The "American Dream" is a frequently used term to reference to the opportunity to move up in social status, create a family, and live a comfortable life. Somewhere in the 1920s the “American Dream” got a new meaning, and that meaning for a lot of people was greed. The Great Gatsby by F Scott Fitzgerald shows the corrupt nature of the American Dream through some of its main characters. F Scott Fitzgerald shows the frailty of the American Dream with Jay Gatsby the protagonist of the story. Gatsby had a huge desire to succeed in everything, the root of this desire was to impress the love of his life, Daisy .
The demise of Jay Gatsby portrays shows a faulty American dream. Fitzgerald's characterization of Jay Gatsby as the hopeful and ambitious man parallels the original values of the American dream. Like the American Dream, reputation precedes Gatsby. The author conceals Gatsby's personal narrative until chapter three which leads to the reputation of wealth and success. It is not until later in the novel where the reader is able to see Gatsby's true flaws. By using this technique Fitzgerald is able to convey the role of reputations in modern society and how greatly they can differ from reality. Although the reader was first led to believe that Gatsby lives the ultimate life of luxury and wealth, his lavish life leads him to steep slope to the bottom. With his literary gift Fitzgerald reminds the reader of a lesson still prevalent today- an innocent desire of success can be overcome by greed. As seen during the roaring twenties materialism undoubtedly has the ability to overcome the original ideals of hope , ambition, and opportunity that drive the American Dream. This character demise serves a greater purpose than a dramatic personal story of boy who loses his direction but rather an understanding of the lives of many American families who had it all in the roaring 20's only to lose the "American Dream" in the Great Depression. This unattainable nature of the American dream lives on in modern times, families still confuse wealth and power for happiness and peace of mind. The novels great success is due to Fitzgerald's remarkable ability to write a novel about a theme that is so reoccurring in society. Gatsby
The idea of American Dream as presented by F. Scott Fitzgerald in the Great Gatsby novel involves rising from poverty or rags to richness and wealthy. The American Dream exemplifies that elements such as race, gender, and ethnicity are valueless as they do not influence the ability of an individual to rise to power and richness. This American Dream makes the assumption that concepts such as xenophobia are non-existent in America a concept that is not true and shows vagueness of the American Dream. In his novel, F. Scott Fitzgerald uses the Great Gatsby to demonstrate the overall idea of living the American dream. Gatsby leaves his small village of farmers and manages to work his way up the ladder although some of the money he uses to climb the ladder is associated with crime “He was a son of God and he must be about His Father's Business, the service of a vast, vulgar and meretricious beauty” (Fitzgerald 6.7). This phrase shows that Gatsby wasn’t meant for a life similar to that of his father but rather destined for greatness. However, his dream his short-lived and he doesn’t make it to the top as Daisy who is a symbol of his wealthy rejects her and a series of events transpire that result in his death before he could live his American Dream alongside everyone else who was working up the ladder to live the American Dream.
The author Fitzgerald wrote The Great Gatsby as a novel that talks about and covers American issues in the 1920s. He shows in the novel the carelessness and selfishness of everybody at the same time by portraying all of them in the location of west and east egg. Fitzgerald talks about a couple different topics throughout the novel. One of those is," the Attainment of a dream may be less satisfying than the pursuit of it" and the second one is"the American Dream is corrupted by the desire for wealth". He uses those themes to show how americans lived at a different time.
Through Gatsby's ambition and determination, Fitzgerald reflects the belief that with hard work and dedication, anyone can rise above their circumstances and achieve greatness. Gatsby's story serves as a mirror to the ideals and aspirations that many Americans strive for, illustrating both the allure and challenges of the American dream. Finally, The Great Gatsby critiques the American dream in several ways. The novel examines how wealth and social status do not always lead to happiness. It also shows how materialism and greed can corrupt people’s values and relationships.
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald is a fictional novel about a young man’s life , narrated by his closest friend Nick. This young extravagantly wealthy man known as Mr.Gatsby, lived in the 1920’s and represented the american dream in many different ways. In F. Scott Fitzgerald “The Great Gatsby” Tom and Daisy were born into this weathiness. Gatsby on the other hand had to work for his money by going to the army. In the Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald wanted to display the elusiveness of the American Dream and how more money makes the society during this time period lose their morality.
Oftentimes society gets so caught up in achieving greatness that it is blinded to the obstacles of reality. The American Dream can sometimes be so unachievable yet so alluring that people cannot help but strive after it as if it were their destiny. Fitzgerald highlights this phenomenon in his novel The Great Gatsby through many characters and their pursuit of their own American Dreams. Fitzgerald uses figurative language and contrasting diction to show his cynical attitude about the pursuit of the American Dream and the blindness of those who believe in it.
