The Great American Melting Pot

What exactly is American culture? Well, American culture is not necessarily definable, it consists of many other cultural influences. This answer prompts other questions, three of which are: why is American culture not necessarily definable? How does American culture consist of many other cultural influences? Why does American culture consist of many different cultural influences? These three intriguing questions will be answered in this installment of “What is American culture?”

Why is American culture not necessarily definable? Saying American culture is not necessarily definable seems very negative, yet it is the truth. American culture truly consists of many cultural influences. Many things that are considered “American” actually originated in foreign countries. The hotdog for example, originating in Germany, is considered an American food even though it is not from the United States. It was first introduced in the U.S. around the 1860s by German immigrants. These German immigrants came to America in search of freedom, political as well as religious, and economic opportunities. Freedom is often connected with American culture, but it does not define it. America, by giving these opportunities of freedom, attracted many people groups, each one eventually helping form the modern America and its culture.

Thus the “American” culture isn’t exactly American. It consists of many other cultural influences that make it what it is.

How does American culture consist of many other cultural influences? This is an interesting question. It insinuates that everything that is so called “American” may not truly be American. Pizza can be considered American despite the fact that it’s Italian. It is a staple of the American culture that is not originally from America. There were singers that defined American music that were actually Italian: Dean Martin, Perry Como, and Frank Sinatra, to name a few. The African-American culture has also integrated itself into music and sports. It can be seen clearly in basketball where the black players brought in their streetball and showmanship type play, completely changing the game forever.

Why does American culture consist of many different cultural influences? The freedom and chance for a new being that America offers has attracted immigrants from all over the globe. These immigrants brought along parts of their culture. The California gold rush in the 1840s brought together the entirety of the known world. Settlers from many different countries sold everything they owned and came to California in search of gold. Some succeeded and settled down to start their new life. Their