Myths and heroes

      MYTHS AND HEROES

      I’m going to present the notion “Myths and heroes”. A myth is a traditional story concerning the early history of a person or explaining a natural or social phenomenon, and typically involving supernatural beings or events. A hero is a person who is admired for his courage or outstanding achievements.

To study this notion, we have focused on the American Dream, a term to describe the American Way of Life in general; said Eva Michels in his article speaking about the American Dream. But, is the American Dream a myth nowadays? To answer this question, I’m going to separate my presentation in 2 parts. Firstly, I’m going to explain why the American Dream could be a myth nowadays. Then, I’m going to develop why the American Dream isn’t a myth nowadays.

      To explain why the American Dream is a myth nowadays, we have seen the important immigration to America. For example, we have listened to some audios speaking about the Mexican immigration to America; Mexican Immigration Is going South, for example. The question we ask ourselves is why do they leave their country of origin to cross the border in an illegal way to try to start a new life in USA. A reason to do it could be to start a new life in a better country. People thought that America was a land of opportunities. Before, in America, the race, the religion, the sex or the social class were not a barrier to success. In class, we studied the Obama speech talking about emigration. He said that if you work you will have the same opportunities even if you are black… I have studied in class some articles of The New York Times speaking about immigrant children. For example, Nancy, an African immigrant that came to America to escape from political turmoil. This girl studied in USA and thanks to DACA (deferred action for childhood arrivals) she got to find a job. DACA is a program that temporarily shields some young immigrants who were spared from deportation and permitted to work during the Obama administration. Another example could be Julio Ramos, a mexican immigrant that came to America to achieve his dream: to be a scientist. That’s why America can be considered a land of opportunities and the American Dream can still being a myth nowadays.  

      However, the American Dream isn’t a myth nowadays. We have listened to some Obama’s speeches talking about the immigration to America and the american population nowadays. In these speeches, Obama informs us that a big part of the American population has been immigrants before. Although, over time they have been considered Americans. Moreover, the American dream isn’t a myth cause immigrants migrate from their country because there are wars, persecutions, diseases… We have studied in class some articles of The New York Times speaking about immigrant children. For example, Nancy, an African immigrant that came to America to escape from political turmoil. Or Julio Ramos, a mexican immigrant that came to America to fight against the poverty. That’s why the American Dream can’t still being a myth nowadays.

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