1.      This article begins with a succinct summary of the American Dream. What is your understanding of this concept? What role, if any, has it played or does it play in your own goals and actions?

In discussing these questions, you might ask students to evaluate the extent to which they believe the American Dream is open equally to everyone in the United States. Are some people and groups more advantaged than others? Does everyone even want to participate in the American Dream as it has traditionally been defined?

2.      Paragraphs 2 and 3 summarize what others are saying. Paragraph 2 discusses ways in which the American Dream has been a success and is envied and emulated around the world. Paragraph 3 considers the downside of the American model. Why do you think that this article opens with a discussion of two seemingly contradictory perspectives on this issue?

The article opens with these two contradictory perspectives because its purpose is to go on to suggest that the two can, in fact, be reconciled—that faith in “the American model” is justified even though it may be marked by inequality because there are ways in which that inequality can be remedied.

3.      Paragraph 5 raises three key issues: inequality, meritocracy, and immigration. What does the article argue about each of these aspects of the U.S. economy?

The article argues, first, that inequality in the United States is a complex matter; yes, the rich are getting richer, but the differences between other economic segments of society are narrowing. Second, the case is made that, despite what critics say, immigration has not driven down wages; moreover, it is a fundamental aspect of the American Dream. Finally, the article praises the concept of meritocracy, at the same time admitting that it is not always practiced fairly in the United States and going on to suggest changes to the system that could make the concept more equitable.

1.      According to this article, paragraph 9 in particular, economic inequality is not inherently wrong, as long as three conditions are met. What are those conditions, and what do you think about this view?

The article asserts that the conditions under which inequality isn’t wrong are that wealth is increasing for society as a whole, that a safety net is provided for the very poor, and that there is equal opportunity for all to climb through the system. Students’ thinking about this view—and the very concept of the “American model”—may be influenced by the severe economic downturn of 2008 (obviously not anticipated by the rosy assessment of the Economist a little over two years earlier) and by the ways in which the Obama administration has responded in the meantime.