The Pursuit Of The American Identity Essay - 2170 Words

Although through the trial and hardships, from 1492 to 1877 the core of the American identity, the frontier had a constant presence through the years, but through the founding of Jamestown and Plymouth, the American Revolution, Declaration of Independence, Benjamin Franklin’s virtues, letters, Abolitionist, such as William Garrison, Fredrick Douglas, and the civil war, the definition of American identity as the ‘frontier’, grew and developed into something that defines what it means to be an American. The American identity started to develop in 1492 when Columbus set sail west under Spanish authority to find a new, faster route to Asia, the indies, where the riches of gold, pearls, and spice awaited. He ended up founding a vast new land full of opportunity. In April 26, 1607, three small ships carrying colonists from England settled out of Cape Henry, in a small town they soon called Jamestown, as an opportunity for a new life. The first settlers who arrived on the east coast in the 17th century acted and thought like Europeans. They adapted to the new physical, economic, and political environment in certain ways eventually, as they became their own. The land quickly turned out to be unfriendly, brutal, and unforgiving, with harsh winters and intense heat that had taken a toll on the unprepared colonists and settlers by surprise, causing the death of most of the original population. But through the determination of building a successful settlement in the new worldShow MoreRelatedEasy Rider: a Pursuit of American Identity1359 Words   |  6 PagesEasy Rider: An Epic journey into the unknown For the American dream Easy Rider is the late 1960s road film tale of a search for freedom (or the illusion of freedom) and an identity in America, in the midst of paranoia, bigotry and violence. 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