• Mortgages
    Get the Best Rates
    • Mortgage rates
    • Refinance rates
    • Post FED Announcement Rates
    • 30-year mortgage rates
    • 15-year mortgage rates
    • 20-year mortgage rates
    • 10-year mortgage rates
    • Mortgage lender reviews
    Use Calculators
    • Mortgage calculator
    • How much house can you afford?
    • Mortgage refinance calculator
    • Mortgage payment calculator
    • Amortization calculator
    • All mortgage calculators
    Get Advice
    • FED announcement impact on rates
    • What to know about reverse mortgages
    • Home buying guide
    • Refinance your mortgage
    • First-time homebuyer loans and programs
    • Prepaying your mortgage
    • Your guide to FHA loans
    • Everything to know about VA loans
  • Homes
    Home Buying
    • Determine your budget
    • Find your home
    • Get prequalified
    Get Advice
    • Step-By-Step Homebuying Guide
    • First-Time Homebuyer's Guide
    • How Does Rent-To-Own Work?
    • What To Look For When Buying A Home
    • Homebuyer Mistakes To Avoid
    Learn How To
    • Make An Offer On A House
    • Decide Between Renting vs. Buying
    • Ace the Final Walk-Through
    • Find The Best Real Estate Agent
    • Buying A Second Home
    Use Calculators
    • How Much House Can I Afford?
    • Rent Vs. Buy Calculator
    • Cost of Living Calculator
    • How Much Should I Put Down?
  • Banking
    Compare Accounts
    • CD rates
    • Savings accounts
    • Money market accounts
    • 1-Year CD rates
    • 3-Year CD rates
    • 5-Year CD rates
    • Checking accounts
    • Bank ratings
    Use Calculators
    • Savings calculator
    • CD calculator
    • Compound savings calculator
    • All banking calculators
    Get Advice
    • How to save money
    • Federal Reserve news
    • What is a money market account?
    • Which certificate of deposit account is best?
    • How to open a savings account
    Bank Reviews
    • Capital One Bank
    • Marcus by Goldman Sachs
    • American Express National Bank
    • CIT Bank
    • Synchrony Bank
    • Barclays Bank
    • All Bank Reviews
  • Credit Cards
    Compare by Category
    • Best Credit Cards of 2019
    • Rewards
    • Travel
    • Airline
    • Cash Back
    • No Annual Fee
    • Balance Transfer
    • 0% APR
    • Business
    • Student
    Compare by Credit Needed
    • Excellent Credit
    • Good Credit
    • Fair Credit
    • Bad Credit
    • No Credit History
    • Secured Credit Cards
    Compare by Issuer
    • American Express
    • Bank of America
    • Capital One
    • Chase
    • Citi
    • Discover
    • Wells Fargo
    Get Advice
    • Credit Card Reviews
    • Credit Card Payoff Calculator
    • Balance Transfer Calculator
    • All Credit Card Calculators
  • Loans
    Compare Lenders
    • Personal loan rates
    • Personal loan reviews
    • Auto loan rates
    • Student loan rates
    • Student loan reviews
    Loan Types
    • Personal loans
    • Auto loans
    • Debt consolidation loans
    • Home improvement loans
    • Student loans
    • Medical loans
    • Bad credit loans
    Use Calculators
    • Loan calculator
    • Auto loan calculator
    • Personal loan calculator
    • Auto refinance calculator
    • Loan payment calculator
    • Student loan calculator
    • All calculators
    Get Advice
    • Student loans guide
    • Refinancing student loans
    • Refinancing personal loans
    • Refinancing auto loans
    • How to get a personal loan
    • Personal loan origination fees
  • Investing
    Best of
    • Best Investments
    • Best online brokers for stocks
    • Best online brokers for beginners
    • Best online brokers for mutual funds
    Brokerage Reviews
    • TD Ameritrade Review
    • Merrill Edge Review
    • Ally Invest Review
    • Fidelity Review
    • Charles Schwab Review
    • Vanguard Review
    • Interactive Brokers Review
    • Robinhood Review
    • Tradestation Review
    • E*Trade Review
    • WellsTrade Review
    • All Brokerage Reviews
    Use Calculators
    • Investment Earnings Calculator
    • Annuity Calculator
    • All Investing & CD Calculators
    Get Advice
    • Compare Online Brokerages
    • What is the long-term capital gains tax?
    • Passive income: What it is and 5 ideas for 2019
    • How to buy stocks
  • Home Equity
    Compare Lenders
    • Home equity loan rates
    • Home equity line of credit rates
    • Home equity lender reviews
    Use Calculators
    • Home Equity Calculator
    • Loan vs. Line Of Credit Calculator
    • Debt consolidation calculator
    • HELOC payoff calculator
    • All home equity calculators
    Get Advice
    • What is a home equity loan?
    • HELOC vs. Home equity loan
    • Consolidate your debt using home equity
    • Home equity loans with bad credit
  • Insurance
    Insurance Types
    • Car insurance
    • Homeowner's insurance
    • Health insurance
    • Life insurance
    Best of
    • Best Car Insurance Companies
    • Best Home Insurance Companies
    • Best Cheap Car Insurance
    • Top Car Insurance Comparison
    Company Reviews
    • Geico Insurance
    • State Farm Insurance
    • Progressive Insurance
    • Allstate Insurance
    • Liberty Mutual Insurance
    • Nationwide Insurance
    • The General Insurance
    • Farmers Insurance
    • American Family Insurance
    • Erie Insurance
    • Amica Insurance
    • Travelers Insurance
    Insurance by State
    • Car Insurance California
    • Car Insurance Florida
    • Car Insurance Georgia
    • Car Insurance Michigan
    • Car Insurance New Jersey
    • Car Insurance New York
    • Car Insurance North Carolina
    • Car Insurance Pennsylvania
    • Car Insurance Texas
    • Home Insurance Florida
    • Home Insurance Texas
  • Personal Finance
    Compare
    • Current interest rates
    • Compare rates
    Use Calculators
    • Debt consolidation calculator
    • Net worth calculator
    • Personal finance calculators
    • Cost of living calculator
    • All calculators
    Get Advice
    • Retirement advice
    • Debt management
    • Improve your credit score
    • Career resources
    • Tax advice
    • Insurance basics
    • Real estate tips
    • Personal finance glossary
  • Retirement
    Get Advice
    • Best Roth IRA accounts
    • Best retirement plans
    • How to open a Roth IRA
    • 401(k) rollover guide
    • Roth IRA vs. Roth 401(k)
    Use Calculators
    • 401(k) retirement calculator
    • Retirement savings calculator
    • Roth IRA calculator
    • IRA minimum distribution calculator
    • Social security benefits calculator
    • All retirement calculators
    More Information
    • What is an IRA?
    • What is a Roth 401(k)?
    • 401(k) contribution limits
    • Contributing to IRA during retirement
    • Best age for Social Security retirement benefits
    • Roth IRA 5 year rule
  • Create Account
  • Dashboard
  • Alerts
  • Settings
  • Support
  • Logout
Share

