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he American continent. At their arriving, the environment for survival was a crucible. So the prudential virtues emphasized by the Puritans and Quaker’s repeated injunctions against waste, extravagance and ostentatious varieties were conductive to material prosperity, and the dignity of labor and the virtue of diligent application to one’s job received greatest prominence. Through their hard working and great effort, they became a dominant influence in the English colonies. “Puritanism may perhaps best is described as that point of view, that philosophy of life, that code of values, which was carried to New England by the first settlers in the early seventeenth century.”(Annette,1980,P258) Thus, it became one of the continuous factors in American life and American thought. Any inventory of elements that had gone into the making of the American mind would have to commence with Puritanism. Including such feature as sobriety, diligence and equal rights self—government and liberty, the puritans` faith had cultivated so many famous figures in its history and promoted them to the quintessential point. It was the faith that facilitated the way of self-reliance. Fortified of these principles, them migrated to Philadelphia to begin their career first in the printing trade and eventually became a leading citizen there. There is a example, that is a story of his upward climb became an American folklore of success. Though a poor boy at the beginning, he made great success eventually. The rise of Franklin to a man of consequence became an inspiration to young men who aspired to great.(Tang Soo Ping,1980) An American Tragedy was a profound work of the criticism the American Dream. American Dream had come into being for a long time, at the beginning of American founding; many persons believed that every one could get chance of happiness in traditional class’s new country. Since Puritanism could help so many poor puritans to survive and succeed in practicing the doctrines. Puritans lay out; it would be inevitably admired and obeyed by people who wanted to be self-made, greatness and success. And self-made, great and successful should be the main idea of the American dream. Coming into 20th century, the industry achieved very great success, and the goods were produced in mass. The content of American dream had a little changed. Although the dream of greatness, wealth and success had not changed yet, the desire of consuming as much as possible had taken place of the sobriety. The young generation paid more attention to the practice and the comfortable even luxurious material life, while more neglecting the traditional virtue and dogma than the generation of their parents did. The consuming culture and the hedonism prevailed over the whole American in the 20th century. In such surrounding, lead by these ideas, the young generation could not help pursuit money, rich material life and the sex. The desire for money and success can be seen everywhere in American Tragedy. The most of guiltless tragedy person was Roberta; the most typical is Clyde Griffiths. To fulfill his desire for beautiful clothes, sex and material life, Clyde left his family to work in Green-Davidson, went to his uncle's factory, pursued Hotense, Roberta and Sondra. It was the tempt desire for Sondra and her wealth that made Clyde want to kill Roberta to avoid marrying her. It was the same to Roberta. Forced by the yearning for the wealth to improve her status, Roberta left her famil