Night Lovell Deira City Centre

The notion I’m going to deal with is ‘Myths and heroes’ and I’m going to show in what way the American Dream is a myth and who are its heroes

what is a myth?

A myth is a a widely held but false belief or idea concerning typically ancient story dealing with supernatural beings or heroes to explain natural events or to justify religious beliefs or social customs

What is a hero

A hero is a person noted for feats of courage especially one who has risked or sacrificed his or her life and is often regarded as a role model or ideal they can be either a real person

or in mythology and legend, an individual celebrated for their exploits or strenght

Therefore, we are going to see how the American Dream is a popular tradition and belief which originated with the myth of the Wild West and its Frontier.

We will evoke the heroes of the Wild West, that is to say the pioneers and the cowboys. We will then move on to show how this myth lives on in modern day America and how it still shapes the American psyche.

1. The myth of the Wild West and the Frontier

The Wild West is used to refer to the western part of the United States during the time when Europeans were first settling there and when there was fighting between them and the Native Americans

The frontier is used to refer to the area beyond the part settled by Europeans and the rest of the land who belonged to the native American

People went to America because of religious persecution, war , famine or ppl who wanted to start a new life from scratch they were also those who were attracted du to the gold rush also they went there

to have lands with the homestead act

Pioneers are seen as heroes because of the written material movies tv shows where you hear stories of succes bravery and heroics but reality was different from what they expected because

the pioneers weren't aware of the harsh climates the few established town the limited communication systems and no organised systems of law there was no insurance ppl were forced to focus on survival

Cowboy became heroes because they helped the country by transporting cattle from east to west whent they were no railroad and they risked their lives for it because they passed

through Indian territory

The story of the west is a false belief because the settlers expected to farm the land and become wealthy also that everyone would adopt their culture and way of life

the good guys fighting the bad guys image conveyed by movie or tv shows and all the clichés associated with it

The myth of the Wild West and the Frontier are still very present in the American psyche today. Indeed, this myth as well as the pioneering spirit remain and

the figure of the cowboy is still honoured and respected today for the values cowboys embody.

2. The modern American Dream

The cowboys value's are still admired to this day because they're still considered as

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