American Dream: What Do I Mean by This? Essay Example
American Dream: What Do I Mean by This? Essay Example

American Dream: What Do I Mean by This? Essay Example

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  • Pages: 3 (553 words)
  • Published: April 10, 2022
  • Type: Essay
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The Pilgrims coming to the foreign land with their new ideas of religion and freedom was only the beginning of, what became known as, the American Dream. This all began by the hopes of the Pilgrims when arriving in their new land in hopes of an unmarked life. Since the start of this new world; Pilgrims, Colonists, Americans have been defining the American Dream. The one main reason the Separatists left England was for religious freedom. They were hoping to gain the ability to be able to openly worship. Separatists were Pilgrims and some Pilgrims were Puritans.

The Pilgrims wanted to break away from the Anglican Church altogether, they were known as the most radical of the Puritans. The Puritans wanted to “purify” the Anglican church of all Catholic rituals and traditions. Eventually, Pilgrims were granted full permission to s

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ettle on lands near the Hudson River (Holt, 61). The Pilgrims saw this as one way to restart their lives and not be controlled by England religiously. William Penn and the people following his ideals established Pennsylvania as a “Holy Experiment” (Medved).

The Pilgrims slowly realized though, it was going to take a lot more than a move of continents to change the way people thought about religion. The British government was also depriving the colonists of other unalienable rights. The Pilgrims wanted happiness and liberty and they wanted to prove that that goal could be reached (Hacht). The British still set overpowering rules and when the colonists did not obey the rules, British officials were sent over to enforce them. The Writs of Assistance gave British officials the right to search colonial homes and ships for smuggled

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goods (Reich).

The colonists had to stand up for themselves now, they would not reach the level of independence they wanted unless they did. Eventually the Pilgrims who moved to the new colonies became Americans. They gained this name after fighting for independence. The Pilgrims originally came for simple religious freedom which also led to most people wanting all around independence. No matter how far-off they went, England kept trying to control the colonists. The colonists had had enough, now they wanted to fight for not only religious freedom but independence to become their own country.

Large landowners like George Washington were all for the revolution again Britain. Other people, usually the more wealthy colonists were afraid of their wealth being lost to the revolution (Reich). The “shot heard round the world” was merely the beginning to the Revolutionary War. The war started for two main reasons: the British government had violated their rights and some colonists had died already trying their best to defend these rights (Holt, 78). The Revolutionary War ended with a colonial triumph and with that the Declaration of Independence.

The now Americans, felt that the American Dream was now in full swing and was all determined by God (Hacht). The American Dream started out simple. There was one main focus the Pilgrims had for leaving England: seeking religious liberty (Holt, 65). Eventually, when the Pilgrims turned into colonists and the colonists turned into Americans, there was a lot more added to what we wanted and what was important to us. The colonists had gained their independence, land and enforced their unalienable rights. Years and years ago, Americans overall wanted what is still wanted

today.

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