xxiv Introduction: The American Dream and the Middle Class
middle class portrayed by the media? How does the media landscape reflect and
influence the middle class? What are the great cultural influences of our time?
The American middle class is under siege, but the siege is not just on the nar-
rowly defined economic front. The siege has spilled over onto several other fronts
including labor relations, homeownership, education, politics and public policy,
health, crime, norms and culture and media. This two-volume set provides a com-
prehensive look at the American middle class that supports student research in eco-
nomics, social studies, cultural studies, and political history.
Further Reading
Adams, J. T. (1932). The epic of America. Boston: Little, Brown, and Company.
Biden, J. (2014, September 6). Time to give the middle class a chance. Weekly Address, The
White House. Retrieved December 9, 2015, from https://wwwwhitehouse . . gov / the - press
-office/2014/09/06/weekly-address-time-give-middle-class-chance
Novak, M. (2015, March 16). The “American Dream” was coined in 1931. Factually, retrieved
November 12, 2015, from http://factually.gizmodo.com/the-american-dream-was
-coined-in-1931-1689891647
Peterson, B. (1977, February 12). American Dream? Families find $15,000 a year won’t
buy American Dream; families struggle on $15,000 income. The Washington Post, First
Section, p. A1.
Samuel, L. R. (2012). The American Dream: A cultural history. Syracuse, NY: Syracuse Uni-
versity Press.
Samuelson, R. (1995). The good life and its discontents: The American Dream in the age of enti-
tlement, 1945–1995. New York: Times Books.
Robert S. Rycroft
