Post by rcb1008 on Jan 31, 2016 18:54:10 GMT
After a long week of school, one of my favorite things to do on a Friday night is watch the TV show "Shark Tank" on ABC. For those who don't know, the show's premise is startup companies/entrepreneurs pitching their ideas to "sharks" (rich investors). In exchange for a shark's investment, these entrepreneurs give away some equity in their company. During each episode the "American Dream" is often mentioned and sometimes one shark will state "the American Dream is alive and well" at the end of a segment. This leads me to several questions:
Is this really the TRUE American Dream? Or is it just the American Dream being propped up by the rich and powerful in order to please the lower classes?
The American Dream is the idea that no matter where you come from, in America, upward social mobility is always attainable. Whether this social mobility must occur independently or with the help of an outside force is up for debate. With "Shark Tank" it appears that the rich and powerful sharks are simply using their influence to own a piece of someone else's American Dream. This fact questions the authenticity of the show as a legitimate force of the American Dream, because the sharks directly benefit from most of their investments. Nonetheless, given the stakes, the entrepreneur has the most to gain/lose and will experience a greater change in social status as a result. Does the investment of a rich "shark" delegitimize the show from being a force of the American Dream?
Many startups that appear on the show already have inspirational stories of how they "defied odds" by creating their companies, and are simply looking for help. In my opinion, I would consider such people to be living the "American Dream." On the other hand, a number of startups on the show wouldn't be able to survive without the investment of a shark(s). These people, in my opinion, would not be living the "American Dream" because it's not being attained independently. Essentially, the sharks control (at their own digression) whether a company finds success, or drives its founder into bankruptcy. With that being said, could "Shark Tank" be seen as a reversal of the American Dream? Or is is simply a modern spin on a traditional idea?
Is this really the TRUE American Dream? Or is it just the American Dream being propped up by the rich and powerful in order to please the lower classes?
The American Dream is the idea that no matter where you come from, in America, upward social mobility is always attainable. Whether this social mobility must occur independently or with the help of an outside force is up for debate. With "Shark Tank" it appears that the rich and powerful sharks are simply using their influence to own a piece of someone else's American Dream. This fact questions the authenticity of the show as a legitimate force of the American Dream, because the sharks directly benefit from most of their investments. Nonetheless, given the stakes, the entrepreneur has the most to gain/lose and will experience a greater change in social status as a result. Does the investment of a rich "shark" delegitimize the show from being a force of the American Dream?
Many startups that appear on the show already have inspirational stories of how they "defied odds" by creating their companies, and are simply looking for help. In my opinion, I would consider such people to be living the "American Dream." On the other hand, a number of startups on the show wouldn't be able to survive without the investment of a shark(s). These people, in my opinion, would not be living the "American Dream" because it's not being attained independently. Essentially, the sharks control (at their own digression) whether a company finds success, or drives its founder into bankruptcy. With that being said, could "Shark Tank" be seen as a reversal of the American Dream? Or is is simply a modern spin on a traditional idea?
