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Post by jordanhilker on Feb 7, 2016 6:14:32 GMT
In the movie Cheaper by the Dozen, I think that the American Dream is reached by Tom Baker, a loving father and husband. Although his life is very hectic and crazy, he seems to be happy with it. He loves his wife and kids and has a decent amount of money. To me, that is all a person needs in order to reach the American Dream. He is happy with his life and you barely see him try to obtain something better than what he already has.
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Post by jkeeney on Feb 7, 2016 16:22:40 GMT
This is an interesting example of the American Dream because often times the person ends up losing their happiness along the way, but as you point out, Tom Baker is still able to hold on to his happy happiness even as he gains more money. To see that he is content with his life is something that not many people living the American Dream have. This is clearly seen in the Great Gatsby. Gatsby has everything but he is still unhappy with where he is in his life and throws all those lavish parties to try to mask that. Similar to Gatsby though is the fact that they both had to overcome certain challenges to get to the place where they are. Tom must take care of 12 kids which is a struggle for anyone while Gatsby must try to make a life for himself after he comes back from the war in order for Daisy to love him the way he wants her to. Keeping those similarities and differences in mind, I do agree with everything you said in that Tom Baker achieves the American Dream, but in a way that is a little more rare in that he also achieves happiness along the way.
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Post by maddysmith on Feb 7, 2016 20:54:54 GMT
In Cheaper by the Dozen, the Baker family does have money but they are not outrageously wealthy, after all they have 12 kids. This is a great example of the modern American Dream. I think it's good to realize that not everyone will end up super rich and that's okay. It's more important to be happy than rich, which is a message everyone should understand! If you work really hard in the hopes of becoming wealthy, you will often miss out on being happy. What's the point of having a ton of money if you don't even like your life? Tom Baker loves his family, despite it being, as Jordan said, hectic and crazy, and he is happy with his life.
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Post by rmay99 on Feb 7, 2016 21:43:53 GMT
Like Jess and Maddy both said, I find this original idea of the Bakers in Cheaper by the Dozen as having the American Dream to be a profound idea. In a sense this idea of having a large family, happy but not wealthy to be a different type of American Dream. It is a more realistic one in which the things that truly matter such as relationships, specifically friends and family are valued over material things, such as money. Although more people are after the more known American Dream of wealth and power, I find this American Dream to be the one that the United States was built on. Our nation was built on valuing things such as faith in God and family above more material things. Through these ideas, our country has based its economic and social policies (although it can be argued that we are now shifting away from it.) Regardless, The American Dream is seen in Cheaper by the Dozen albeit a slightly different one from that of The Great Gatsby.
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Post by Emily Shea on Feb 7, 2016 21:48:21 GMT
Cheaper by the Dozen is the perfect example of the modern American Dream, or at least the classic American identity. I think if I was asked to describe a classic American family, the Baker's would be a prime example. With their extremely large family, their determination to be the best, and their family vacations: they fit the American family stereotype.
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Post by amber soppick on Feb 8, 2016 2:06:43 GMT
I really like this idea of the Bakers being an example of the American Dream, as it is so different from a lot of what we've been talking about regarding the Dream. When we talk about the American Dream in the Great Gatsby, we refer to the rich and careless Buchanans or the glamorous entrepreneur Gatsby. But in Cheaper By The Dozen, he is just an average middle class man who works hard and loves his family, someone many people can relate to. I think this is a lot closer to the original concept of the American Dream, where everyone works hard and is equal and happy. I think this is more of someone we should strive to be than the characters in the Great Gatsby.
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