The American DreamJohn F. KennedyEveryone has their own definition of what the “American Dream” is and what it means. Some, however, might believe that this dream is actually a cultural nightmare. This “dream” was first created as a set of ideals and ethics that would be promised to all American citizens. James Truslow Adams first used this notion in the novel The Epic America. He writes: The American Dream is the dream of a country in which life should be better, richer, and more fulfilling for everyone, with opportunities for everyone based on their abilities or achievements. It's a difficult dream for the European upper classes to interpret adequately, and too many of us are weary and wary of it. It is not just a dream of automobiles and high wages, but a dream of social order in which every man and woman will be able to achieve the fullest stature of which they are naturally capable and be recognized by others for what they have done. are, whatever the fortuitous circumstances of birth or position. (Adams, 1931) Adams defines the American dream according to four main criteria: equality, prosperity, social mobility and the appreciation of others on their characteristics and not on prejudice factors such as race, gender and of the class (Shibnauth, nd). President John F. Kennedy echoed these views in his attempt to preserve and continue the legacy and belief of the American Dream. John F. Kennedy used the standards of the American Dream to help him shape a better nation, making him one of the most influential presidents of the United States. John “Jack” Fitzgerald Kennedy, or more commonly known as JFK, was born on May 29, 1917, in Brookline, Massachusetts. He was born into a very wealthy and politically motivated Irish-Catholic background...... middle of paper ......The American Dream to help him shape a better nation, which made him one of America's most influential presidents. .ReferencesAdams, JT (1931). The epic of America. Boston, Mass. : Little, Brown and Co..American President: Biography of John Fitzgerald Kennedy. (nd). Miller Center. Retrieved from http://millercenter.org/president/kennedy/essays/biography/printJFK. (nd). John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum. Retrieved from http://www.jfklibrary.org/JFK.aspxShibnauth, N. (nd). The American Dream: Reading John F. Kennedy's Inaugural Address vs. Whedon's The Avengers. Academia.edu. Retrieved from http://www.academia.edu/3783915/The_American_Dream_Reading_John_F._Kennedys_Inaugural_Speech_against_Whedons_The_AvengersSparkNotes Editors. (2005). SparkNote on John F. Kennedy. Retrieved from http://www.sparknotes.com/biography/jfk/