Introduction: Whither the “American Dream”?

Abstract

This introductory essay explores the historical evolution and contemporary relevance of the "American Dream," a concept originally coined by James Truslow Adams in 1931. Prompted by students' critical reflections on Edward Albee’s play The American Dream, the text highlights how this ideal is increasingly perceived today as an illusion tied to individualistic capitalism, materialism, and social division. To examine this thematic shift, the introduction outlines eleven scholarly contributions compiled for this special issue of JAST, which analyze the concept across various disciplines including history, literature, film, television, and ethnic studies. Ultimately, the article reveals a pessimistic consensus among contemporary scholars, concluding that the original, lofty ideals of the Dream have largely been replaced by a commodified and exclusionary reality.

(The abstract and keywords were prepared retrospectively for indexing purposes using AI-assisted tools and editorial review, based on the original article. They did not appear in the original publication.)