Actuality Of The Dream Essay, Research Paper

Actuality of the Dream

At the onset of an emerging American society, J. Hector St. John de Crevecoeur comments on the principles of American social organization and the new consciousness that was arising in Letters from an American Farmer. Crevecoeur incorporated not only his own personal feelings and thoughts into this work, but also integrated depictions of ordinary American life using the “important philosophical, political, and economic theories of the Enlightenment” (850). The images of a picturesque American farmer whose life is seemingly perfect and filled with abundant happiness in his “new” world is the foundation, but this vision is abruptly transformed into complete despondency when “perfection” is contaminated with slavery and Revolution. The detailed illustration of this dream world, gone array, is filled with intense accounts of utter bliss and happiness to those of horrific brutality and desolation. In Letters, Crevecoeur effectively utilizes imagery in scenes of farming, slavery and war, and progressive changes in tone to portray the actuality of the new “happy” land of opportunity, America, that entitles each to “entertain new ideas and form new opinions” while also depicting a complete divergence from English traditions (857). Thus, producing the formation of the American, the destruction of a notion of the ideal life, and the development of the American consciousness.

Crevecoeur poses the famous question, ‘What, then, is the American, this new man?’ (850) He also addresses some of the most pressing concerns of the time: the issue

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of American identity, self-interests, and freedom from institutional oppression. While celebrating the largeness and fertility of the land, this narrative also introduces darker elements, including slavery and war that casts a long shadow over the new nation. During a time of monarchial rule where free choice and independence were not even considered, Crevecoeur created a setting through images of freedom, where pursuit of self-interest is the way of life and the only governing landlord is “the lord of all the land” (852). This is an extremely problematic notion because James is still a British subject, loyal to the throne, only reaping the benefits of a fertile America while claiming no steadfast allegiance to either country. Although it appears he is loyal to America as he states, “I felt myself happy in my new situation, and where is that station which can confer a more substantial system of felicity than that of an American farmer possessing freedom of action, freedom of thoughts, ruled by a mode of government which requires but little from us?” (852), he simultaneously claims no disregard of Britain. Even though he attempts to rationalize his situation, it is evident of a foreshadowing to future complication with regard to loyalty when the ideal life proves not to be as flawless as believed. As James illustrates,

“It is not composed, as in Europe, of great lords who possess everything and of a herd of people who have nothing. Here are no aristocratical families, no courts, no kings, no bishops, no ecclesiastical dominion, no invisible power giving to a few a very visible one, no great manufacturers employing thousands, no great refinements of luxury. The rich and the poor are not so far removed from each other as they are in Europe” (854).

The image depicted portrays a lifestyle free from any ruling body, either government or religion, and the removal of class systems. It is definitively clear that he is attempting to persuade the people residing in Europe to come to America, experience freedom and

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realize that there is a better place then where they were prior. Nevertheless, he fails to reject the opposite side to the situation: what happens when industrial growth begins to take root? There will once again be “great manufacturers” who employ the masses and the rich and the poor will eventually be removed from one another just as they are in Britain. And so, Letters appears to be the green light they have been waiting for: the opportunity for a new, fresh and untouched world that offers anything and everything desired, but despite how appealing the new world of America is, Crevecoeur’s opinion drastically transforms. The notion of the dream world is completely erased. James is faced with, and must deal accordingly, with the realization that there is no “perfect” place—everywhere there are unavoidable problems and issues that hinder a society. So, rhetorically speaking, Crevecoeur a0ppeals to the masses of Europe by offering a world of freedom and choice, but simultaneously conveys the truth that there is no perfection in this world and everywhere there is “physical and moral evil with which we are all oppressed” (881).

Initially, the images of a man who is “satisfied to be an American farmer instead of a Russian boor or a Hungarian peasant,” portray a seemingly productive, prosperous and joyous situation. He speaks with such pride when he reflects on all the blessings afforded him on behalf of his father’s past struggles and labors—“He left me a good farm and his experience; he left me free from debts, and no kind of difficulties to struggle with” (852). This brings into consideration another problematic concept: inheritance versus self-made wealth. Since America is the land of freedom to pursue self-interests as James has described, then this prosperous, fertile land of his should be something of great

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pride. Yet, he was not the one who labored and toiled for countless years to cultivate that richness: it was his father’s dedication and determination to the American dream and not his. Thus, it is James` inheritance that Crevecoeur utilizes to produce the current tone of pleasure and content. As he states,

“This formerly rude soil has been converted by my father into a pleasant farm, and in return, it has established all our rights; on it is founded our rank, our freedom, our power as citizens, our importance as inhabitants of such a district. These images, I must confess, I always behold with pleasure and extend them as far as my imagination can reach; for this is what may be called the true and the only philosophy of an American farmer” (853).

