The Great American Speech: Words and Monuments

Everyone knows the great American Dream: that America is the land of free enterprise, offering men and women without inherited advantages the chance to get ahead through hard work and self-reliance. Yet The Great American Speech offers an alternative vision, one enshrined in the country’s most memorable speeches, which have become monuments in its national memory and literally in the nation’s capital. This other American dream is not about competition or getting ahead, but instead argues for equality and cooperation, echoing the country’s founding documents. The Great American Speech is a contemplative and fascinating look at a hidden strand of American national identity.