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Rise And Fall Of The Great Gatsby Essay

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The Rise and Fall of Gatsby In The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Gatsby’s hold of the past and his pursuance of his own American Dream ends in certain death. Throughout the story, Gatsby believes that his passion can sway Daisy to leave Tom. These events lead him to relentlessly chase wealth in order to gain social status that is worthy of Daisy. However, the story does not end according to Gatsby’s ideals. Fitzgerald utilizes symbolism to demonstrate Gatsby’s tragic flaw, his chasing of a dream that is already dead. When Gatsby first meets Daisy, he pretends to be rich in order to court her. However, when he departs for the war, Daisy marries Tom. Despite this, Gatsby holds onto the belief that Daisy still loves him and not Tom. In response to Nick’s doubt regarding his ability to erase the past five years, he proclaims “Can’t repeat the past?... Why of course you can!” (110). However, while he is talking to Daisy, he knocks over a defunct clock, which symbolizes Gatsby’s desire to stop and reverse time. By knocking the clock over, Fitzgerald implies that Gatsby is not immune to the passage of time and his plan will not work. Later, it is shown that Daisy is unable to say that she has never loved Tom. Furthermore, the green light at the end of Daisy’s dock symbolizes Gatsby’s dream to be with Daisy. Nick himself remarks on the …show more content…

In the beginning, a hearse passes Gatsby’s extravagant car. Just as Gatsby’s car symbolizes wealth, the hearse represents that wealth could lead to death. The scene of Gatsby’s eventual murder by a vengeful Wilson takes place in the pool. After he waits devotedly for Daisy to no avail, Gatsby decides to go into the pool in autumn, which is unorthodox as the pool is typically used in summer. The unwillingness to accept the change of seasons is reminiscent of Gatsby’s denial that five years had passed since he last saw

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