St. John Crevecoeur was a writer of the French ascent, who came to America, and his experiences in the continent made him to develop an ideology of what a perfect society should be composed of, during times of war and times of peace (St, John 52). According to St. John Crevecoeur, a true American should be in a position to welcome new cultures, integrate the new cultures, in a way to enhance future prosperity (St, John 49). The two images named ‘preparing for market’ are used to illustrate families are going out to sell their produce, and the diversity that the families have overcome in a bid to start new lives in America.
Additionally, the images are based on the ideology of Crevecoeur, of what a true American should represent. Furthermore, the image illustrations in the two images are aimed at communicating to potential immigrants from Europe and other parts of the world, of the conducive environment that America and Americans can offer. Integration is done without necessary victimization or discrimination as Crevecoeur popularly says, ‘Here man is free as he ought to be; nor is this pleasing equality so transitory as many other are. (St, John 61). For instance, in the first image of preparing for market, the family has a lot of agricultural produce from orchids and farms, that they have been able to produce, and thus are in a position to take out the surplus for sale.
Apparently, during the ages that Crevecoeur toured America in the search for a good fortune and life, he discovered that unlike other parts of the world, America was in a position to comfortably integrate immigrants from other continents. Apparently, the immigrants would find comfort in living, production, and successful integration into the native community (St, John 58). Moreover, the fresh produce that the families in both images are loading onto their horse carriage shows that the environment for reducing farm produce was conducive, with less or no conflicts, which according to Crevecoeur, is the true representation of a true American, free from wars and conflicts (St, John 51).
Furthermore, the images show that the family of four in the foreground, has the potential to grow, as the representation of a child at the doorstep depicts that immigrants too have the freedom to multiply their numbers, and also interact with other native inhabitants of the continent, in a harmonious way. The true American is represented by the ability to integrate two or more culture into on, without the necessary arousal of hate or racism (St, John 71).
Moreover, the two images represent the right kind of people, who can interact and live peacefully with their neighbors, who seem to be a native accent, but the natives have let the immigrants share their prosperity, and fertile land, to produce a wide array of both crops and animals. The essence of welcoming immigrants into their livelihood also depicts a good manifestation of cultural diversity, which has been harmonized by the peaceful and considerate nature of a true American (St, John, Ralph, and Williams 56). If the immigrants are in a position to live harmoniously with people of different cultures, and successfully cultivate their land, keep livestock without the hostile interference of their neighbors, then the aspects of religious freedom, culture among other social opportunities are well portrayed in the true nature of an American.
Houses in which the families in the foreground live are made of a different architectural design, from the houses in the background. Therefore, the ordeal depicts a wide rift between the practices of the new settler, and also the native settlers. Differences in cultural practices, architectural designs can be harmonized, since the essence of creativity and adoption depicts the hardworking nature of an American, which can be passed down to immigrants, and thus benefit from the hard work instilled in them (St, John, Ralph, and Williams 59). According to Crevecoeur, integration of culture, hard work, and new ideas is the key emblem that Americans are so innovative and hardworking that the distribution of wealth amongst them seems to be equal. However, bad norms must exist in the society as some individuals take advantage of the welfare of others to enrich themselves, but the misfortune occurs in rare cases in America (St, John, Ralph, and Williams 86).
The ideology of what an American is depicted in the two images in the sense that, none of the families show the existence of extreme poverty or the existence of extreme wealth. The idea shows that Americans greatly consider the equal welfare of all individuals, and also the economic welfare of all families should be in a position to comfortably sustain themselves, without necessary servitude. ‘We have no princes, for whom we toil, starve, and bleed: we are the most perfect society now existing in the world’ (St, John, Ralph, and Williams 88).
. Cultural, social and economic integration of the images is also portrayed by the type of livestock that is kept by the family in the foreground, and the family in the background. Thus, the images depict that America can offer vast possibilities of life, even to a point of introducing new livelihoods, livestock and other practices not native to the American way of life (St, John 56). Furthermore, the images show that the families have unlimited opportunity to enhance their lives in the ways they deem fit, and even become wealthy beyond their expectations.
However, the two images on preparing for market do not portray the same situation or the same message, and thus, the difference would have made Crevecoeur to opt for one image, and shun the other. For example, the second picture, named fine art America, where the family of four has a small baby standing by the door, would have practically been chosen by Crevecoeur since it depicts a complete and genuine nature of an American, which could attract more immigrants from Europe (St, John, Ralph, and Williams 86). The presence of a child shows that the community around the immigrants does not confine the freedom of immigrants to multiplying their society. Freedom ordained to immigrants is an actual manifestation of cooperation, because if the Native American were able to grant equal opportunities to immigrants, then nothing was impossible to achieve, both economically and socially (St, John, Ralph, and Williams 86). Therefore, Crevecoeur would choose the second image, which is a realistic depiction of an American.
Works Cited
St, John C. J. H, Henri L. Bourdin, Ralph H. Gabriel, and Stanley T. Williams. Sketches of Eighteenth Century America: More "Letters from an American Farmer". New Haven: Yale University Press, 1925. Print.
St, John C. J. H. Letters from an American Farmer: Describing Certain Provincial Situations, Manners, and Customs, Not Generally Known; by J. Hector St. John. Dublin: Printed by John Exshaw, 1782. Print.
