WEEK ONE

Food for Thought: Pay attention to the following aspects that have shaped the American
society, its culture and literature. Discuss them in groups and write down your response
to them.:

I. Ethnic and Racial Diversity in the United States

1) The immense size of the United States and its great ethnic diversity. Aside from the
Native Americans who were living on the North American continent when the first
European settlers arrived, all Americans came from foreign countries or their ancestors
did. From the 1600s to the birth of the United States in 1776, most immigrants were from
northern Europe, especially from England. These people shaped the values and traditions
that became the dominant, traditional culture of the United States.
2) The U.S. nation as a nation of immigrants; For about 100 years, since 1815, the U.S. took
in about 35 million immigrants. The greatest number came in the late 1800s and the early
1900s. Many of them were not from Europe, but from China and Japan.
3) Nevertheless, the largest numbers of new immigrants were from central, eastern, and
southern Europe. They brought different languages and different cultures to the United
States, yet gradually most of them assimilated to the dominant American culture they
found there. This inspired the view of the United States and its culture as a melting pot:
“America is God’s Crucible … where all the races of Europe are melting and re-forming
…. Germans and Frenchmen, Irishmen and Englishmen, Jews and Russians – into the
Crucible with you all! God is making the American!” (Israel Zangwill) Some disagree
with this view and still want to look upon the U.S. as a salad bowl, where various groups
have remained somewhat distinct and different from one another, creating a richly diverse
country!
4) Both the “melting-pot” and the “salad-bowl” views are partly correct, with the truth lying
somewhere between them. Though huge racial and ethnic assimilation has taken place in
the US since the American Revolution, some groups continue to feel a strong sense of
separateness from the culture as a whole. This way, they are also really bicultural (i.e.,
they consider themselves Americans, but they may also wish to retain the language and
even the cultural traditions of their original culture (see the Hispanics, or Latinos, and
American Jews).
5) In the U.S., for a long time, the dominant culture has been defined by the white
population (who had the money, and the political power, and had the greater numbers),
also referred to as “WASP”s (white Anglo-Saxon protestants). Nowadays, that is
considered an insulting term. The other whites, having a different religion or speaking a
 different language were in the minority and were disadvantaged in so far as they resisted
assimilation. The WASPs, middle-class in character also, established what became the
traditional cultural values and welcomed those newcomers who gave support to: 1)
freedom, 2) equality of opportunity, and 3) the desire to work hard for a higher material
standard of living.
6) In the U.S., the process of assimilation has been much more successful for white ethnic
groups than for nonwhite ethnic ones. Americans of African descent have had the greatest
difficulty in becoming assimilated into the larger culture (they had been brought to the
U.S. against their will to be sold as slaves). This was a contradiction of the first two
traditional basic American values mentioned above and it divided the nation into two
increasingly different sections: the southern states, and the northern states (the later
making slavery against the law). Even a large majority of the northern whites believed
that freedom and equality of opportunity needed to be protected for white people only
(they were afraid that black slavery would eventually take away their economic freedom
and they would have to compete with unpaid slave labor, if that extended to the western
frontier).
7) Though slavery was abolished in the States in the 1860, its legacy continued (blacks
continuing to be segregated and be victims of racial prejudices in the North as well – see
the movie Guess Who’s Coming at Dinner). Almost a century after the Civil War, racially
segregated public schools were declared by the Supreme Court not to provide equal
educational opportunities for black Americans and went illegal. This encouraged black
leaders to try to end racial segregation in all areas of American life (by nonviolent
marches and demonstrations). Martin Luther King Jr. militated for greater assimilation of
black people into the larger American culture (by their being granted greater equality of
opportunity and “freedom now”). It was his ardent dream. Owing to King, two civil rights
laws were passed in the 1960 (making illegal the segregation of public facilities, and the
denial of the black people’s right to vote in elections). Affirmative action, a federal
program, required employers to actively seek black workers and universities to recruit
black students. Nowadays, we have African Americans running for president of the
United States. Others are sports and entertainment heroes, university professors, medical
doctors, lawyers, entrepreneurs, and reporters. Some are wealthy and there is a growing
black middle class.
8) Unlike King, Malcolm X urged a rejection of the basic American values (“white men’s
values”) and complete separation of blacks from the white culture, even by force. He saw
Christianity as a “white” religion, and turned to a faith based on Islam, becoming a leader
of the “black Muslim” faith (founded in the 1930s).
9) Though racial discrimination in employment and housing was forbidden by law, and the
rights of women advanced as well (reinforcing the ideal of equality of opportunity for all
 Americans), there is still the paradox of segregation according to ethnicity and race
persisting in the U.S. On the one hand, most young Americans say they would have no
problems being friends with or even marrying someone of a different race or ethic
background. On the other hand, races and ethnic groups still tend to live in segregated
communities. This made some scholars consider the United States nowadays as
segregated a nation as it has even been (see John Logan speaking about the majority of
Americans living in neighborhoods that continue to separate whites from blacks, Latinos,
and people of Asian descent).
10) Nevertheless, Americans continue to believe strongly in the ideal of equality of
opportunity and to search for ways to give everyone an equal chance at success.

