Blog #2 Marx View American Dream

. Marx would probably compare the American Dream to his concept of a “bourgeois ideology,” or, as defined by The German Ideology, an ideology that serves the interests of the ruling class while presenting itself as a universal idea, serving the common interest. This view is the most accurate of the current state of the American Dream. Marx himself is quoted as saying “…if we thus ignore the individuals and the world conditions which are the source of these ideas, we can say for instance, that during the time that the aristocracy was dominant, the concepts of honor, loyalty, etc., were dominant, during the dominance of the bourgeoisie the concepts freedom, equality, etc. The ruling class itself on the whole imagines this to be so. This conception of history which is common to all historians, particularly since the eighteenth century, will necessarily come up against the phenomenon that increasingly abstract ideas hold sway, ideas which increasingly take on the form of universality. For each new class which puts itself in the place of one ruling before it, is compelled, merely in order to carry through its aim, to represent its interest as the common interest of all the members of society, that is, expressed in ideal form: it has to give its ideas the form of universality, and represent them as the only rational, universally valid ones. The class making a revolution appears from the very start, if only because it is opposed by a class, not as a class but as the representative of the whole of society.”(40) As the gap between the upper and lower class only grows wider, the American Dream becomes more of a myth to the lower class, or Marxian proletariat, than an actually attainable goal. Sure, the American Dream is definitely ideal, but it in a sense stands today as a way to give the lower class hope and keep the upper class, or Marxian bourgeois, safer from rebellion. However, as we have seen in recent times with countless protests and calls for action against financial institutions that have been accused of bringing our economy down, we may very well be experiencing a modern day form of the “rebellion” Marx was referring to. Furthermore, it is evident that money plays an increasingly significant role in our society today. It all comes down to who holds the majority of the capital.


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