“A Nation On The Make” By Christopher H. Schmitt
Reaction Paper
The article “A Nation On The Make” talks about our nation’s beginnings and how it shaped the characteristics that we hold true today. The article first started off explaining a not so known historical event. The event involved Georgians fighting and demanding back the land the government had sold to four private companies. Towards the end, the author implies that may be this event created tension inherent in hustling. I am not quite sure that this event first portrays hustling but it gives the author more credibility because the author has a historical event backing him up. Besides this event the author talks about how Americans are always multitasking and are always hurrying along.
We are a nation of hustle, in a good sense, because we are willing to work hard and strive for better conditions. I believe this is Christopher H. Schmitt’s, the author, main point in this article; this is what he wants to get across. Schmitt even adds in statistics when he compares America with the world; specifically with French and Germany. He states that the workweek for French and German is 35 hours and that of an American is more than 40 hours. Americans work more because they want to get paid more thus improving the way they live. Also by Americans working more it contributes to the economy making the country in general better. Americans, usually, are more willing to work harder (hustle) and create a great nation; hence the title. The title was also derived from President Woodrow Wilson’s 1912 presidential campaign quote, “the man on the make [hustle].”
The main characteristic that the article focused on was hustle. Almost all, if not all Americans have this characteristic and when someone is asked to describe the type of everyday life of the American people they say busy. I believe this to be true mainly because I see have had the chance to see everyday life in other countries. For example, everyday...