美国价值观在电影《当幸福来敲门》-文学学士毕业论文

PAGE12摘要跟其他民族相比较，美利坚合众国有它自己独特的文化。好莱坞电影是这个国家的文化和价值的载体，它的运作模式体现了美国的文化特征。好莱坞电影之所以为大众所欢迎的原因，除了其生动的故事情节和大制作，还有其在电影中的特性体现了美国的文化价值观。个人主义、英雄主义和宗教情景以及对自由的向往等美国精神都在这些电影中得以生动的体现。电影是流动于胶片里的社会文化，而电影里的不同信息都体现和反过来强化了它们的价值观。因此我们可以通过好莱坞电影理解美国主流文化的价值观。好莱坞电影《当幸福来敲门》是一部典型的励志电影，它改编自美国著名投资经济人克里斯加纳的自传《当幸福来敲门》。作为一个单身父亲，克里斯加纳无家可归流浪在旧金山的大街上，但他还是努力抚养他的儿子。加纳曾经在海军服役，并且高中后没有接受更高教育，但是最后还是靠自己双手成为了一名拥有百万资产的投资经纪人。这部电影感动了海内外许许多多的观众，并且在他们中有很好的口碑。该电影还获得了2006年的奥斯卡最佳男演员奖提名。自始至终，该论文旨在研究美国文化价值观在电影《当幸福来敲门》中的体现，以此探究当代美国文化价值观，并以此解释这个国家的特性以及文化性格。相应地，该论文将有助于我们对美国人的生活以及他们的价值观有更进一步的了解，消除文化障碍，以及减少因文化差异带来的交际困难。关键词：《当幸福来敲门》；价值观；体现TableofContentsAbstract i摘要 iiTOC\o"1-3"\u1.Introduction 12.Values 22.1Conceptofvalue 22.2ContemporaryAmericanValues 23.TheManifestationofAmericanValuesintheMovie 33.1Individualism 33.1.1ThebackgroundofindividualisminAmerica 33.1.2Individualisminthemovie 33.2Self-reliance 43.2.1Thebackgroundofself-relianceinAmerica 43.2.2Self-relianceinthemovie 43.3EqualityofOppotunity 53.3.1ThebackgroundofequalityofopportunityinAmerica 53.3.2Equalityofopportunityinthemovie 53.4Competition 73.4.1ThebackgroundofcompetitioninAmerica 73.4.2Competitioninthemovie 73.5MaterialWealth 83.5.1ThebackgroundofmaterialwealthinAmerica 83.5.2Materialwealthinthemovie 83.6HardWork 93.6.1ThebackgroundofhardworkinAmerica 93.6.2Hardworkinthemovie 104.Conclusion 115.References 126.Acknowledgements 131.IntroductionHollywoodisaplacecalledDreamWorksthatmanufacturesdreams;theUnitedStates,becauseofitsuniquesocialenvironment,isalsoknownastheplacewheredreamscanberealized.Itcreatedagreatdreamspacetomovie.Besidespursuingdreams,mostoftheHollywoodfilmsconveytheircontemporaryAmericanmainstreamcorevalues.HollywoodmovieThePursuitofHappinessisatypicalAmericaninspirationalmoviesearchingAmericandreams.ThoughithadnotwonanOscar,themoviewonthehighestboxoffice.ThemovieadaptedfromtheautobiographyinthesamenamebyChrisGardner,afamousblackAmerican,anexpertininvestment.Inthestory,hetellshishardtimesfromthesalesmantoasuccessfulmanager,includinghiswife’sbetrayal,bankruptcy,homelessnessandothersufferings.Alldifficultieshavenotdefeatedhim.Healwaysmaintainsoptimismwithhissonandstrugglescontinuallyforhisowngoal;atlast,hewinsthesuccessandgainsthehappiness.ThemovieThePursuitofHappinessissuchamovinginspirationalclassicstorywhichtellsthatChrisGardner,fromtheslumstoWallStreet,asasinglefather,hasneverbetrayedaftersufferings;especially,ChrisactedbymoviestarWillSmithandhissonChristopher,theyareexactlythefatherandsoninreallifethatstrengthentheaffectionbetweenthefatherandsoninthemovie.Chris’sstrugglingtobehappyisthemainlineofthefilm,andtheaffectionbetweenthefatherandsonistheviceline.IttellsaninspirationalstoryaboutthepursuitofAmericandreamandthedeepaffectionbetweenfatherandson.SothroughabriefanalysisofthefilmThePursuitofHappiness,wecanperceivethecorevaluesofAmerican.2.ContemporaryAmericanValues2.1ConceptofValueCultureisasocialphenomenon,isahistoricalphenomenon,isasedimentofthesocialhistory.ItIncludesbeliefs,values,customs,knowledge,etc.Cultureistheguideofpeople'sbehavior,andvalueisthecoreofculture,peoplecandistinguishdifferentculturalvaluesaccordingtodifferentvalues.AccordingtoMichaelProsser,Valueissuchamodecreatedbyindividualsorgroupsthroughculturalcommunication