The article itself doesn't go head first into
the topic of "Freedom" itself. It mentions
it in a good amount, but not throughout the entire article.
The article often refers to the days of
the signing of the Constitution and the ideals it is based upon.
The article states that, "From our
earliest days, we have been
convinced that individual man not
only had a right to speak his mind
and to worship God in his own way,
but also in line to prosper with his
ability, to rise to whatever heights
he was capable..."
This can be translated as being successful in life.
Worldwide problems
Communism
The article was written in 1951. Only
6 years prior, in 1945, World War II
finally came to a close. In the years
to follow the war's end, the Soviet
Union's spread of communism
throughout Russian-controlled
Europe caused great concern
amongst the Allies.
1951: The Korean War, ignited by
communism, has been raging for
almost a full year (began in 1950). Although not
mentioned in the article at all, the
Korean War was caused by
communist-backed North Korea
invading the UN-backed South. The
first act of the Cold War had begun.
With the Soviet Union's spread of
communism in Asia, the Allied powers,
particularly Great Britain and the United
States, began to worry, although during
World War II had already not trusted Stalin as
much as each other. The fast spreading
communism began to mimic that of the
spread of Nazism in the 1930s. Leaders
began to confer with one another on how to
stop its spread before another war broke out.
American soldiers during the Korea War
An American G.I. comforts another during a lull in fighting
during the Korean War
Financial stability
Financial stability in the United States
and as a part of the American Dream at
the time this article was written is
hardly discussed, if discussed at all, in
the article.
It is not a big factor
Connections with today's ideas of the "American Dream"
The American Dream defined in the article bares resemblance to today's American Dream.
The idea of Freedom
The American Dream as talked
about in the article and our
definition of the American Dream
share in common the basic idea of
freedom. Freedom for all people.
Freedom to whatever anyone
please, practice any religion, etc.,
etc.
Equality
The article talks about how in the
Constitution, all men are said to be
created equally. We today also believe this.
Success
As mentioned in the quote below, success in life has
always been a huge factor when talking about the
American Dream. And it still is today.
While the idea of the article mainly
focuses on freedom from oppression,
which at the time was communism, in
today's world, communism is a very little
problem, if a problem at all anymore.