The American nation was formed not so long ago, but already has quite pronounced features, its own way of thinking, worldview. Each nation has many small distinctive features, and they vary depending on time, territory of residence and religious beliefs. But there are common features that form the basis of the life of the nation, their system of values and social attitudes.
The formation of Americans as a nation began with the migration of various population groups from the Old World. This provides a starting point for understanding the American mentality. Not every person is able to give up everything and go to explore new lands. Such a person should be decisive, assertive, enterprising and inclined to adventures.
This has become the basis of the American mentality and characterizes the main features of North American society. One of the main features of Americans can be called pragmatism. In the USA, such concepts as status, social status, income level are very important. Moral qualities will also be evaluated, but to a lesser extent and not in the first place.
Another characteristic feature of US residents can be considered a total desire to organize, classify and categorize any concepts around the world. This follows from the history of the formation of the American nation itself, its multi-ethnicity. The New World was formed from citizens of various countries. All of them had their own laws, traditions and customs. Without a clear structuring of the concepts of an emerging nation, it was impossible to coexist on one territory. Hence the strict regulation of any social activity.
A common feature for North Americans and an expression of their mentality is patriotism. This feeling is quite justified, since the period of the struggle for political independence in America ended not so long ago. This event brought together North Americans. The victory in the war with Great Britain brought pride in the American society for its nation.
One of the main features of the American mentality was the principle of self made man - a man who made himself. The character of such a person is reflected in the works of famous American writers such as T. Dreiser, A. Haley and others. The image of a person who started from scratch and made his position in society with his own hands is very popular in American cinema.
