The American (London?) Dream

More than once I have taken a class, whether it be in literature or business, which references the weird looming idea of "The American Dream," a concept I have come to question in the past few years.

When reading from the queen's journal, I found a passage that reminded me of this concept.

          "Messrs. Dilke, Paxton (for whom this is indeed an immense, though
          deserved  distinction,  and  very  striking as  to the possibility of the
          lowest  being  able, by their  own merits, to rise to the highest grade
          of society, - he was only a gardener's boy)" (25)

Not only does the queen's curiosity of the idea pose a question, the idea that (and I don't know this for sure) this could be a turning point for defying class standards also raises interest.

While I don't know much about London at that time, or how important class structure was, this period seems like a turning point, especially where class is concerned. The train is beginning to make travel easier. If lower class citizens can travel into the big cities, then they definitely have the ability to "live the American dream."

I did a little research on the term "The American Dream" and found that James Truslow Adams coined the phrase in his 1931 book The Epic of America. While it's just a phrase, it's a phrase that took over American culture...but why not England? Clearly this dream can be fulfilled in other countries and before 1931...


[Victorian Literature]