The American dream has changed substantially — here’s how it has shifted through the years

Jen Glantz
November 20, 2018  in  Smart Money

1 of 8

American family in car vintage
H. Armstrong Roberts/ClassicStock
/Getty Images
The American dream

Everybody dreams of something, whether it is to one day become financially independent, buy their very first house, become their own boss, or start a family. That’s why one of the most prominent, well-known, and revolutionary catch-phrases of the United States, for close to 90 years, has been the phrase living the “American dream.”

While the phrase has grown and expanded to mean many different things to many different people, its rise to popularity started in 1931 when famed historian and writer, James Truslow Adams, wrote in his book, “The Epic of America,” that “The American dream is that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement.”

Here’s a closer look at the American dream through the years: 

The Bankrate Daily

2 of 8

Family in convertible car
H. Armstrong Roberts/ClassicStock/Getty Images
1930s

In the 1930s the American dream was simple and didn’t involve waiting in long lines to score the newest iPhone on the day it came out or being able to get the latest credit card with a slew of perks.

Adams even clarified to say that, “It is not a dream of motor cars and high wages merely, but a dream of a social order in which each man and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature of which they are innately capable, and recognized by others for what they are.” 

3 of 8

Cars and people in 1930s New York
Charles Phelps Cushing/ClassicStock/Getty Images
1940s

In the 1940s, the term started becoming more common to use and to hear. It appeared in advertisements for intellectual products and services, like plays, books, and in articles. 

4 of 8

Family watching tv in 1960s
H. Armstrong Roberts/ClassicStock/Getty Images
1950s and 1960s

After World War II, the American dream was still an idea that echoed a sense of freedom and equality and not material items or wealth. It was also a phrase heard famously in 1963, during Martin Luther King’s “I Have a Dream” speech when he shared that his vision was one that was “deeply rooted in the American dream.”

