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Elements of the American Dream

Elements of the "American Dream"

The American dream. It consists of a family, house, cars, and other luxury items. How did it become the American dream? Why do we feel so compelled to pursue it? The reason is because we, the American public, have been convinced through advertising to acquire it. It is a very powerful way of persuasion. Advertising affects us so powerfully that it sometimes sets our views of society for us. We constantly absorb images of families, houses, and cars through commercials and magazine ads. It persuades us so strongly to the point that it can alter our social consciousness. Alter it to the point that we feel that the American dream is no longer a luxury, it has become a necessity.

Today there is almost no way to escape advertisements. The radio, television, and magazine ads make sure of that. The more we view these advertisements, the more we are persuaded toward the American dream. With a television in almost every household and magazines only an arm’s length away, advertisers basically have us on our knees. We must digest advertisers the views so frequently that you would think it was necessary to sustain life.

Advertising’s main goal is to persuade. They want us to see the American way through their eyes. They tell us what to eat, drink, wear, drive, and think. Advertisers start this form of brainwashing on us at a very early age. They lay the groundwork of ideals early on because it is easy to persuade a child. Now, with the two-income family, children are left to interpret not only advertisements but television programming as well without supervision. Children are forced to make their own evaluations and most of the time they go along with the views of what they see. How many times do children want something because they saw it on television? With the unending viewing of shows and advertisements who could blame them. By age twenty, Americans have viewed an estimated half a million commercials. Now that is a major amount of influencing on a young person. This is exactly what advertisers hope to accomplish with young people. They want them to associate advertisements to purchasing.

It starts out with toys and leads to the American dream. One day they want a matchbox car and a few years later they want a real Porsche. Do not all boys want a fancy car? Do not...

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