Mr. Smith Goes to Washington

 Havlyn Ehrich 


The ideal America seen in the learning materials for this week is one that is patriotic, powerful, opportunity, equality, etc. When these said ideals are present, the United States is presented as one nation fighting for the rights of its people. More specifically relating to the movie, it shows that if you have a dream and are willing to put in the effort to achieve it, America is the land of opportunity to do so.  This showcases the exceptional work of the United States. Reality is, if one’s dream opposes those in power, it is not so easy to change the way of things. In addition, society has historically favored one specific type of human over another:  white men. American politics have been deeply seeded in white male ideologies and as a result, minorities tend to be left out of the “American Dream”. The film portrays this white male ideal in politics and excludes those of color and women. Though this is getting better today, we still fall short of the ideal America.  

Comments

  1. AnonymousJanuary 25, 2023 at 10:42 PM

    The post offers points out the difficulty of challenging those with money and power, and points out that it has most often been white men who have these things. So I pose the same question I also posted on another entry. If the ideal is that opportunity is supposed to be available for all equally, but in practice we're far from the ideal, to what extent is the problem the ideal itself (is it a lie?), or the manner in which we have failed to put it into practice (are we corrupt, prejudiced, ignorant, lazy, willingly blind to others' suffering)?

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