American Creed

4 min read3 days ago

How symbols, teamwork, and words help explain and define the American Creed.

Introduction

The American Creed film discusses stories of people from very different backgrounds but ties them all together with how they all strive for the American dream. Everyone has a different story, but the film brings to light the common ground between them. The film American Creed uses keywords and symbols to help enhance and explain what the American Creed is and what it should stand for.

Key Words

Throughout the film production, certain keywords are repeated to help express what the American Creed is and what the American Dream should stand for. For example, opportunity, freedom, nation, and equality were all used multiple times throughout the film. To start with, the Cambridge Dictionary defines opportunity as “an occasion or situation that makes it possible to do something that you want to do or have to do”. The American Dream is all about opportunity. People from other countries come to America because they believe America gives them a better opportunity to become great or to create better lives for their children. Many people know that they may not become successful, however, they come to America anyway because they are given opportunities to better their lives that they were not given in their country.

Another word that was brought up several times was freedom. In America, we have the freedom to speak freely and have our own ideas and opinions. As mentioned in the film, in other countries, people cannot speak up without the fear of being picked up by police. By moving to America, immigrants are allowed to discuss their ideas freely. In America, people are free to speak, think, and act as they see fit, as long as it does not lead to personal injury of another person. The idea of freedom is what drives many people to America.

The last two words that were referenced quite frequently in the film were nation and equality. As defined by the Oxford Dictionary, a nation is “a large body of people united by common descent, history, culture, or language, inhabiting a particular country or territory”. The video references the word nation to help emphasize that everyone in America is a part of one nation. They are together, and they live in America because they have the same core values and they want the opportunities that America could give them, that many other countries could not. However, this can also be contradicted by the word equality.

Many people in America are fighting for equality. In the Declaration of Independence, it is said that all men are created equal, however, many people were and are not treated as such. Today, racial inequality still exists, just not at the level that it was in previous times with slavery. Additionally, there are other forms of inequality such as economic and technological inequality. In certain areas of America, people do not have equal opportunities, which means the fight for equality must continue. The notion of equality has been a dividing but also connecting factor in America.

Symbols

The film “American Creed” also uses many symbols to help explain what the American Creed is and what it should stand for. For example, the film uses schools, the military, and baseball teams as a way to express that even though people come from different backgrounds, they can work together for the same ultimate goal.

At the beginning of the film, education, and schooling was a main factor in the American Creed. The film explained that getting a good education was crucial in being able to gain opportunities that would help better people’s lives. They also use schools as a way to show that people from different backgrounds can coexist in the same area and help each other to succeed.

The same could be said for the baseball teams that were consistently shown throughout the film. Baseball is a team sport. One cannot depend on a singular player to win the game for them. In baseball, the team is only as strong as its weakest player. This means that even though the players come from different backgrounds, they all have one ultimate goal, to win the game. Each player needs to help each other so that the team can be the best it can be. This idea can also be applied to America as a nation. People cannot depend on one person to change the nation. A great amount of people have to come together so that they can improve each other’s lives, and progress the nation as well.

The military is also a symbol of the American Creed. The military is shown with the consistent use of uniforms and soldiers throughout the film. America would not have the freedoms and opportunities it has without its military. People in the military are also a symbol of connectedness, as soldiers have to trust and lean on each other to get them through difficult times and to protect the nation. This symbol of connectedness can be applied to the nation as a whole. The people of America need to be able to find a common ground to fight for that also brings everyone together.