One change that kicked-off the American dream moving into the materialistic realm was the G.I. bill that was introduced in the 1950s, helping millions of veterans buy homes and get a college education. At the same time, TV shows like “Leave it to Beaver” and “I Love Lucy” started spreading the ideas of suburban living and consumerism, more than ever. 

5 of 8

Sisters eating lunch in 1970s
Stuart McClymont/Getty Images
1970s and 1980s

By the time the 1970s and 1980s rolled around, the term was seen extensively in advertisements for home builders to make the idea of buying a house or building one, something that was directly tied in with the vision of the country and what it meant to be a true citizen.

6 of 8

Father and son carrying an iMac
Sean Gallup/Getty Images
1990s and 2000s

Once the 1990s came around, technology began to heavily influence the American dream. People started craving their own personal computers, cell phones, televisions (for each room), and video games. By the 2000s, this started to take a turn, especially during the first half of the decade.

Later in the 2000s, with the crash of the economy, the American dream shifted towards the idea of financial security verses gaining more things.

7 of 8

Latino family dressed for Fall
Sollina Images/Getty Images
Today

What does the American dream look like now? It’s a lot more complicated.

Modern technology juxtaposed with the fall of the housing market has made the American dream more convoluted.

Miguel Suro, a Florida licensed attorney and personal finance blogger, says that he believes the American dream has changed in two main ways over time: it’s harder to achieve, and the goals are different.

“The main culprit here seems to be technology and the round-the-clock work culture it has created,” Suro says. “To have a similar quality of life (to the one their parents had), most young professionals nowadays (or at least those we know) have to be “on-call” into the night and on weekends (and must very frequently work overtime).”

Alvin Garcia, a Marketing Apprentice at Fueled, says that he believes the dream has shifted to a focus on innovation, inclusion, and opportunity.

“Silicon Valley is a great representation of the current American dream,” Garcia says. “This dream aspires to solve complex problems with technology rather than use technology to keep things moving like back in the industrial age.” 

8 of 8

Friends walking and shopping
Peter Cade/Getty Images
Is the American dream still alive?

Some millennials argue that the phrase is a term of the past, with 48% of them believing the American dream to be dead, according to the Washington Post, which could be because of the increase in student loan debts many millennials are carrying, the desire to live at home with their parents longer, or just because their ideas of work-life balance have completely shifted from years before. For example, some people change jobs as often as once every five years, craving more fast-paced environments, and less stability.

So is the American dream dead? Perhaps that answer can be found in the buying power of millennials, who spend $65 billion a year, and Generation Z, who spend $143 billion a year. It’s far from dead but it sure has changed.

You may also like

  • The average credit score you need for 6 common things, from cars to apartments

  • The top 17 cities where people got the biggest pay raises in 2018

  • I make a living helping women get married — here are the 4 financial mistakes I regularly see brides make

  • 10 secrets your financial planner may not be telling you

  • 5 stories from people who inherited a lot of money but whose luck and money ran out

  • The latest government shutdown cost the US economy $11B. Here’s how that compares to past shutdowns

  • About Us
  • Press Room
  • Contact Us
  • Careers
  • Advertise With Us
  • Latest News
  • Popular Topics
  • Glossary
  • Compare Rates
  • Understand Bankrate's Averages
  • Privacy Policy / Your California Privacy Rights
  • Terms of Use
  • GLBA Annual Notice
  • Licenses
  • Sitemap
How we make money

Bankrate.com is an independent, advertising-supported publisher and comparison service. Bankrate is compensated in exchange for featured placement of sponsored products and services, or your clicking on links posted on this website. This compensation may impact how, where and in what order products appear. Bankrate.com does not include all companies or all available products.

Maximize Your Money. Get Expert Advice & Tools. Master Life's Financial Journey.

You have money questions. Bankrate has answers. Our experts have been helping you master your money for four decades.

Our tools, rates and advice help no matter where you are on life’s financial journey.

Facebook logo Twitter logo
Follow Us

Bankrate, LLC NMLS ID# 1427381 | NMLS Consumer Access
BR Tech Services, Inc NMLS ID# 1743443 | NMLS Consumer Access
© 2019 Bankrate, LLC a Red Ventures Company All Rights Reserved.

United States United Kingdom