Signs of American Life (McDonald's Restaurants) - Essay Example

& Number: Signs of American Life (McDonald's Restaurants) 10 October (word count 023) Introduction American society is characterized by a can-do spirit. Back then and even now, this is a country that was once a land of opportunity and Americans rightly and correctly believed it is up to them to improve their lot and attain the American Dream only if they try hard enough. As a land of opportunity, people are free to pursue their dreams and this has driven most of all Americans to value their time and work hard to achieve their individual dreams of prosperity. America can be considered as a frenetic society in which people are always in a hurry to get to work, hurry to get home and relax, hurry to enjoy vacations and then hurry back to work. It seems like a never-ending treadmill exercise but that seems to get them nowhere. It is indeed a fast-paced society in which slower individuals can get left behind; the fastest is the winner. This paper discusses an icon in American business that best epitomizes this activity. McDonald's Restaurants had existed long before there were any other fast-food chains in the country. McDonald's captures a very essence of what American life is, fast paced and always on the go; this is characterized by its advertisements of being fast and clean, the very symbols of efficiency. Service is fast and people can expect to be served within a set time in minutes; it is also shown by the drive-thru window for people to order something and then go on to work. Arguably perhaps more than any other brand, the Golden Arches sign symbolized what life in America is all about as it shows and captures how Americans live their life in the way they eat their breakfast or grab something to bite at any time of the day. Its mission statement is to be the best quick-service restaurant as encapsulated in its four key words which are cleanliness, quality, service and value (for money) but it is most famous for its quick, efficient service. Discussion A country's culture can be judged by many things, such as its language, films, drama, literature and of course, its cuisine. Although there are many regional variations of its cuisine, the single most visible form of American culture as exemplified by its cuisine is its fast foods. Fast food service restaurants are invented in America and McDonald's is its foremost example that combines the can-do spirit, its stringent individualistic attitudes towards life in general; a hurried pace of life, such that even eating is hurried and harried. In old Europe, eating is done in a leisurely manner as shown in its fine dining establishments but in America, it is different. A general mood is do things quickly in order to achieve material things in life and get ahead. Alexis de Tocqueville hit it on the right spot to have observed this restlessness in Americans; a general tendency to acquire material things that lead to disillusionment, disquiet, unhappiness and an unstated feeling of getting left behind by the faster, next fellow (Tocqueville 1). Long before the term “keeping up with the Joneses” was coined or invented, Alexis de Tocqueville had already put it succinctly what one single trait to describe the Americans. In his statement, “it is strange to see with what feverish ardor the Americans pursue their own welfare; and to watch the vague dread that constantly torments them lest they should not have chosen the shortest path which may lead to it” in which an observer gets the impression most Americans are always outdoing each other, not wasting even a single moment by eating fast. Instant coffee, instant meals and instant gratification are exemplified by McDonald's Restaurants in which a customer can order a quick bite and have it within a matter of minutes. McDonald's has been immensely successful because it catered to this American trait of having everything at once, not a minute longer than necessary. People who are always on the go who need a quick bite can hop into any McDonald's outlet and expect to be served very quickly. The values embedded in McDonald's advertisements are efficiency and value but it is a bit more complicated than that in the sense people lose sight of being more friendly or take time to get to know each other more. Everything has become so impersonal no one seems to give any thought about how other people are doing except compare themselves against them. One advantage of this constant hurrying is that Americans now rely more on the Internet when they want to get in touch with another person (whether in the next city or in the next country); this is one reason why the U. S. Postal Service is losing money as fewer people send mails. A downside or disadvantage of this instant communications is that ironically, people seem more isolated than ever before and it had lead to younger generations being more assertive, tolerant and confident but at the same time (conversely) more anxious, isolated, depressed and lonely; the me-generation is combined with a fast-paced life (Twenge 27). American life is marked by a high degree of competitiveness, that is competition for the available jobs, school admissions or the next big opportunity in business or how to make money fast and quick. Conclusion This constant worry about not getting left behind is what prods Americans to do what other people also do. It makes them susceptible to marketing advertisements and gimmicks so that they can get ahead in their place of work as exemplified by the new tack of marketers to also sell formerly purely feminine products to the male gender by fostering a sense of vanity (Washington Monthly Company 1) and also a sense of insecurity among these American men. American big business is exemplified by such global brands like Coke, Pepsi, Colgate, Nike, Kodak but nothing is considered as more American than McDonald's that also typifies a usual American lifestyle that is fast-paced service based on experience, efficiency and excellence. A vast network of 30,000 outlets in 119 countries serves 50 million customers daily. Works Cited Tocqueville, Alexis De. “Why the Americans are so Restless in the Midst of their Prosperity.” Democracy in America. Ed. John C. Willis. New York, NY, USA: Alfred A. Knopf, 1945. 136-139. Print. Also available at the University of the South, Sewanee, Tennessee. Web. 08 Oct. 2011. Twenge, Jean M. Generation Me: Why Today's Young Americans are more Confident, Assertive, Entitled – and More Miserable than ever Before. New York, NY, USA: Simon & Schuster, Inc. 2006. Print. Washington Monthly Company. “Turning Boys into Girls.” The Gale Group. 1998. Web. 08 Oct. 2011. Read More