The American Dream: Individualism and Inequality.

Using interview data with 246 U.S. born whites from three areas of the country, this paper explores the attitudes of white Americans toward inequality by looking at the explanations they give for how people get ahead in the world and how they view the circumstances of their own lives. In addition, using survey data from the interviewees, the paper examines how their political perspective and social position affects their views of egalitarianism and individualism, their view of the role of govement in mitigating inequality, and their views of whether people who are rich earn what they get out of life. The paper concludes with a discussion about the implications of the pervasive assumption that life outcomes are the result of character and motivation rather than structural factors. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]