.Theyarethedeepestlevelofculture(Prosser.M.,1978).ThereforeItcanbeseenthat,Valueisthereflectionofpeople’ssocialexistenceanditiscriterionthatusedbymembersofsocietytoevaluatethebehavior,things,andchoosetheirowndesiredgoalsfromvarietypotentialtargets.Value,reflectedthroughpeople’sbehaviororientationandevaluationofthingsandattitudes,isthecoreoftheworldview,theinnerforceofdrivingpeople’sbehavior.Itcontrolsandregulatesallthesocialbehaviors,involvingallareasofsociallife.Culturalvalueguidespeople'sperceptionsandbehaviors,anddetermineswhatkindofbeliefsandattitudespeoplehave.2.2ContemporaryAmericanValuesAfterthefirstEuropeansettlerslandedinNorthAmericainNewEngland,thedifferentethnicgroupsfollowed.CulturaldiversityofdifferentnationalitiesintheUnitedStatesbroughttogethercrossandinfluencedeachother,formingamixedAmericanculturalsystemcontaininguniquevalues.Thevalueswhichthepaperintendstodealwith,isavarietyofvalueswhichinfluencedbytheEuropeantraditionalcultureandthenaturalenvironmentoftheAmerica,formedinthedevelopmentofthehistoryoftheunitedstatesgradually,andstillplayaleadingroleintheideasofthecontemporarysocialclass—middleclass.Itincludesindividualfreedomandself-reliance,equalityofopportunityandcompetition,materialwealthandhardwork.ThroughtheU.S.massmedia,weknowtheAmericanvalues.Movie,asamassmedia,inevitablyhasitsownvaluesinitsdelivery,sothroughtheanalysisofthevaluesthemovieconveys,itcanreflectcertainsocialrealities,anditalsocanreflectthefilm’ssocialsignificance.AmericanHollywoodmovie,alsoasamassmedia,ofcourse,conveysitsowncountry’smodernvalues.ThePursuitofHappiness,thisinspirationallargeHollywoodclassicfilmiswithoutexception.3.TheManifestationofAmericanValuesintheMovie3.1Individualism3.1.1ThebackgroundofIndividualisminAmericaAccordingtowhatDengYanchang,“TheearliestsettlerscametotheNorthAmericancontinenttoestablishcoloniesthatwerefreefromthecontrolsthatexistedinEuropeansocieties.Theywantedtoescapethecontrolsplacedontheirlivesbykingsandgovernments,priestsandchurches,noblemenandaristocrats.Toagreatextent,theysucceed.ThehistoricdecisionsmadebythosefirstsettlershavehadaprofoundeffectontheshapingoftheAmericancharacter.Bylimitingthepowerofthegovernmentandthechurchesandeliminatingaformalaristocracy,theycreatedaclimateoffreedomwheretheemphasiswasontheindividual.TheUnitedStatesassociatedintheirmindswiththeconceptofindividualfreedom.ThisisprobablythemostbasicofalltheAmericanvalues.Scholarsandobserversoftencallthisvalue‘individualism’,butmanyAmericansusedtheword‘freedom’.Perhapstheword‘freedom’isoneofthemostrespectedandpopularwordsintheUnitedStatestoday.By‘freedom’,Americansmeanthedesireandtheabilityofallindividualstocontroltheirowndestinywithoutoutsideinterferencefromthegovernment,arulingnobleclass,thechurchoranyotherorganizedauthority.Thedesiretobefreeofcontrolswasabasicvalueofthenewnationin1776,andithascontinuedtoattractedimmigrantstothiscountry”(DengYanchang,2001:32).3.1.2IndividualisminthemovieAmericanstreatindividualismasaNear-perfectcharacter,whichpresentsthespiritofindependence.Thisisespeciallymanifestedinchildhood.AsLuoYuehongsaid,Theindependenceofthechildrenisencouragedbythewholesociety,theydestinetobeindependentsincetheyareborn(骆越虹，2007：87).Childrenshouldsleepalone,andtheynotonlyhavetheirownbed,butalsohavetheirownroom.Atthebeginningofthemovie,itwasshowninthemovie.EvenChristopherwasatsuchayoungage,atwhichtheageinChinamostchildrenstillsleptwiththeirparents,hehadtosleeponhisownbedinaroomseparatefromhisparents.EventhefinancialstatusoftheChris’wasnotthatgoodenough,theystillhadtohavethelittleChristopherhadhisownroom.AccordingtoLuo（2007：87）,inUnitedStates,whilecommunicatingwithadults,childrenarealsousuallyseenasanequalindividual.Whilecommunicatingwithadults,theywouldusewordssuchas“No”“Ithink”andsoontoexpresstheirownwillandopinion.Notexceptionitwaspresentedinthemoviemanytimes.Whenchildrengrowup,theconceptofindependencewouldrootintheirheartdeeply,eveninfluencethedestinyofhiscareer.Takeworkingforexample,thebossinthecompanyusuallywouldselectsuchpersonwhowithindependenceoruniquecharacteristicsashisstaffbecausehebelievehiscapacitycanleadhiscompanytosucceed,regardlessofotherfactorssuchaseconomystatus,etc.Itwasalsowellrepresentedinthemovie.WhenChrisattendedtheinterviewafterhewasjustsetfreefromtheprisonlessthananhouragobecauseofrelayingtopaythetax,thoughhedressedmessedwiththepaintinhisclotheswhichwasleftyesterdaywhilehewaspaintingthewall,thebroadacceptedhimtoattendtheinternshipwhichwasapreciousopportunityforChrisevenforothers.3.2Self-reliance3.2.1Thebackgroundofself-relianceinAmericaAstowhatDengYanchangsaid(2001:33),“Thereis,however,apricetobepaidfortheindividualfreedom:self-reliance.Americansbelievethatindividualsmustlearntorelyonthemselvesorrisklosingfreedom.ThismeansthatAmericansbelievetheyshouldtakecareofthemselves,solvetheirownproblemsand‘standontheirowntwofeet.’Tocqueville,afamousFrenchhistorianandsociologist,observedtheAmericans’beliefinself-relianceinthe1830s:Theyowenothingtoanyman,theyexpectednothingfromanyman;theyacquirethehabitofalwaysconsideringthemselvesasstandingalone,andtheyareapttoimaginethattheirwholedestinyisintheirownhands.Thisstrongbeliefinself-reliancecontinuestodayasabasicAmericanvalue.ItisperhapsoneofthemostdifficultaspectsoftheAmericancharactertounderstand,butitisprofoundlyimportant.Americansbelievethattheymustbeself-reliantinordertokeeptheirfreedom”.Theindividualismoffersthevaluebasicforthespiritofself-reliance,andthespiritofself-reliance,asthemainstreamcorevalue,offerstheintrinsicmotivationforthepursuitandrealizationofAmericandreams.ItisreflectedintheAmericanmoviesespeciallyinthoseinspirationalmoviessearchingforAmericandreams,thismovieiswithoutexception.3.2.2Self-relianceinthemovieThespiritofrelianceranthroughthemoviefromthebeginningtotheend.Forexample,atthebeginningofthemovie,Chriswasatthetoughperiodwiththetenserelationshipwithhiswifebecauseofhisfailingtosellthemachinesthathehadspentalmostallofhissavings,whichwouldmakehimdifficulttosupporthisfamily.AswhatChrisGardnertoldinhisautobiography,oneday,afterhesenthislittlesonChristophertotheday-carecenter,hesawaword“Happiness”,whichactuallyshouldbespelled“happiness”.Outofhisresponsibilitytothedevelopmentofhissonandasanadult,hepointedoutthespellingerrorinthewallofthealleytothecleaner:“Oh,excuseme…whenissomebodygoannacleanthisoff?AndtheY?TheY.Wetalkedaboutthis.It’sanIin“happiness”.There’snoYin“happiness”.It’sanI.”