Chris Phillibert So American (4)

If I'm honest, it took me a while to think about what exactly makes me American. I think my identity as an American is something I take as a truism so often that I never thought about what qualities I have that make me distinctly American besides being born in America. When I think about what makes me American I think about a varying range of topics, but the thing that most sticks out in my mind is the individualism that is ingrained in my psyche. I've always been fascinated with the meaning behind the phrase "E pluribus unum" which translates into Latin as "Out of many, one". This phrase is a hallmark of American ideology and a phrase that accurately reflects my approach to personal growth and development. It also fascinates me with regard to how America views itself. The idea that you have multiple types of people, customs and traditions that can be extremely different and yet you have to unite together to form one American identity. I think this philosophy extends to the individual as well. You are free to mold yourself into whatever type of person or version of yourself that you please, free to pursue any avenue of fulfillment of dreams that entices you, but you still feel connected with everyone around you in a way that unites you under the umbrella of "Americanness". At least, that's how the theory goes...

In chapter 4 of "Imagined Communities", Anderson talks about the creole people and how they developed concepts of "nation-ness" before some other countries in Europe. Anderson also goes into depth about what qualities of the creole community made them better equipped to handle "nation-ness" like the spread of enlightened ideas, the willingness of the upper class or leisure class to make some sacrifices in the name of greater freedom, and the rise of the newspaper. Anderson also talks about how the development of new technology and capitalism in the late 18th century contributed to the overall idea of "Americanness" as a whole. I think Anderson would support the idea that the development of new technology and capitalism especially contributes in a major way to the philosophy of individualism and personal growth that America emphasizes. In reality, "E pluribus unum" contributes to the capitalistic idea that if everyone works to improve themselves within their scenario, a nation will improve as a whole from the collective improvement of its citizens.

Though individualism promotes personal growth and advancement, there are some drawbacks to emphasizing this philosophy in an overly emphatic manner. One of the biggest drawbacks that I can point to in this philosophy is the rampant growth of selfishness and disregard for fellow citizens. If people focus too heavily on the personal growth aspect of e pluribus unum, there is a possibility that the person will disregard the aspects of togetherness and unity that this phrase embodies and instead just focus on the individual growth aspect. This leads to competition between citizens which almost inevitably leads to conflict.