Money for Money's Sake in The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

“I think one of the most pervasive evils in this world is greed and acquiring money for money’s sake. Once you have six houses and a plane, it’s just about a number. It’s never been anything I understood.” This is a quote by Kevin Bacon, a very awesome and apparently worldly actor, and it perfectly captures the essence of the theme that I have come to for The Great Gatsby. The theme I see most strongly reflected in the book is this: Although greed and lust are human nature, they are often used as a substitute for happiness, but almost always lead to decay. I will provide examples of this theme by looking into events and the behavior of characters throughout the plot of the book. One main event in the book that I believe strongly represents the theme is when Gatsby is shot while floating in the pool that he had one of the people working for him wait to drain even though it was the beginning of the fall season (p.161). I see this as a strong reflection of the theme starting with the symbolism of the pool (which is apart of a long chain of symbols). “I’m going to drain the pool to-day, Mr. Gatsby. Leaves’ll start falling pretty soon, and then there’s always trouble with the pipes.” “Don’t do it to-day,” Gatsby answered. He turned to me apologetically. “You know, old sport, I’ve never used that pool all summer?” (p.161) I see the pool as representative of being full of Gatsby’s thoughts and love for Daisy and that he is not ready to drain it yet, and wants to float on what’s