American Dream Derailed in The Great Gatsby and Death of a Salesman

People from all around the world have dreamed of coming to America and building a successful life for themselves. The "American Dream" is the idea that, through hard work and perseverance, the sky is the limit in terms of financial success and a reliable future. While everyone has a different interpretation of the "American Dream," some people use it as an excuse to justify their own greed and selfish desires. Two respected works of modern American literature, The Great Gatsby and Death of a Salesman, give us insight into how the individual interpretation and pursuit of the "American Dream" can produce tragic

“She only married you because I was poor and she was tired of waiting for me. It was a terrible mistake, but in her heart she never loved anyone except me!” (Fitzgerald 123). People saw Gatsby as the epiphany of the American Dream. But what actually was the “American Dream”? The American Dream was people who craved money and wealth, both of which Gatsby had attained. Money would allow them to obtain everything they could ever dream of, solve all their problems, most importantly, give them a social status, and with money and status came happiness. “I’ve got a man in England who buys me clothes. He sends over a selection of things at the beginning of each season, spring and fall” (Fitzgerald 98). Gatsby was constantly throwing huge parties with everyone around town showing up uninvited, when in reality, he did it all for one person, Daisy. Gatsby contained the best possessions money could buy, a mansion, clothes, books, cars, etc. “As soon as I arrived, I made an attempt to find my host, but the two or three people whom I asked his whereabouts stared at me in such an amazed way, and denied so vehemently any knowledge of his movements” (Fitzgerald 42). Gatsby hired people to throw elaborate parties for him, he sat back and hoped that

What is the American dream and what does the pursuit of happiness require? America, a country built on the foundation of freedom has established an image that millions from around the world idealize and travel to accomplish their dreams. Nowadays American’s view themselves as individuals with the right and freedom to explore ones identity, rise to riches, or even fall in love and have a family. However, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s, The Great Gatsby, depicts the reality of the American dream by illustrating characteristics of life in West Egg and East Egg, love affairs between characters, and the tragedy of Jay Gatsby.

The American Dream: Is is fact or fiction? In the United States’ Declaration of Independence, our founding fathers set forth the idea of an American Dream by providing us with the recognizable phrase “Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness”. The green light at the end of Daisy Buchanan’s dock symbolizes Jay Gatsby’s “Pursuit of Happiness” in the novel, The Great Gatsby, set in the 1920s on Long Island, New York. The American Dream can be defined as “the belief that anyone, regardless of where they were born or what class they were born into, can attain their own version of success in a society where upward mobility is possible for everyone. The American Dream is achieved through sacrifice, risk-taking, and hard work, not by chance” (Fontinelle, Amy). At the birth of our country in 1776, our founding fathers introduced the American Dream as a personal desire to pursue happiness; however, the pursuit of happiness was not intended to promote self-indulgence, rather to act as a catalyst to encourage an entrepreneurial spirit. As our country has changed, the idea of the American Dream, in some cases, has evolved into the pursuit of one’s own indulgences such as material gain regardless of the consequences.

For centuries in this country people have believed that through hard work, talent and ambition anyone can acquire great wealth and success regardless of their social class and background, a concept later named “The American Dream” in 1931. However, people have been questioning whether this idea of rags to riches really is attainable to all who work for it, or if it is merely a fantasy and a myth. In his novel The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald uses symbolism to illustrate the death of the American Dream.

The American Dream is something many Americans desire. The desire to the mind – set or belief that anyone can be successful if they worked hard for what they’ve been yearning. It is considered to be a ‘perfect life’; it can be full of money, contentedness or even love. There are many divergent opinions given by people. Walter Younger from Lorraine Hansberry’s ‘A Raisin in the Sun’ and Willy Loman from Arthur Miller’s ‘Death of the Salesman’ both have their own views on the American Dream and how it can be achieved. Walter Lee Younger, a

The American Dream has long been thought the pinnacle idea of American society. The idea that anyone, regardless of race, ethnicity, or financial status, could rise from the depths and become anything they wanted to be with no more than hard work and determination has attracted people from all around the world. Two writers from America’s past, however, have a different opinion on the once-great American Dream. F. Scott Fitzgerald and John Steinbeck have given the public their beliefs on the modern Dream through the novels they have written, The Great Gatsby, and Of Mice and Men, respectively. One novel placed during the Great Depression and the other during the Roaring Twenties both illustrate how their author feels about the Dream

