What does American mean to you?

In our textbook, Gary Q. Arpin notes that as soon as European explorers visited America in the 1400's and 1500's, they began to write back to Europe about how great this unexplored new world was. Arpin writes, "Hoping to fund further expeditions, the explorers emphasized the Americas' abundant resources, the peacefulness and hospitality of the inhabitants, and the promise of the unlimited wealth to be gained from fantastic treasuries of gold" (6, italics added). In order to get the money they needed these explorers painted a rosy version of America that captured the imagination of Europe. Writers like Spenser, Montaigne, and Shakespeare were influenced by the idea of this Utopian continent.

The trend of seeing America in an idealized light has continued in full force ever since. When John Smith (think Pocahontas) wrote the first book on American soil, he romanticized America and the noble and teachable savage. The Puritan settlers saw their society as a city on a hill that the rest of the world could look at as a shining example.

How do we see America today? Do we idealize our country? Is our strong sense of national pride a good or a bad thing? What does it mean to be an American?