Images of The California Dream in Music (Out-class-essay#1) with Reflections

Tsung Cheng Lin
Instructor : Brian Curran Lewis
English 1B
28 April 2010

The Reality of California Dream

What does dream mean to people? Having a dream can encourage people to do a better job. Dreams come from us. Like myself, I came here three years ago. My dream for now is to transfer to a good university. There are many people who immigrated to California in the hope to get a better life, a better job, a higher opportunity to get successful, a better education, etc. All the California dreams were started from the Gold Rush. In that period, many people came here to discover gold. Since that period California has become a dream place for most people. Kirse Granat May in his article “Suburban Eden,” states, “With that name, California held the promise of potential treasure and first entered the realm of fantasy” (9). Both the article “Suburban Eden,” written by Bruce Springsteen, and the song “Sinaloa Cowboys,” written by Kirse Granat May, talk about the California dream and its reality. In the article, May describes the California image in popular culture and suburban lives. In the song, Springsteen writes about an immigrant story that one brother, Miguel and Louis, came to California to find a better life. He indicates the reality of California dream that to get a better life or to pursue the California dream; we often have to lose something.

One of the points the author of the song wants to express is that many different races of people immigrate to California for many different dreams. The name of the song “Sinaloa Cowboys,” is one of example. Sinaloa is one of the 31 states of Mexico. Springsteen in his story of the song describes the brothers—Miguel and Louis from Mexico, coming to California to find a better life—to show that California is a dream land for Mexican. California contains many different races. Mexico is one of largest population in California. May claims, “The dream was simple: ‘that because of a place called California, life might be better” (9). People immigrate to California for better lives. May believes, “The Gold Rush reinforces the vision of California as a place where dreams came true” (9). In the Gold Rush time, many Chinese immigrated to San Francisco to discover gold. And May points out, “The war (World War II) brought 340,000 blacks to Los Angeles for industrial work and armed forces services, enormously increasing Southern California’s diversity” (11). There are also many blacks in California.

In addition, California is also a good living place for kids. Miguel and Louis came to California when they were young; Louis was just sixteen. The author wants to tell us that people immigrate to California in the young age. May writes, “In a 1945 Life article, one father voiced what thousands of others believed: ‘My kids have a better chance to be healthy here than anywhere else’” (21). Most parents believe that California life is good for kids. May asserts, “Popularized lifestyles of California kids intertwined with symbols of the good life” (22). People come to California for their kids. They want to have a good living standard for kids. May also answers of why California is a good place for kids, “As a result of outdoor activity and warm weather, young Californians bested their fellow Americans in health and energy” (24). California has warm sunshine and many beaches. May shows an issue of cosmopolitan, “In California, the boys and girls grows grow bigger and more beautiful. They are longer of leg, deeper of chest, better muscled than other American youngsters. Even their feet are bigger” (24). California kids are healthier comparing with other states because California is a perfect place for growing up; its sunshine and beaches.

Not only is California a good living for kids, but also it is a symbol of high opportunity and success. Miguel and Louis came to California to find a job in San Joaquin that author shows the California dream of the high opportunity and success. In the article “California A place, a People, a Dream,” James J Rawls states, “Opportunity and success—these promises are at the heart of the California Dream” (23). Starting from the Golf Rush, for most people California means money. May says, “For newcomers, it was still the land of second chance, glowing with opportunity amidst sunshine” (9). It’s still a dream land for new immigrants. May writes, “The Los Angeles Times reported in December 1945 that news of western job growth was spreading ‘like the story of the discovery of gold…luring hopeful men whose dreams are spun of golden opportunity” (12). More and more people believe that California is a place to earn money and to succeed.

Although those promises of the California dreams are shown, the difficult realities must be acknowledged. The brothers in the story immigrated here when they were young to find work indicates that they need to lose time to play and stay with their family in order to be successful. Their father had told them, “My sons one thing you will learn for everything the north gives it exacts a price in return.” They left their home and family early. To be successful, we often have to give up something.

Another aspect is that immigrants often have to work hard in the hope to be successful. Miguel and Louis work in the orchards; doing the work that most people wouldn’t do that shows the difficulty of immigrant dream. Immigrants often need to do a low position job; in California there are many Mexican works as a labor to do the hard working jobs—washing dishes, washing cars, washing toilets, etc.

Continuing, getting a higher chance to be successful, we often need to pay a higher risk. In the story, the brothers start making methamphetamine to earn more money instead of picking fruit even though it can hurt them, “But if you slipped the hydriodic acid could burn right through your skin” (Springsteen). This indicates that the higher profit or effort is the higher risk or more dangerous work people need to pay. Coming to California is not easy; the living is expensive. May thinks, “Millions shared the dream of a ‘palm-shaded ‘pad’ with a patio, ten dollars down, 100 years to pay…lotus land on the installment plan’” (19). To pursue California dream, we need to pay higher living expense first. If we don’t have money to pay, we’ll fail the dream.

Finally, the misunderstanding of California dream with its reality often makes some tragedies and failures. May claims, “Those migrants, ‘largely from the hillbilly sections of the country,’ swayed by the inundation of positive images, had seemingly ignored the problems of crime, smog, and strangeness that were paramount in the critical view of California life” (17). The image of the California dream often comes from TV, magazine, newspaper, etc. The media often just show the positive side of the California but ignore the reality of the California life. May asserts, “They received guidance in that task from magazine writers, public relations experts, and boosters who downplayed the state’s difficulties and stressed its advantages and attractions” (15). The media often mislead the dream of California. People came here in the high expectation of the dream, but it often fails making people disappointment. When people have a very high expectation to do something, once they fail, they disappoint more. Rawls writes, “Wide publicity is given to the state’s rate of alcoholism, drug abuse, and suicide—clear evidence that California is now the land of failed dreams and broken promises” (27). The high expectation will cause tragedies: suicide and crime. In the end of the story of the song, their father’s warning has come true in an ending of tragedy. Louis died because of the explosion of making drugs. Miguel Rosales took his brother north and exchanged his life for ten thousand dollars. To gain something, we often have to lose something.