The lofty idea that one can be anything they want to be is only a ploy to get people to work harder and to make more money, which in this capitalistic society is what makes it grow. Here in this country the dream is nothing more than a blunt notion that simply means, you work to make money, and if you don't then you face the consequences of poverty. Either way the American dream seems lost, only to be replaced by a pragmatic goal over that of an idealistic one. There are of course those few who manage to squeak their way up, and can accomplish fantastic achievements in our world, and they are the heroes children learn to envy. Later in adulthood we are taught to realize that many of those people indeed achieve great dreams, but even more people become failures.
Society is an immense force upon every person's life.
It pushes and tugs, leading each person into the path of it's choosing. Or in contrast it may force someone to find a unique path, that which is different from others. Even in recent history, during the 1960s we saw an immense shift in the culture, to escape from the bounds that holds back free thinkers and dreamers, away from the pragmatists who sought to force the people along its road of harsh reality. The day had dawned when the dream of a youth would no longer be suppressed, when an idea of fantasy could and should become reality. Their struggle was a powerful one, and their opposition, that of the rest of society was just as stubborn in their own counter-beliefs.