"It is not the consciousness of men that determines their being, but, on the contrary, their social being which determines their consciousness" I thought about the ideology of the American Dream when reading this quote. When you are born there are certain situations that you are born into that are out of your control- ultimately affecting how far and what experiences you will have in life. If you have a positive social atmosphere growing up, your experiences will be completely different and your potential future will and can be determined. In this case, the commentary above agrees with the quote that your social being- who you are developed from experiences and life chances determine who you are. The conscious is developed from prior experiences. An online definition of conscious is Having an awareness of one's environment and one's own existence, sensations, and thoughts. These sensations, and thoughts differ from person to person and sensations change as well from person to person- therefore it is your personal experience with an event or sensation that determines how you will think about the situation or experience.