American Dream : The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald

The ideal American Dream can be portrayed in many different ways, though generally based upon the idea of opportunity for upward mobility within society. While people move to the top of society, they accumulate the perceived good things in life: the perfect partner, high social status and respect in the workplace to go along with the unlimited wealth and power. This idea is dated all the way back to the beginning of American literature. In the past, Americans started with the basic needs and only the things they needed to get by in life. Now families are transforming into a life view filled with the perfect life, nice car, large house, and the ideal family. In The Great Gatsby the main character Jay Gatsby was born into a family with no

The American Dream is what we all aspire to achieve. The idea of starting off with nothing and to become something has caused millions of people from all corners of the world to immigrate to this country for over 300 years. However, what exactly is the American Dream? F Scott Fitzgerald answers this question within his novel The Great Gatsby. Through the eyes of Nick Carraway, Fitzgerald analyses the high class of the 1920s and reveals that the American Dream has been distorted from a pure ideal of security into a convoluted scheme of materialistic power. Fitzgerald incorporates the aspects of both the Òold dreamÓ & the Ònew dreamÓ in his tragic story to depicts how the inflexible dream has been corrupted and lost forever.

After the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 was implemented in America, many immigrants from China, Japan, and India were stripped of their pursuit of the American Dream at Angel Island. The immigration station’s detainment of these rejected dreamers destroyed stories before they could happen. These stories of opportunity and the fulfillment of the American Dream make America what it is today. For instance, many immigrants today who are lucky enough to settle into America enter with little money in their pockets. However, through hard labor and persistence, they are able to grasp onto the four elements that construct the American Dream: fame, fortune, family and a future. The Great American Novel must document the

The American dream created a materialistic (or unrealistic) ideal of life that all Americans wished to live. The ideal that man should be rich, successful in his occupation, well educated, and proud to be an American. The Great Gatsby expresses this ideal of the American life. Jay Gatsby was raised with no money, received an “Oxford” education, moved east and joined the American Army, and made a name for himself in New York. “...Then there was something gorgeous about him, some heightened sensitivity to the promises of life…” Gatsby was living the American

Jay Gatsby grew up with big aspirations. The definition of the American Dream is the ideal that every US citizen should have an equal opportunity to achieve success and prosperity through hard work, determination, and initiative, but his vision of the American Dream was beyond what he could have expected. Although things did not play out as he expected. Throughout the book, Jay Gatsby found himself unhappy, not being able to satisfy his large American Dream aspirations. In the novel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the protagonist has a strong devotion to attaining the American Dream, but it becomes unattainable for him because of his overpowering desire to always need something, or someone more.

The American dream can mean many different things and can be interpreted in different ways. To some people, the American dream is the belief that if a person works hard enough, he or she can be successful in America no matter what race, gender, or nationality. In the 1920’s, the concept of the American dream was very much the same, that an individual can achieve success in life regardless of family history or social status if he or she works hard enough. By having money, a car, a big house, expensive clothes, and a loving family symbolizes the American dream. In the novel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the 1920’s is a time period in which the American dream becomes corrupt and dangerous. For Jay Gatsby, a main character in the novel, his American dream is about gaining wealth and material possessions in order to find happiness. Through his decision to symbolize wealth, superficiality, irresponsibility, and foreshadowing, Fitzgerald conveys the the theme that the American dream is a perfect concept and is something that can never be accomplished, but can always be reached for.

The American dream has been around for many years, and which also debuts itself in many American literature pieces. The American dream is the dream and goals of typically aspiring to be a better person by wealth, popularity, and love. There are many variations of the American dream which eventually progress and change during the different time periods. The American dream can also be different according to each individual, even though the American dream is mostly based on the freedom and peace of citizens, and their goals to be more successful. The American dream can also be generalized as material wants such as a big family, house, and car. Scott Fitzgerald is the author of a book called “The Great Gatsby” in order to portray

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.

The American Dream is defined as “America was going on the greatest, gaudiest, spree in history and there was going to be plenty to tell about it” (Cowley 31 ) this is what everybody was claiming the American Dream was supposed to be . The money was all for show, the dream was all a lie, and the class you were a part of was suppose to dictate your life. In the novel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Gatsby is consumed by the want for the American Dream and chasing what was the illusion of true love, wealth, and social status.

The American Dream is thought to be the ultimate goal to achieve in life. According to Michael Moran, it is the firmly held belief that everyone has the opportunity to achieve their goals and become rich and prosperous if they only work hard enough. It seems as though this would be included in the ending of any happy story, but certain novels rightfully portray the American Dream as unrealistic and unattainable. This is seen in many well known stories, including The Great Gatsby, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Although for some, life may come easy and the ultimate goal may seem to be achieved, that certainly isn’t the case for everyone. Just like Jay Gatsby, many modern Americans see the dream as poor children, pursue it at any cost into adulthood, and put it at risk by trying to hold onto it.

“The American Dream is that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement. It is a difficult dream for the European upper classes to interpret adequately, and too many of us ourselves have grown weary and mistrustful of it. It is not a dream of motor cars and high wages merely, but a dream of social order in which each man and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature of which they are innately capable, and be recognized by others for what they are, regardless of the fortuitous circumstances of birth or position,”(Adams OL). The American Dream is a dream where a person lives a better, richer, and a fuller life, the American Dreams is not a dream where a person is after material prosperity, such as wealth, fancier cars, lavish homes. There is much more to the American Dream than property, wealth, and a perfect spouse and Jay Gatsby, a character in Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald novel, The Great Gatsby learns about the American Dream the hard way. Jay Gatsby of West Egg, New York was notoriously known for being extremely wealthy. Mr. Gatsby was also recognized by his extravagant parties with more than hundreds of guests. Jay Gatsby was not always known as Jay Gatsby, he was previously known for being James Gatz. Mr. Gatz was not a wealthy person and Gatz left his parents because they were poor and unsuccessful farmers to pursue a dream. James Gatz changed his name

The American dream is the belief that all Americans can achieve personal happiness and success through hard work, initiative, and determination. It says that all people should and do have the opportunity to achieve this. It was meant to encourage Americans to strive for their dreams and make an attempt to turn dreams into reality. The Great Gatsby shows how the American dream is represented by the American people. Fitzgerald, however, uses symbolism to show that the American dream is corrupted due to Americans’ view of it and how they strive to achieve it.

By the definition, the American Dream is the ideal that every US citizen should have an equal opportunity to achieve success and prosperity through hard work, determination, and initiative. In the Great Gatsby written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Gatsby is able to achieve his American Dream because he becomes a billionaire ,a famous celebrity, and powerful individual. However, Gatsby does not achieve his American

For Jay Gatsby and many others, the American Dream is about gaining wealth and material possessions in an attempt to find happiness. Through his novel, The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald shows how the American Dream is only the concept of perfection, something that can never be acquired, but always can be reached for.

The American Dream is originally thought to be about how hard work can lead one person from poorness to richness with the right amount of effort put in. The American Dream can have different meaning to different people but at the end they are all trying to achieve a goal. The American Dream usually requires hard work and dedication. But cheating your way to success can change a person. An example of a distorted American Dream would be F. Scott Fitzgerald 's The Great Gatsby.