Wealth: A Striving Economy
Through my multifaceted exploration of happiness, womanhood, and the effects of society’s falsified beauty expectations in both, I questioned what the cost of coexistence and balance would be in a place like America.
In, perhaps a feminist view, the capitalist world of America has targeted women and molded us to reduce our worth for superficial validation. Falsified beauty campaigns, social media, microaggressions, and competition amongst ourselves has done a great job at keeping us controlled. Perhaps unconsciously, this and many other tactics of dialogical action have nurtured a generation of Americans that are unhappy and unsatisfied with life. According to the Common Wealth Fund, ‘The U.S. has the highest suicide rate of any wealthy nation’ (HealthCare, 1). What I found through my search is that, as a collective, we have been mentally manipulated by content and ideas that are a mere illusion. We have been programmed to want more always, to be unsatisfied. Propaganda and marketing campaigns are fed to us second by second, to mold our identities and narrow them down to a piece of clothes or a new purse. The obvious theory of dialogical action has molded a generation of mental instability.
We consequently spend our life working restlessly to afford and reach this glorified lifestyle. When wondering if I should purchase a car I remember requesting advice from my highschool teacher and friend. She said, ‘if you get a car you will sacrifice a portion of your life to pay it back; is that trade off something you are able to do?’. She emphasized that these superficial gadgets didn’t come at no cost and added, ‘when you are young you have all the time in the world but no money and when you become old you have acquired the money but are now at a loss of time’. This is the truth for the average American. The beauty of life is not to worry about the perfect moment, but to make every moment uniquely perfect. If we were dying tomorrow, we would live today in complete gratitude. We would make the most of today, this is the mentality needed to live a life of happiness.
Being a first-generation Mexican-American, I struggled with self-identity throughout my childhood (and even now); but having the ability to speak Spanish fluently, allowed me to immerse myself in Mexican culture when I visit Mexico. Having the ability to contrast life in Mexico, a country considered ‘poor’ in many aspects, I realized that their life seemed RICH–contrary to public opinion. I witnessed neighbors walking past and greeting each other warmly. There are no Teslas or Gucci prints, but there is warmth and you can feel it. The type of warmth that transcends language and societal status. They live a simple life, a calm life.
Happiness–A continuous Study
As I thought about my continuous research development and my study on happiness, I evaluated my progress thus far. What began as an exploration of womanhood transformed to encompass an entire generation. I realized that the societal pressure women endure to meet falsified beauty standards was only a single strand in the yarn. This capitalist society that we’ve created by idealizing individualism and ‘entrepreneurship’, selling the ‘American Dream’ is mere societal conditioning that targets all Americans–not only women.
In this last investigative search, I decided to explore the male perspective of capitalist America. I wanted to explore a perspective that I might have neglected in past research. Perhaps overlooked because I, myself, do not deal with this experience as a woman–I wanted to delve into the male perspective. In this piece I decided to incorporate an interview with yet another important figure in my life–my dad. My dad was born in the city of Guadalajara in Jalisco, Mexico. He was raised to love the slower lifestyle, the neighbor afternoons, and the active ‘walk everywhere’ mentality. He didn’t need too much to be happy, his childhood games consisted of paper folded ‘boats’ launched through water currents on a rainy day. He migrated to the United States looking for an opportunity–seeking progression. He left everything he ever knew to chase the American dream. Along my mom’s side, they entered the retail industry selling Mexican beauty supplies in a Los Angeles Swap Meet. I am aware that their journey has not been easy.
Witnessing their dedication and unshaken determination has impacted my childhood and my own way of living life. I strive to excel in everything I do because I feel that I owe it to them. Since my early childhood, I did everything I could to make them proud. In this interview, I wanted to learn more about my dad’s perspective of the American dream. I wanted to investigate the role which he plays and his experience in finding happiness.
The following interview questions were asked:
At what age did you leave Mexico?
Why did you leave Mexico?
What do you miss most about Mexico?
What is the most important difference between lifestyle expectations in Mexico and the United States?
What do you like most about the United States?
Was your lifestyle affected by your migration to the United States?
Was your perspective of life or mentality affected?
What does it mean to live a rich life?
Do you believe you have accomplished the American dream?
Do you believe you will return to Mexico?
My dad has always been a very simple man. Coming from a very traditional Mexican family, he rarely asked for anything ‘for himself’. There is never a materialistic item that he would go out of his way to purchase. On the contrary, he worked restlessly only to provide for my family. He was so selfless that he hesitated to order a plate for himself at restaurants when we dined as a family. Looking back at these family dinners, I remember him reassuring me, ‘lo que quieras ordena y compartimos’ — in an English semitranslation, ‘order what you like, we’ll share’. I didn’t understand this then, but he was prioritizing us in the most ‘discrete’ method possible.
Interview:https://drive.google.com/file/d/1-N7oXu-7kvoZRiVqSy3O5MrSzIQjDNYS/view?usp=drive_link
As discussed in the interview, my dad is extremely grateful to have migrated to the United States. He is happy that his daughters are becoming professionals and are thriving in this society. He recalls his days in Mexico with grace, but assures me that he will probably not live there permanently, again. My dad left Mexico when he was only seventeen, he is now fifty three, which means that most of who he is now is largely a creation of an American lifestyle. As he mentions himself, his way of life was very different in Mexico. Though he was not concerned for materialistic wealth for himself as much, through this interview I realized that he did want a certain progression and stability–what he couldn’t find in Mexico. His dream was to buy his parents a home, and initially, this was the purpose of his trip to the United States. However, after forming a family, he realized it was better if he stayed. He emphasized that saving to buy a car with a Mexican salary was nearly impossible and so coming to the United States was needed. My dad didn’t praise a lifestyle of richness and emphasizes that he accomplished the American dream by having his daughters educated and by his side. He recalled missing his parents at first, but remembering that migration was for the better.
My dad found happiness because of his mentality; not his circumstance. He came to the United States with nothing. To this day, he will wear the same 7 shirts (some overly worn) with no hesitation–even if my sisters and I have gifted him hundreds of Nike shirts. What he emphasizes through his way of being is that “nurture is more important than nature” (Happiness Lab, 1). My dad had nothing for many different periods of his life so he doesn’t fear being left behind. His past experiences have made him resilient. He has a firm idea of what happiness is and he doesn’t let the outside noise of capitalist America control his emotions or perspectives of life. He has a clear picture of his meaning of happiness. He shifted my research and brought a unique perspective, from an older generation, in which we must look internally before contributing externally. I realized that I have way more work to deprogram the many superficial beliefs which I have adopted in early adulthood.
I have played by the book, about to receive an engineering education from a prestigious school, and working my first internship in corporate America. I realized that I too had to look internally and assess–what is truly important. To live a fulfilling life, it is crucial to be of service (Katie, 1). It is important to love others as they were a piece of you, to be selfless–just as my dad was with us and his own parents. He really is one of the people I am most thankful for and this interview allowed me to see a different perspective of the person he is.
Works Cited
“Do We Need a New Word for ‘Happiness’? Katie Couric Talks to Dr Laurie Santos.” YouTube, YouTube, 11 Apr. 2023, www.youtube.com/watch?v=SlpSQh2qKMU.
“New International Report on Health Care: U.S. Suicide Rate Highest among Wealthy Nations.” Commonwealth Fund, 30 Jan. 2020, www.commonwealthfund.org/press-release/2020/new-international-report-health-care-us-suicide-rate-highest-among-wealthy.