(Chrisgardner,2006:134)Thisepisodecouldberegardedasthethemeofthemovie,becausetheYhereactuallymeanstheword“why”,andtheimeanstheword“I”,whichmeansoneself.Thatisthethemeofthemovie:there’snoreasonforhappiness,thepointistheexistentofthe“I”andparticipation.Inthisfreecountry,povertyisnottheobstacletopursuittheAmericandream,onlyifoneseizedtheopportunityandworkhard,canherealizehisdream.ThatiswhyTheDeclarationofIndependencesaid“thepursuitofHappiness”insteadof“theenjoymentofHappiness”.ThemovieexactlyreflectsChris,anordinaryman,thespecificprocessofthepursuitofhappiness.Moreover,itreflectsthespiritofself-reliance.DengYanchangalsosaid(2001:33),“Bybeingdependent,notonlydoAmericansrisklosingfreedom,buttheyalsorisklosingtherespectoftheirpeers.Eveniftheyarenottrulyself-reliant,mostAmericansbelievetheymustatleastappeartobeso.InordertobeinthemainstreamofAmericanlife—tohavepowerandrespect—individualsmustbeseenasself—reliant”.Likeatthebeginningofthemovie,thereisanepisodethatwouldbeeasytobeneglected,sinceitwasasshortaslessthanonesecond--Anoldmanwhoseemedgetdrunklayingontheground,nooneelsekeptnoticeofhim,noranyoneofferedhelptohim.Peoplejuststeppedforwardhurriedly,whichlookedasifhewasabandonedbythewholesociety.IthidedthemessagethataswhatFranklinsaid—“Godhelpsthosewhohelpthemselves.”,ifonelosethefaithonhimself,hewillnotberespectedbythesocietyinAmerican,thesocietyonlyrespectsthosewhoself-reliant.3.3EqualityofO3.3.1ThebackgroundofequalityofopportunityinAmericaAccordingtowhatDengYanchangsaidonequalityofopportunityinAmerica(2001:33),“SincetitlesofnobilitywereforbiddenintheConstitution,noformalclasssystemdevelopedintheUnitedStates.IntheearlyyearsofAmericanhistorymanyimmigrantschosetoleavetheolderEuropeansocieties,becausetheybelievedthattheyhadabetterchancetosucceedinAmericathanin‘theoldsociety’,wheretheirplaceinlifewasdeterminedlargelybythesocialclassintowhichtheywereborn.TheyknewthatinAmericatheywouldnothavetoliveamongnoblefamilieswhopossessedgreatpowerandwealthinheritedandaccumulatedoverhundredsofyears.Thehopesofmanyoftheseimmigrantswerefulfilledinthisnewcountry.Thelowersocialclassintowhichmanywereborndidnotpreventthemfromrisingtoahighersocialposition.ManyfoundthattheyhadabetterchancetosucceedintheUnitedStatesthanintheoldcountry.Becausemillionsoftheseimmigrantssucceed,Americanscametobelieveinequalityofopportunity.ItisimportanttounderstandwhatAmericansmeanwhentheysaytheybelieveinequalityofopportunity.Theydonotmeanthateveryoneis—orshouldbe—equal.However,theymeaneachindividualshouldhaveanequalchanceforsuccess.Americansseemuchoflifeasarareforsuccess.Forthem,equalitymeansthateveryoneshouldhaveanequalchancetoentertheraceandwin.Inotherwords,equalityofopportunitymaybethoughtasanethicalrule.Ithelpsensurethattheraceforsuccessisafaironeandthatapersondoesnotwinjustbecauseheorshewasbornintoawealthyfamily.PresidentAbrahamLincolnexpressedthisbeliefinthe1860swhenhesaid:We…wishtoallowthehumblestmananequalchancetogetrichwitheveryoneelse.Whenonestartspoor,asmoredointheraceoflife,freesocietyissuchthatheknowshecanbetterhiscondition;Heknowsthatthereisnofixedconditionoflaborforhiswholelife.”3.3.2EqualityofopportunityinthemovieTheequalityofopportunityisanimportantfactortorealizetheAmericandreamandtoachieveone’svalue.Itisoneofthereflectionsofequality.AsGuoYunproposed,justastheDeclarationofIndependencesaid,“Allmenarecreatedequal,thattheyareendowedbytheircreatorwithinalienablerights.”Soinpeople’seyesallpeopleareequalandhavetheirownvalues,andnooneisbornsuperiortoanyoneelse(郭赟，2007).Therefore,peopleshouldhavethesamerightstogettheopportunity.AiQiproposedthat,WashingtonObserverusedtodoresearchonAmericansonAmericandreams:“AmericandreamisabeliefgenerallyheldbythemajoritiesofAmericans,andtheequalityofopportunityisthesouloftheAmericandream,theverticalmobilityofthesocialclass,especiallythesocialmobilityfromthelowerclasstotheupperclassisthemostsignificantfeaturereflectedfromtheAmericandreams.”InAmericanculture,Americaemphasizesontheequalityofopportunitybutnottheequalityofoutcomes,theequalityofpoliticalrightsbutnottheequalityofpoliticaloutcomes.Therefore,numerousofgeneraltalentscanachievetheirvaluesandrealizetheirAmericandreamsthroughself-struggle(艾琦,2010).Themovieisatypicalreflectionofsuchconcept.Chris,thoughhewasatsuchtoughsituation,withhiswifelefthimandincapableofofferingagoodresidencetohimandhislittleson,heneverfeltdepressedoffeltabandonedbythesocietyorthegovernment.Instead,hedidn’tcomplainanythingoranyone,butstruggledtoseizeeveryopportunitytomoveforward.Onedayhemetwithastockbrokerwhodroveacabriolet,heaskedthestockbrokerhowdidhedothat,thenhegottheanswerthatheonlyhavetobegoodatdealingwithnumbersandgetonwellwitheveryone.Itwasatthattimehesethismindtobecomeastockbroker,sincehebelievedthathemetthequalificationofastockbroker.Itwasfromthenonthathestruggledtoovercomeeveryobstaclehefacedandeventuallyhesucceeded.Thoughhedidn’tachieveahighereducation,didn’thaveaprominentbackground,evendidn’thaveacompletefamily,hewasacceptedtobeoneofthetwentyinternshipmemberswhowereregardedaselitesandeventuallystoodouttobetheonlyonetojointhecompanytobecomeastockbroker.Hissuccess,ontheonehand,thankstohisinsistenceofstrugglingtofightwiththefatetoseizeeveryopportunityandovercomingeverydifficultiesstepbystep,ontheotherhand,thankstotheAmerica,asocietythatemphasizesontheequalityofopportunitywhichthereforeofferstheopportunitytoChrisevenanyonewhoknowstoseizetheopportunitytobesucceed.Besidestheequalityofopportunityonpoliticalrights,muchemphasiswasputontheequalityofopportunityoneducation.TheemphasisontheequalityoneducationreflectsthebeliefofAmericansthatallthechildrenshouldhaveopportunitytoachievethegoodeducation,iftheindividualiswillingtogettheeducation.LiBosiproposethatAmericansbelievethateveryoneischangeable,eventhechilddoesn’thaveagoodtalent,ifheknowstoseizetheopportunity,hecanmakeagreatprogress(李柏思，2001：124-131).That’swhyAmericanscarealotabouttheeducationofhischildren.Inthemovie,mostofthemoneyChrisearnedfromsellingthebonedensityscannerwasputontheeducationoflittleChristopherandpayingtherents,thereforeisnothardtoseehowtheytreatedtheeducationofthenextgeneration.BesidessendinglittleChristophertokindergarten,ChrisusuallytaughtChristopheralot.WecanalsoperceivetheequalityontheeducationofAmericafromsomeotherepisodes.Forexample,inthemovie,littleChristophercouldmakealistofpresentshewantedonhisbirthday,hecoulddiscussthemeaningof“fuck”,hecouldtellthestorytohisChris,etc.3.4Competition3.4.1ThebackgroundofcompetitioninAmericaOntheissueofcompetitioninAmerica,DengYanchangsaid(2001:34),“Thereis,however,apricetobepaidfortheequalityofopportunity:competition.Ifmuchoflifeisseenasarace,thenapersonmustruntheraceinordertosucceed;apersonmustcompetewithothers.IfeverypersonhasanequalchancetosucceedintheUnitedStates,thenitiseveryperson’sdutytotry.Americansmatchtheirenergyandintelligenceagainstthatoftheirneighborsinacompetitivecontestforsuccess.Peoplewholiketocompeteandaremoresuccessfulthanothersarehonoredbybeingcalled“winners.”Ontheotherhand,thosewhodonotliketocompeteandarenotsuccessfulwhentheytryareoftendishonoredbybeingcalled‘losers’.ThisisespeciallytrueforAmericanmen,anditisbecomingmoreandmoretrueforwomen.ThepressuresofcompetitioninthelifeofanAmericanbegininchildhoodandcontinueuntilretirementfromwork.LearningtocompetesuccessfullyispartofgrowingupintheUnitedStates.MostofpeoplelivedintheUnitedStatesagreedwiththisstatement:‘Itisnothealthyforyoungpeopletorefusetobelievethatwinningisimportant.’thatis,mostpeoplebelievedcompetitionandthedesiretowinarehealthyanddesirable.ThepressuretocompetecausesanAmericanmantobeenergetic,butitalsoplacesaconstantemotionalstrainonhim.Whenheretiresatage65,heisatlastfreefromthepressuresofcompetition.Butthenanewproblemarises.Hetendstofeeluselessandunwantedinasocietythatgivessomuchprestigetothosewhocompetewell.ThisisonereasonwhyolderpeopleintheUnitedStatesdonothaveasmuchhonorandrespectastheyhaveinothers,lesscompetitivesocieties.Infact,anygroupofpeoplewhodonotcompetesuccessfully—forwhateverreason—donotfitintothemainstreamofAmericanlifeaswellasthosewhodo.”3.4.2CompetitioninthemovieInthemovie,thecompetitionwasshowninmanyepisodes.InAmerica,peopleappearstobegetadjusttothefast-pacedlifestyle,theyalwayshurryingondoingeverything,whichisbecauseofthefiercecompetition.Itwasreflectedatthebeginning,whenanewdaybegan,peopleareallhurriedtogotowork,itwasalmostimpossibletostopthemfromsteppingforward.Theysteppedforward,withonlyonegoal—theirworkingposition.Chris’sfamilywasalsowithoutexception.Itwasacommondayasusual,theyhadtogetupat5:30aminthemorning,thenChris’swifewenttowork,andaftersendinglittleChristophertothekindergarten,Chriswouldgotoeveryclinictosellhisproduct—theportablebonedensityscanner.Becauseofthefast-pacedlifestyle,itiscommonforalmosteveryfamilytohaveatleastonecar,unluckily,Chris’scarwascapturedbythegovernmentbecauseheparkedthecaragainsttheregulation.ThefiercecompetitionwasprofoundlyreflectedinthemoviewhenChristriedtogetthejobofastockbrokerbecausehebelievedthatthejobwouldbringthehappinesstohimandhisson.InAmericaagoodjobthatwouldbringhappinessmeansthejobmustbegoodenoughtobringthewealthtothem.Andbecauseoftheequalityofopportunity,peoplewhohadthequalificationthatmeetstherequirementswouldgetaccesstoapplyforthejob.Therefore,theremustbeafiercecompetitionwhenappliedtoagoodjob.Beingastockbrokeratthattimewasagoodjobthatwouldbringagreatwealthtoindividual,thereforeitwasnotdoubttounderstoodwhyChrisstruggledtobecomeastockbrokerhoweverfiercethecompetitionwas.Fromappliedfortheinternshiptogettheinternship,fromtheinternshiptogetthejobofbecomingaeconomicmanandthenbecameastockbroker,hegotthroughalotoffiercecompetitionsfrompeerswhoevengothighereducationandsocialstatus.3.5MaterialWealth3.5.1ThebackgroundofmaterialwealthinthemovieAstowhatDengYanchangsaid(2001:35),“Becauseofitsincrediblyabundantnaturalresources,theUnitedStatesappearedtobea‘landofplenty’wheremillionsofimmigrantscouldcometoseektheirfortunes.Ofcourse,mostimmigrantsdidnot‘getrichovernight’,andmanyofthemsufferedterribly,butthemajorityofthemwereeventuallyabletoimproveupontheirformerstandardofliving.Eveniftheywerenotabletoachievetheeconomicsuccesstheywanted,theycouldbefairlycertainthattheirchildrenwouldhavetheopportunityforabetterlife.Thephrase‘goingfromragestoriches’becameasloganforthegreatAmericandream.BecauseofthevastrichesoftheNorthAmericancontinent,thedreamcametrueformanyoftheimmigrants.Theyachievedmaterialsuccess;theybecameavaluetotheAmericanpeople.Placingahighvalueonmaterialpossessioniscalled‘materialism’,whichmeansthatmaterialsandthepossessionsofmaterialsaretheprimaryobjectivesoftheindividual,theyvaluematerialsandtheirpossessionsaboveallelse,thematerialsisthestandardtoevaluatetheirvalueasanindividual.However,itisawordthatmostAmericansfindoffensive.ToAmericans,thismeansthattheyvaluematerialpossessionsaboveallelse.Americansdonotliketobecalledmaterialisticbecausetheyfeelthatthisunfairlyaccusesthemoflovingonlymaterialthingsandofhavingnoreligiousvalues.Infact,Americansdohaveothervaluesandideals.Nevertheless,acquiringandmaintainingalargenumberofmaterialpossessionsisofverygreatimportancetomostAmericans.ProbablythemainreasonisthatmaterialwealthisthemostwidelyacceptedmeasuresofsocialstatusintheUnitedStates.BecauseAmericansrejectedtheEuropeansystemofhereditaryaristocracyandtitlesofnobility,theyhadtofindasubstituteforjudgingsocialstatus.Thequalityandquantityofanindividual’smaterialpossessionsbecametheacceptedmeasureofsuccessandsocialstatus.Moreover,theAmericanProtestantworkethicassociatedmaterialsuccesswithgodliness.”3.5.2MaterialwealthinthemovieInthemovie,thoughitisnotobvious,itstillreflectedhowimportanceAmericansattachedonthepossessionofmaterials.ThematerialpossessionisthemostimportantstandardtoevaluatewhetheranindividualinAmericaissuccessfulornot.Thepursuitofpossessionofwealth,insomeways,canbeseenasthepursuitofhappinessinAmericasincemostAmericansbelievedthatwealthcouldbringthemhappiness.Thereforewecouldperceivethemoviemoredeeply,especiallythenameofthemovieThePursuitofHappiness.InAmerica,thepossessionofsomematerialsrarelyownedbycommonpeoplecouldmakeonespecialamongpeople,throughwhichtowintherespectsandattentionsfromothers,toone’smentalsatisfactionandhappiness.WecanseethatfromthestockbrokerChrismetwithinfrontofastockcompany.Thewelldressedsuitandthecabrioletshowedthathewasarichman,apersonwhoownedlotsofwealth,thatmadehimuniqueamongothersandrespectable.ForChris,hewasamanwithhappiness.That’swhyChrissethismindtobeastockbrokersincehethoughthimselfalsoqualifiedtobeastockbroker.ForChris,topossessagreatwealthandberespectedbyothersmeanthappiness.TheimportanceAmericansattachedonpossessionofmaterialsmadesomepeopleinAmericablindlyresorttotheillegalwaytotakeother’smaterials.Forexample,inthemovie,whenthefirsttimeChriswantedtoapplyfortheinternship,heaskedawomandressedlikeGypsytolookafterhisbonedensityscanner.Thoughthemachinewasuselesstothewoman,shetookitawayuntilthenexttimeChrismetwithherandtookitback.However,thesekindofpeopleareusuallypoorandcarelessofmorality.3.6Hardwork3.6.1ThebackgroundofhardworkinAmericaDengYanchangsaidinhisbook(2001:35),“Americansplayaprice,however,fortheirmaterialwealth:hardwork