Although his life is filled with the joys of family and prosperity—the ideal—the unsettling images of slavery and war are encountered.

“My Negroes are tolerably faithful and healthy,” he simply states. However, he evidently does not appear to be overly concerned with the issue. However, this acknowledgment, not acceptance, of slavery drastically changes when the image of unfortunate creatures that cry and weep, “day after day as they drudge on without any prospect of ever reaping for themselves” is offered (860). His slaves provide him with a successful pursuit of self-interest and the wealth afforded to him by their labor. Nonetheless, he simultaneously fails to acknowledge the problems in society that persist on account of slavery and so he remains ignorant with regard to his failing “ideal world.” The most horrendous illustration of the cruel nature of slavery is the image of “a Negro, suspended in the cage and left there to expire…(where) the birds had already picked out his eyes; his cheek bones were bare; his arms had been attacked in several places; and his body seemed covered with a multitude of wounds” (865). To further this abomination, James is later informed that the “laws of self-preservation rendered such executions necessary, and

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supported the doctrine of slavery with the arguments generally made use of to justify the practice” (866). The bold statement sparks the realization that although his slaves are “tolerably faithful and healthy” they are so only to preserve their own lives. They are not free—a complete contradiction to James` notion of a free America—and thus is rendered the new consciousness that his ideal society is failing. This inhumane practice and the images it provokes are appalling, yet they effectively evoke the emotions necessary to remind people that “almost everywhere, liberty so natural to mankind is refused, or rather enjoyed but by their tyrants…the very delirium of tyranny tramples on the best gifts of nature and sports with the fate, the happiness, the lives of millions; there the extreme fertility of the ground always indicates the extreme misery of the inhabitants” (864). Just as James` seemingly “perfect new world” was establishing itself, it also came crashing down with the harsh awareness that there are terrible things that occur, often times unavoidable, and the world is not the picture of perfection as he had previously believed. This drastic transformation in Crevecoeur’s tone, from happiness to deep distress, continues as Revolution sets in and fear and despair consume James and disrupt the flawlessness of his world.

As the Revolutionary War commences, no longer are images of bliss and prosperity evident. Instead, anguish and despair are now prevalent and Crevecoeur’s ever-altering tone depicts this transformation. James no longer is assured of his surroundings, instead, he reflects that he “must seek some sort of remedy adapted to remove or to palliate it; situated as I am, what steps should I take that will neither injure nor insult any of the parties, and at the same time save my family from that certain

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destruction which awaits it if I remain here much longer” (872). This dismal tone provides now only sole concern for his family and self and the insight that self-preservation is now, and should always be, the only rule by which to faithfully live and abide by. James` world, where the American ought to love his country, where the rewards of his industry follow with equal steps the progress of his labor, and new opinions and ideas are entertained, is no longer a familiar place, instead it is a foreign land where “fear industriously increased with every sound” (867). The evils of the war were gradual. However, they slowly destroyed the past happiness of his American dream and created alarm and a sure foreshadowing of their future fate: poverty and loss. The resulting tone and state of mind was that of despair and hopelessness; the world James envisioned had initially proven true and had given him a false hope for a perfect world. As Crevecoeur changes the tones and depicts unpleasant and often appalling images, the concept of a “new” and perfect world, free from the problems other nations encounter, is evidently nonexistent.

Crevecoeur and his Letters from an American Farmer successfully depict the notion that no matter where a man escapes to, even if it is his “ideal,” problems and conflict will continue to be prevalent. Be it poverty, slavery or even war, problems such as these are inevitable when man attempts to pursue his own self-interests and independence in a society that already has divisions within. Although America appeared to offer freedom from monarchial rule, it did not promise a society free from conflict and differing ideas. And it is this that makes for an effective work: the promise of freedom appeals to the masses that so desperately seek it in combination with the variations in

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imagery and tone on account of an altering society that prove extremely effective both literarily and rhetorically. Thus, the formation of the American was more than just the creation of a specific type of person. It was the development of a consciousness—an understanding and acceptance of the changes that are bound to face a society that allows for freedom of thought and the formation of new and diverse opinions. And this is what Crevecoeur is attempting to prove through the delight and tribulations in Letters from an American Farmer. No matter where James escaped to, there would be evils to plague his happiness. America offered the freedom to choose, and to be an American would mean to retain personal independence and pursue self-interests. However, even freedom has its downside.

Bibliography

The Heath Anthology of American Literature Third Edition. Paul Lauter (general editor)

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