This is one of the most basic principals on which our government is based and is essential to the idea of the American dream. Without equal opportunity for all types of people, poor or wealthy, the American dream would not exist. The next section of the definition contains the more alluring part of the American dream, which promises that anyone can make a good living as long as they are willing to work hard. People want money and power and the American dream promises that anyone who works hard enough can achieve the dream. The American dream denotes an economy in which the parents can work to get ahead in life so that their children have the advantages that were not laid before them by their parents. In turn, the children will create a better life for their children and so on. The American dream of the 1960's could be one of the easiest to identify. This dream has white picket fences where the little boys and girls play in the streets. Mom cooks dinner while everyone awaits the arrival of dad from his long day at the office in is new Cadillac. This dream is almost perfectly represented by a 1960s television show called Leave it to Beaver. The Cleavers were the perfect family with a strong husband, loving wife, and two great kids. The problem with this stereotype is that not all men are satisfied in the office and not all women are satisfied in the kitchen.
The roles of men in the American dream are very difficult to fulfill. Our society has certain standards and expectations for being a male. For a man to follow the American dream, there are many requirements either stated or implied. These expectations that have been given to us by society are now so difficult to fulfill that it is almost impossible for any men to succeed in attaining the American dream. Mr. Cleaver could be one of the best examples of what the stereotypical male of his time strives to be. He was the typical red-blooded American man who earned a large salary at a white-collar job.
