America represents the "New World", where immigrants can do things they had thought beyond their capabilities. That's the reason why we find in here this great mix of backgrounds, and why America has been called the Melting Pot of cultures. A large part of American history involves the struggle of ethnic groups against the mainstream population in order to obtain respect and independence. Because the founding fathers were white males, many used to think that this should be the case with all citizens. In these days, with the varying backgrounds of American residents, this status can no longer be defined in terms of skin color.

Although all these different races are living in the same country, not all of them are united - only those who have been oppressed for centuries (blacks, Hispanics, Asians, etc.) are finding commonalties in their struggles, and these are the people who are redefining the standards. Sometimes is the minority itself who holds the country's belief system in high regard, while the "traditional" Americans take them for granted.

A person can have pride in his own culture and still respect and adapt parts of another. This is the essential principle behind America: holding on to one's own beliefs while learning and accepting others. A simple example of influence of the Melting Pot in this country are the Mexican and Chinese restaurants, which are found all over the nation. Many of the foreigners that have come to the United States have managed to keep their culture and even contribute to a common American one. One single group cannot define this nation; it is all the ethnic groups and their cultures combined that make this country so unique.

Some distinguishing features of the Americans is that they're always growing, expanding and developing new things, and the Frontier was a good illustration of that. I believe that the settling on the West brought the American people strength and innovation. The strength came from the travelers having to move right into an undeveloped land and do very hard labor in order to make it look like a settlement. The innovation came from thinking how they would settle an area and with what

Some common words found in the essay are:
Coast West, Melting Pot, Bill Rights, American Identity, Constitution Lines, Hispanics Asians, Mexican Chinese, Pot Frontier, Thomas Jefferson, Europe West, american identity, melting pot, east coast, political nation, abraham lincoln, thomas jefferson,
Approximate Word count = 1032
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)