Data Bases • Custom Term Papers • Free Term Papers • Free Research Papers • Free Essays • Free Book Reports • Plagiarism? Links • Top 100 Term Paper Sites • Top 25 Essay Sites • Top 50 Essay Sites • Search 97,000 Papers @ DirectEssays.com • Search 101,000 Papers @ ExampleEssays.com • Search 90,000 Papers @ MegaEssays.com Free Essays • Term Paper Sites • Chuck III's Free Essays • Free College Essays • TermPaperSites.com • My Term Papers • Get Free Essays • Essay World • Planet Papers	Search Lots of Essays Back to Subjects - Sociology America The Powerful Wealthy Competitor America The Powerful Wealthy Competitor American culture is one of the most diverse cultures in today’s society. America has been called the “melting pot” of nations, and thus has acquired a variety of cultures from many different countries. There are a number of different races, languages, and ethnic backgrounds that reside in this nation. However, as a nation, one of the most dominant symbolic systems is that of which no other country can match. Unlike any other nation, the American symbols of power, wealth, and competition preside over any other system of symbols. Here, it is more important to some people to possess material things than to have meaningful relationships. Here, some people are attracted to others not because of their most endearing qualities, but because of the power they possess. Here, some people spend millions of dollars on advertising so that their product will sell the most units. While some other nations cannot contemplate why we Americans are so obsessed with these symbols, it is in the history of our country where this obsession was born. America is a country born of war, a war we fought with our European ancestors, a war for freedom. To gain that freedom, America had to be strong enough to fight outnumbered against the forces that withheld our freedom. When that freedom was finally obtained, Americans relished it to the point of proclaiming a declaration of independence that is still revered by today’s society. We still have this freedom because of our outstanding power, militarily and governmentally. And now, after the September 11th terrorist attacks, more and more people are beginning to feel that power. We feel it so strongly, that even when these terrorists from other countries threaten us, we stand together and fight to keep that freedom alive. A key symbol in this particular system is the American flag. It functions as both a summarizing and elaborating symbol. The flag represents not only our country, but also our freedom, military force, democracy, independence, tolerance, and many other attributes of our country. The elements of the flag, the stars, stripes and colors, can also be elaborated on. The stars represent each state in the nation, and the stripes for each of the original thirteen colonies. One of the main reasons America was able to maintain its freedom over the years was its incredible wealth. Once freedom was obtained from Europe, America had to fend for itself in the trade and industrial market. It had to produce goods, as well as import and export them to maintain economic stability. Gaining independent wealth from Europe was a key factor in gaining freedom from it, and the importance of great wealth in this country has never faltered. Wealth has become so important in the past few decades that some have lost perspective of what is truly important in life in the quest for more and more money. Tied in with the symbol of wealth is the symbol of competition, for there is always an ongoing competition for wealth in America. Competition occurs on a personal as well as industrial level. Competition for the best job, best mate, and best salaries are among the top prizes in the game of life for Americans. In the business industry, advertisements for different product bombard us daily, competing for our hard-earned dollar. The idea of capitalism is an important key symbol in America and strongly encourages competition. It summarizes a basic American belief that a person has the right to choose for themselves, and that the government should not be allowed control of everything. Competition has helped this country become what it is today, and is therefore a widely held symbol of American life. Through our battle for freedom with Europe centuries ago and our never ending resolve to keep our country free, America has become a country embodied with the symbols of power, wealth and competition. These symbols can be seen in the every day life of individuals, as they compete to earn better salaries and promotions to positions with more power. This, of course, is not true for every individual. However, the overall American drive is toward these symbols, and that drive stems from the earliest moments in this country’s relatively short history. Bibliography: Word Count: 729
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