Blog 1

The idea of the coveted American Dream differs from person to person but the main idea is the same: to be successful and to fit the mold. You got to college, you get a job, you make money, and so on. This idea filled the mind of Kevin Jennings which he reflected in his personal narrative, "American Dreams." In the essay, Kevin Jennings encounters many artifacts that developed his idea of the American Dream and his social identity. As a young child, Jennings was bombarded with strong racist, anti-gay and prejudice messages from his family. His uncle was part of the Ku Klux Klan and his father was a strong religious figure that refused to accept anything that wasn't exactly what he believed in. At just age 6, Kevin Jennings knew he was gay. He was exposed to "adult" magazines that just didn't interest him in the way he knew they should, this artifact helped prove to Jennings that he was, in fact, gay. In college, Kevin Jennings was thrust into a whole new world where being gay was actually heard of and accept by some people. The people and the overall culture of the north, versus the south where he grew up, was much more open and accepting. All of the artifacts he was exposed to in the north shaped this new idea that people in the south can come off as prejudice and are often made fun of. At that point, Jennings reinvented himself to erase any trace of the south he had in them. This created a whole new social identity for Kevin Jennings. He learned from professors that allowing yourself to stay in the closet shows you're afraid of who you are. By accepting who he is, Kevin Jennings transformed his idea of the American Dream from the stereotypical view to the idea that the American Dream is demanding freedom no matter who you are. Towards the end of the essay Jennings inserts a poem by the gay, African American poet, Langston Hughes titled, "I, Too." This is an artifact that further enforces Jennings idea of the American Dream and his social identity of accept himself. Kevin Jennings transformed his social identity and his idea of the American Dream by experiencing cultural artifacts that contrasted each other (north versus south, gay versus straight, etc.) and they may not have been tangible items but they were ideas and experiences that still left a lasting effect on who Kevin Jennings turned out to be.