In Paradoxes of American Individualism, Claude S. Fischer pointed out inconsistencies in American individualism like the ones indicated by Robin M. Williams Jr. Fischer indicated how sociologists might comprehend American exceptionalism not as selfish and asocial individualism, but as social voluntarism.
Hughes shared what it was like to live in America. This poem explores the themes of identity, freedom, and equality. America meant freedom and equality, but it has become the complete opposite: greed, oppression, and inequality. It emphasizes the perspective of the people who saw America as a refuge where they could be safe from the persecution they suffered in their home countries trying to achieve the American dream: the poor, immigrants, African Americans, and Native Americans; those who have been subjected to a system that is thought to help them, whose dreams have never come true. On the other hand, the model of individualism explained in the article said that if someone freely decides to stay in America, they owe allegiance to the nation. In other words, if a worker starts working for someone and the contract specifies following the boss’s orders even if they are ridiculous, the worker must follow the orders, but if the worker is not happy, the worker is free to go. There is a problem because Hughes said that it will require taking the country back from the “leeches” who feed on the poor to truly achieving freedom, but then if you are in America, you need to obey the rules, so you need to obey to those “leeches”. Also, from the article, Americans differed that success in life is defined by forces beyond our control. Americans attribute poverty to the traits or wills of the poor people, believing that slothfulness explains poverty. Besides, they are significantly less likely to support government intervention.
Whitman wrote about equality in his poem: America. Today we might take the notion of equality for granted, but it was written almost half a century before suffrage was granted to women. In his day, as perhaps it still is today, equality was a notion reserved for select people, not for all Americans, and certainly not for all people. This poem is for anyone who believe in the America dream, it is speaking for everybody, and it does not leave anybody out.
I do agree with your point on what Hughes is trying to say. They say that America is the land of the free, but in reality it is not, and it is the opposite of that. We can say to other countries as well, but it is the opposite as well. Overall if America wants to be known as the land of freedom, then it should really fix it flaws to really show it to the world.
I agree with the contradictions you pointed in out in the beliefs of america, it is almost like we are free to choose what we want but only between the few choices we are given so in reality there is no true freedom in America.
I agree with your perspective on Fischer’s writings, and how America is labeled as a free nation and proclaims individualism, however, people often allow themselves to be bound to things such as social tethers. I never really realized that we as Americans live within such circumstances, such as remaining patriotic to our country even when we believe the nation as a whole has done wrong.