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 varies for everyone, however, hard work, determination, and the desire to achieve that dream are key factors that have played a role in the American Dream since it was first thought of. Jay Gatsby in Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, is a prime example of achieving that American Dream because Gatsby worked hard and was driven as he moved up the hierarchy from transitioning from poor to rich. However, there are many who assume that the American Dream is a myth purely due to their belief that no one can ever truly be successful in obtaining the American Dream. While it can be difficult in accomplishing such a task, with factors such as gender, immigration, and social class participating, it isn’t impossible for people to succeed

The social group West Egg represents the corruption of the American Dream, during the 1920’s. Fitzgerld describes West Egg as a home for the newly rich. This is a place where people who have recently become fortunate live. It is a place that represents new money. New money portrays the image of the corruption of the American Dream by showing how the people strived for acquiring only material goods. It made attaining material goods their goal in life. In addition, people in the 1920’s connected the American Dream to making quick money. In The Great Gatsby many of the residents that lived in West Egg became fortunate through illegal methods, such as bootlegging alcohol or gambling. Fitzgerld shows this through the character Gatsby. Gatsby’s goal was to become wealthy so that he could win Daisy’s love. By selling stolen alcohol Gatsby was able to mange to rise up to the top of the upper class and live in West Egg. The want for money and power to achieve love shows the decay of the American Dream. The parties that were held at West Egg also represent the corruption of the American Dream. The parties that Gatsby threw were huge and glamorous. Everyone from West and East Egg would attend these parties. They had no care for who Gatsby was. Rather, they only cared that he was someone who was extremely

For generations many have immigrated to this great nation know, as the United states of America, all seeking for their share of the American dream. The American dream is the philosophy that anyone can become successful through hard work and perseverance. The 1920’s embodies this concept like no other decade in American history. It is also during this time frame that one sees the perversion of this dream. F. Scott Fitzgerald suggests in his novel, The Great Gatsby that there is a right and wrong way to obtain the American dream. Throughout the novel, Gatsby is symbolic for the materialistic nature of the American dream and its corruption in the 20th century.

Since Columbus made land, people have been searching for the “American Dream”. Many people have their own idea and ideas that have changed over a period of time, but what exactly is the “American Dream” defined as .Origins of the dream have been rooted in the pioneering mentality of the eighteenth and nineteenth century immigrants, most who came to America because of a promise for a new and better life. The American Dream was sought through hard work and determination. After the time of the World Wars, society changed and so did the view of the “American Dream”, it changed from a potential reality into being a dream. People were striving to reach their definition of the American Dream. Beliefs and values took a turn. The American Dream

Wealth, material possessions, and power are the core principles of The American Dream. Pursuit of a better life led countless numbers of foreign immigrants to America desiring their chance at the vast opportunity. Reaching the American Dream is not always reaching true happiness. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby achieves the American Dream, but his unrealistic faiths in money and life’s possibilities twist his dreams and life into useless life based on lies.

When people think of the American Dream, they often think of becoming successful or making a life that they can be proud of. Ever since childhood, we are conditioned to believe that if we work hard enough, anything is possible. However, in Arthur Miller’s tragedy Death of A Salesman, the reader learns that this isn’t always true. Willy Loman is a failed salesman. He had unrealistic expectations of what it meant to be successful and happy. He saw what it looked liked to be successful and chased Dave Singleman, the eighty four year old salesman’s dreams which lead him to fail in his own version of the American Dream. His idea of the American Dream causes tragedy amongst

One of the striking themes in Arthur Miller’s “The Death of a Salesman” is the concept of the American Dream. After World War II, as the United States produced more consumer goods, numerous people interpreted the American Dream as the concepts of richness and popularity. Although Miller wrote “The Death of a Salesman” after World War II, he describes Willy Loman as a salesman, who illustrates that wealth and popularity are not the important concepts that the American Dream represents. The four concepts of the American Dream that Willy fails to point out are freedom of choice, family love, hard work, and happiness.