Essay Example on What first comes to mind when hearing the phrase American Dream

The Eagles were no strangers to the use of drugs Under the stress of fame and the spotlight of Hollywood guitarist Joe Walsh of the Eagles stated that he became an alcoholic and dependent on drugs Simmons A lot of the lyrics in the song Hotel California allude to this assumption The lyric You can check out any time you like But you can never leave can be viewed as an ode to addiction This line encompasses how many feel as if they are slaves to drugs Another line that implies the song relates to addiction is Some dance to remember Some dance to forget This lyric embodies the use of drugs and alcohol and how many abuse the substances in order to forget the pain they are feeling Celebrities often fall to addiction and through this song the Eagles represent an important part of the darker side of fame and fortune in America Though addiction is a common misconception of the meaning behind Hotel California the true meaning has to do with the American dream According to member Don Henley of the Eagles the song was a metaphor for the myth of the American Dream and a symbolic piece about America in general which is a land of excess The Eagles 1 People tend to make preconceived assumptions about life in California expecting it to be better than reality Henley s perspective on the song helps support the point of the dark side of the American dream The song starts with the main character finding a hotel which seems appealing at first a so called lovely place As time goes on the hotel turns out to be different than what it seems Lyrics like they just can't kill the beast and we are all just prisoners here show this theme Hotel California The events that occur in this song provide a parallel to those who come to America with the desire to be happy when fame turns out not to be what it appears 

With money and substances to abuse at their fingertips many fall to addiction and depression Multiple other songs by the Eagles also encompass this popular misconception about American life One song In the City describes life as survival in the city The piece paints a picture of California and America overall The short song describes the harshness of the real world and how life ain't very pretty Another piece King of Hollywood shows American ideals and assumptions The song is a story of a man trying to bring fame and fortune to a young woman saying We gon get you an apartment honey We gon get you a car We gon make you a movie star Eagles King The song suggests that having a lot of money and material items help you achieve the American dream To support this premise Ned Smith states The country is moving away from traditional notions of the ideal life toward one focused on making and spending money and winning recognition Smith This quote gives us an idea of how most people living in America view the purpose of life and King of Hollywood supports this Yet the song ends with nothing was pretty and the man just isn't big enough The moral of this song is that fame and fortune don't necessarily bring happiness which relates to the harsh reality of American culture and the dark underside of the dream In conclusion the Eagles and their music represent American culture because within their works they reveal the reality of life in Hollywood As we can see from their lyrics the band fell to the use of substances having to face addiction and hardships This point in their lives influenced much of their music some of their works glorifying the lifestyle some rebuking it With the combination of excess disagreements and overall life in Hollywood the Eagles eventually split Though they stopped creating this type of music we can still look back on their works and learn more about life and the grim reality of American culture So once again when hearing the phrase American dream what comes to mind