II. Traditional American Values

1) Racial, Ethnic, Religious, and Cultural Diversity informs the traditional American values.
2) Historically, the U.S. has been viewed as “the land of opportunity,” attracting immigrants
from all over the world.
3) There are three basic values (which are also reasons why immigrants have been drawn to
America): a) the chance for individual freedom; b) equality of opportunity; c) material
wealth;
4) There are three prices to be paid in order to achieve these benefits: a) self-reliance; b)
competition; c) hard work.

5) INDIVIDUAL FREEDOM AND THE PRICE TO BE PAID FOR THAT: The history
of the U.S. testifies to that urge and commitment -- see the Declaration of Independence,
as well as the Constitution of the U.S., which separates the church and state (limiting their
power), and has made impossible the existence of any noblemen ruling class (eliminating
a formal aristocracy). By doing this, a climate of freedom was created and maintained, in
which the emphasis is on the individual. The U.S. is associated in the minds of its
inhabitants with the concept of individual freedom, often called individualism (i.e., the
desire and the right of all individuals to control their own destiny without outside
interference from the government, a ruling noble class, the church, or any other organized
authority). The price to be paid for that individual freedom is SELF-RELIANCE. The
individuals must rely on themselves or risk losing freedom (i.e., to achieve both financial
and emotional independence from their parents, as early as possible – by age 18 or 21).
They should take care of themselves, solve their own problems, and “stand on their own
feet.” You cannot keep free indeed without being self-reliant. Moreover, in order to be in
the mainstream of American life, individuals must be seen as self-reliant
(teaching/learning how to fish, instead of being given a fish a day, instead of relying on
 charity).
6) EQUALITY OF OPPORTUNITY AND ITS PRICE: COMPETITION. Immigrants
have been attracted to the US by the belief that everyone has a chance to succeed there.
Because the individuals are free from excessive controls, they have a better chance for
personal success. Time and again, the lack of a hereditary aristocracy is crucial to that.
The lower social class intro which many immigrants were born did not prevent them from
trying to rise to a higher social position. The success of so many millions of immigrants
made the Americans come to believe in equality of opportunity (an ethical rule). This
does not mean that everyone is -- or should be -- equal. It means that each individual
should have an equal chance for success, with life being seen as a race for success (based
on “fair play”). The price to be paid for an equality of opportunity is competition – a
person must run the race/must compete with others in order to succeed. It is anyone’s
duty to try to that, to be a winner rather that a loser. The pressure to compete makes the
Americans energetic, but it also places a constant emotional stain on them (see retiring
people,
7) MATERIAL WEALTH AND ITS PRICE: HARD WORK. Many immigrants went to
the States for a better life, for raising their standard of living. The incredibly rich country
made many people represent it as a land of plenty where people can go and seek their
fortunes. With most people being able to improve upon their standard of living, “going
from rags to riches” has become a slogan for the so-called “American Dream.” This
dream has indeed come true for many of the immigrants. In its turn, material wealth has
become a value to the American people. Material wealth (its quality and quantity) has
acted for the Americans as a substitute for judging social status. The price paid for that
value is hard work. Initially, only by hard work could the natural resources of the
American continent be turned into material possessions and allow for a more comfortable
standard of living. Nowadays, though, it is more difficult to go from rags to riches, so
many wonder what has happened to the traditional American Dream. People work longer
hours for less money and fewer benefits, Still, most people in the States believe in the
value of hard work.
8) John Kenneth White observed that in spite of all changes in the US, the behaviors
and values of Americans have remained remarkably constant:

“Americans still love their country and believe that they can accomplish almost anything. A
recent poll found 91 percent who agreed with the statement, ‘Being an American is a big part
of who I am.’ Frenchman Clotaire Rapaille captured this unique aspect of American
patriotism: ‘America is not a place. It is a dream.’”

The traditional values above are ideals which do not necessarily describe the reality of
American life. They are not always put into practice. Some people born into richer families
have better chances than others. Race and gender may still be factors affecting success, in
spite of laws granting equality of opportunity for all individuals. It is easier to understand
what Americans are thinking and feeling if we understand the basic traditional values and
how they have influenced almost every facet of life in the U.S.

Read more about the American cultural values and the American Dream from American
Ways: An Introduction to American Culture, Third Edition, Pearson E

Task One: Follow the link, read more about the American Dream and discuss it.:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_American_Dream

Task Two: Make sure you accurately understand the traditional American values presented
above. Think of literary illustrations of these concepts and analyze them.

Further Reading: These are some famous literary works on the American Dream:
http://www.greece.k12.ny.us/instruction/ela/6-12/Reading/annotatedbib11.htm

III

PURITANISM IN AMERICAN SOCIETY AND LITERATURE

Activity One: Please visit the following web site, read carefully the information about
Puritanism, discuss it, and answer the study questions:

http://web.csustan.edu/english/reuben/pal/chap1/1intro.html

Activity Two: Read and discuss the influence exerted by Puritanism on American writers as
addressed by the following web page::
http://www.compulsivereader.com/html/index.php?name=News&file=article&sid=1196