Please remember that contradictions often exist within U.S. values. The history of
the United States is replete with examples of discrimination based on skin color, eth-
nicity, gender, level of education, social class, sexual preference, and even choice of
religion. Unfortunately, today, some people continue to employ these criteria to eval-
uate others. While she acknowledges that many Americans have experienced periods
of inequality, Hanson points out,“Not all citizens have had equal rights throughout
the course of the country’s history, but Americans nevertheless value the notion
highly and strive toward this ideal.”^21Individuality and Privacy
Oftenreferredtoas“freedom”by U.S. Americans,^22 individualism is perhaps the
most revered U.S. cultural value and is a particularly salient social characteristic.
Broadly speaking, individualism, as developed in the works of the seventeenth-
century English philosopher John Locke, holds that each person is unique, special,
completely different from all other individuals, and“the basic unit of nature.”^23
Locke’sviewissimple—the interests of the individual are or ought to be para-
mount, and all values, rights, and duties originate in individuals. Individualism
commands so much influence among Americans that it gives rise to other U.S.
values, such as personal initiative,self-reliance, and equal opportunity.
The emphasis on the individual is also
found elsewhere in the world, but it has
emerged as the cornerstone of U.S. cul-
ture. The origin of this value has a long
history. As mentioned in the discussionIn many cultures
conformity, rather
than individuality, is
an important value.REMEMBER THIS
Freedom is the most revered value in the United States.Courtesy of Edwin McDanielKohls’“The Values Americans Live By” 209Copyright 2017 Cengage Learning. All Rights Reserved. May not be copied, scanned, or duplicated, in whole or in part. Due to electronic rights, some third party content may be suppressed from the eBook and/or eChapter(s).