Exploring The Spirit Of The United States And Its Influence On The United States Society

Like all other civilizations,American civilization,a form of civilization created in the particular natural and historical conditions with young property as its most probable characteristic,has a history of no more than three hundred years.But it is not an aboriginal civilization,built up by experienced European immigrants with their own ideas on the New land.Looking back on the no more than three-hundred-year history of America,we can see several noteworthy traditions.First,America is a plural and open society of races coming from five continents.For several centuries America has been accepting people from all over the world with continuous convergence of races and cultures here.So we can say that American civilization is a young one.In such a plural and complex society,people must learn to live together peacefully and considerately with an open mindSecond,although without a common concept,the American people hold a universally accepted idea,ie,a liberalism-centered Value system,Freedom not only needs to be struggled for,but also secured.Individualally,the American people think that property is a guarantee of life and freedom,economical freedom is in dispensable to political freedom and personal property can't be infringed on in their minds Socially, freedom must depend on laws and social development needs universally accepted and just rules.In light of the Christian judgment of the human race's evil nature and original sin,America keeps remarkably alert to the power when making constitution and laws trying to avoid expansive corruption of the public power and the infringement of the citizens' interestsThe feudalism has never existed in America,with least remains of feudal hierarchy.The American people crave for a born ideal,especially the equality of opportunity.They intend to regard the equality between individuals as one between sovereign states.The American people are sociable But they first advocate individualism respecting the creativity and hard work of individuals.The whole society demand everyone to develop their potential to the greatest extent.Because the concept of equality has been deeply rooted in people's minds,the American society is developing towards populism-the popular politics,consumption and culture The populace keep the vigor and enthusiasm of participating in social activitiesThe process of American history has the tradition of peaceful improvement,a self-correcting ability following the social trends.Whenever Social abuses come,there will be an open and nation-wide debate with completely different view points expressed fully.The tradition of peaceful reform embodies the pragmatism of the American people believing a gradual improvement other than good for all solving project.They regard the truth as the effective assumption and the effects of actions as its testing standardsThe paper is designed to explore the nature of American national spirit from three aspects:Pragmatism,Liberalism,Individualism.These spirits have been not only the result of gradual development in politics,econimics,culture,society,ethics and so on since the founding of American nationality,but also the origin of its survival and development,which have been playing a great role during the process of American founding,development and rising.