Broadway musicals, eludes precise definition. J. T. Adams in The Epic of America (1931) expressed it as "the dream of a land in which life should be better, richer, and fuller for every man with opportunities for each according to his abilities and achievement." The “American Dream” is popularized in countless rags-to-riches stories and in the portrayal of the good life in adver­tising and on TV shows. It teaches Americans to believe that contentment can be reached through the virtues of thrift, hard work, family loyalty, and faith in the free enterprise system.

However, throughout America's history, reality has also taught her citizens, particularly minorities, that the “American Dream” is not open to all. Segregation and discrimination are effective tools which have barred minorities from equal opportunities in all spheres.

II. Answer questions for discussion:

1. How can you identify an American?

2. Does America really offer freedom for all?

3. Why has individualism been a central theme in American history?

4. How can you describe this "can-do" spirits Americans are still proud of today?

5. What kind of services do American volunteers provide?

6. Do Americans still believe in the inexhaustibility of the nation's resources?

7. Why do Americans move from place to place in such a common and accepted practice?

8. How does American patriotism differ from patriotism in other countries?

9. What does the classic American family saga say about progress?

10. How do you understand the term “American Dream”?

11. Can everyone enjoy equal opportunities in the USA?