Capitalism as the basis for the main values in American Society

Liberalism is a political system based on a major concept from which the whole theory derives: freedom. The United States has always self proclaimed as the main role model of capitalism in all aspects, including the economic side of it, capitalism. The institution of this system has led to setting its main values and has been the main cause of what modern American society is based on. The basic framework which sustains this society can be identified with three concepts, from which many others can be deducted: materialism, individualism and competitiveness.

Capitalism inevitably goes with industrialization which, added to the free balance of supply and demand, has led to the creation of a competitive environment in which industrialized products have to compete to be more in demand. The over production and the constant technological advances have resulted in a fast and uncontrollable race. Competitiveness among people exists as a result of the growing capitalistic race that started as an economic phenomenon and has transferred to society as a way of living. Nowadays, most Americans are ambitious in the sense of seeking for better facilities, opportunities and material goods: a bigger house, the newest car, the latest technology, or a higher job position. Competitiveness can be clearly seen, for example, in the academic environment; it is a fact that most high school students in the US compete with their classmates to get the best grades and SAT scores so as to get to a good college, where scholarships are limited to a small privileged part of the applicants, in some cases less than 10% of them.

The constant competitiveness in which people live immersed leads to a big appreciation for time. As part of the consumer society, Americans tend to measure time with production, that is as a direct comparison between time and how much someone can produce in that period of time. Competitiveness provokes this characteristic of the US society, based on the concept that time is advantage, so better use of time means being ahead of the other “contestants” in the race.

The second main concept to be analyzed is individualism. This derives directly from capitalism’s base: freedom. The value of freedom and independence is basic for every American. Most of them tend to think of themselves more as individuals than as a part of closed groups. Many Americans usually feel less attached to family, friends, classmates etc. than in many other countries. This individualistic conception that exists among most Americans can be clearly seen in the popular model of the typical American Family. Children are usually more independent and self sufficient than in other cultures. They are taught by their parents to be independent and self-reliant, and as a consequence, to be more responsible for their own actions. It is a common custom to let teenagers move out to college when they finish high school, and let them decide for themselves in which part of the country they want to study. Individualism can also be related to competitiveness, since the fact that this appreciation for being individuals among people exists, most Americans feel comfortable with the idea of openly trying to be better than the others.

As a result of individualism, privacy can also be considered an important value for many people in the US. This also derives from another main idea that capitalism promotes, and that is the existence of private property. People that live in the United States tend to be very respectful towards others’ personal space. For example, mail and packages that are delivered into someone’s’ house are usually left on people’s doors, and no one even thinks of going into someone else’s yard and touching the package. A general belief among many Americans is that everybody needs their time for themselves and their personal space to relax and keep their belongings. Individualism goes closely connected with privacy, since, on the contrary of many other cultures, many people do not feel the need of constantly sharing with others.

The last main concept characterized as an American value is materialism. Most people in the US have a deep attachment to material goods. Since the US is a deeply industrialized country, citizens have developed an inevitable result: the ultimate consumer society. Most Americans live surrounded by a constant flow of new and innovative products that are advertized everywhere creating the need in people for something that serves as pleasure.

Capitalism can be considered the basis of what the modern American society is. This economic system has led to the setting of what the American society stands for nowadays. Whether it is materialism, individualism or competitiveness, people that live in the US have very defined principles that can be considered a perfect match with the system they live in.