Some novels have more of an impact in modern society than when they were originally written. This is especially true with Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. Modern society can be termed corrupt, complete with tainted morals and an overemphasis on the acquisition of money and friends. Fitzgerald seeks the root of the problem and wants the reader to ponder whether he or she wants money and social status or fulfillment and truth. In his quest to enlighten the reader, Fitzgerald utilizes metaphor and symbols to clarify his message. The author wants to show what happens when the American dream (the pursuit of happiness) becomes warped into the American nightmare (the pursuit of money).
The novel’s protagonist, Jay Gatsby, is the perfect representation of Fitzgerald’s viewpoint of the American Dream because he is this young man who goes from rags-to-riches. However, Gatsby attains his wealth through crime, whereas the traditional way was to do honest, hard work. Furthermore his shady methods and his actions prove the faultiness of Fitzgerald’s version of the American Dream by
It’s called the American Dream because you have to be asleep to believe it” (George Carlin). George Carlin, criticizes the dream of prosperity, a promise to any individual for happiness and material success, if they try hard enough, Carlin realizes the reality of the unobtainable dream. The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Fitzgerald offers an insight to the lavish life of the 1920’s, or as he coined, The Jazz Age. The novel follows the character of Nick Carraway as he learns the tragedy of an excessive lifestyle that is lived by Jay Gatsby, Tom and Daisy Buchanan. Fitzgerald is able to see past all the luxury and grandeur to expose the unhappiness and misery that tells the reader that money does not bring true joy. The novel describes
The 1920’s was a decade of striving for prosperity and the American dream. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s historical fiction novel, The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby builds his way up to wealth and does everything he can to attain his goal, but is ultimately unable to attain it. Through his decision to set up The Great Gatsby as a frame story, Fitzgerald conveys the theme that the American dream is not necessary attainable, no matter how much one sacrifices or works towards it.
The disillusionment of the American Dream is a frequent but important written theme in the American literature. Fitzgerald’s famous book The Great Gatsby is one of the most important representative works that reflects this theme. F. Scott Fitzgerald is best known for his novels and short stories which chronicle the excesses of America's Jazz Age during the 1920s. His classic twentieth-century story of Jay Gatsby examines and critiques Gatsby's particular vision of the 1920's American Dream. The Great Gatsby can be seen as a far-reaching book that has revealed many serious and hidden social problems at that time. As one of the most popular and financially successful
Gatsby's slow demise serves as the ideal portrayal of the faulty American dream. Fitzgerald's characterization of Jay Gatsby as the hopeful and ambitious man parallels the original values of the American dream. Like the American Dream, reputation overcomes Gatsby. The author hid Gatsby's personal narrative until chapter three which leads to the reputation of wealth and success. It is not until later in the novel where the reader is able to see Gatsby's true flaws. By using this technique Fitzgerald was able to convey the role of reputations in modern society and how greatly they can differ from reality. Although the reader was first led to believe that Gatsby lives the ultimate life of luxury and wealth, his lavish life leads him to steep slope to the bottom.
One of the most influential writers of the early 20th century was a man named F. Scott Fitzgerald. The biggest topic that he wrote about was the American Dream. Fitzgerald uses many different aspects of writing to get his opinion across, such as the outcome of stories like The Great Gatsby and “Winter Dreams”. He also uses the setting and to explain his beliefs. Based of his work, Fitzgerald believes the American dream is not only unrealistic, but also unattainable.
The American dream is an ideology, a vision that’s form varies from individual to individual, based upon one’s own experiences. Although the one thing that remains constant in every single definition is that this ideology, just as the name states, is only a dream. It is meant to merely drive people to unlock their hidden potential and become their best self, for the sole purpose of living one’s out one’s own definition of success. In “The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the American Dream is Jay Gatsby’s inspiration and his opportunity, however, as the book progresses it becomes more evident that not all people share the same opportunity.
The American Dream, is an idea that all Americans are familiar with, no matter what age they are. It is the dream that everyone has an equal opportunity, to use hard work and integrity to achieve success. The American Dream is an integral aspect of Jay Gatsby’s life in the novel, The Great Gatsby, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald. The novel follows Jay Gatsby, as told by Nick Carraway, through the trials and tribulations that correspond with newfound wealth and the quest to find true happiness in a cynical and testing environment. In the novel, The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald suggests that the American Dream has the power to corrupt individuals, through his depictions of wealth, materialism, and the consequences they inflict in the character’s lives.
Gatsby refuses to not meet his aspirations and will fulfill his dream by any means necessary. Although Gatsby’s intentions and motivation to become successful are pure, the way he obtains his status is extremely foul and criminal. Gatsby participates in organized crime, trades stolen securities, and bootlegs illegal alcohol. Instead of Gatsby using his wit and intelligence in an honest hard working way, he participates in corrupt acts, which will guarantee him his wealth and status. It is this aspect of Gatsby’s life where Fitzgerald expresses the decline of The American Dream. He tries to show his readers the demoralization of our society and how greed and power are a form of empty success that a lot of Americans buy in to.