Personification Of The American Dream In The Great Gatsby

The American Dream, the hope that every single citizen of the United States has the equal right and opportunity to gain prosperity and success through hard work, integrity, and honest means. In the narrative The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, he symbolizes the dying American Dream at the turn of the Century through the characters and plot of his novel. The book takes place in the 1920’s which was an era full of young, and innovative people taking every advantage of the American Dream. F. Scott Fitzgerald shows this through setting, plot, and in particular one major character, Jay Gatsby.

The first way Fitzgerald proves his belief of the American Dream is how he shapes the outcome of the stories he writes. This quote from The Great Gatsby shows the failure of Gatsby’s dream at the end of the novel. “I thought of Gatsby’s wonder when he first picked out the green light at the end of Daisy’s dock. He had come a long way to his blue lawn, and his dream must have seemed so close that he could hardly fail to grasp it. He did not know it was already behind him …” (Fitzgerald 180). The main character, Nick, explains how Gatsby was so close to his dream but didn’t achieve it. All Gatsby wanted was to be Daisy but couldn’t achieve his goal. This quote from “Winter Dreams” also depicts Fitzgerald’s views on the American Dream. “‘Long ago,’ he said, ‘long ago there was something in me, but now that thing is gone. Now that thing is gone, that thing is gone. I cannot cry. I cannot care. That thing will come back no more.’” (Fitzgerald 639). Dexter had a dream to be with Judy but now that dream is no longer with him and he can’t get it back. These endings to some of Fitzgerald’s stories show that he believes the American Dream is something that cannot be obtained and will always fail.

After spending time with Daisy and reigniting that lost spark, he was confident that she felt the same way he did. He hoped that she would choose him over her husband. She didn’t know how to feel because, she did love Tom at one time, and she loves the security, money, and the lavish lifestyle that comes with him. Clearly betrayal comes easier to Daisy then making decisions.

Gatsby portrays the unattainability of the American Dream through his love for Daisy. As shown in Novels for Students, “[Daisy] becomes the embodiment of the American Dream for [Gatsby] instantly”(Telgen 70). Gatsby has held onto his fascination of

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 lack of details about Gatsby's death correlates with Gatsby's mysterious wealth and past. In addition, irony that Gatsby died in the hands of a Wilson, when Gatsby killed his wife and Gatsby's arrival stirred up problems and his death solves

Fitzgerald died in 1940, believing himself to be a failure and his work forgotten. However, the novel experienced a revival during World, and became a part of American high school curricula and numerous stage and film adaptations in the following decades. Today, The Great Gatsby is widely considered to be a literary classic and a contender for the title "Great American Novel". In 1998, the Modern Library editorial board voted it the 20th century 's best American novel and second best English-language novel of the same time period.

The ‘American Dream,’ is clearly defined by the Merriam-Webster as, “a happy way of living… that can be achieved by anyone in the U.S… by working hard and becoming successful.” In addition, they also specify the ideals of “living the American dream” as “ [people] with good jobs, a nice house, two children, and plenty of money.” The roaring twenties were what one would call ‘the life of the party,’ for authors like F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, and even some characters in their novels, exhibited fairly wealthy lifestyles, whilst attending social affairs, and heavily drinking. However, this ‘golden age’ of sorts suddenly came crumbling apart, partly due to the stock market crash in 1929. “Babylon Revisited,” by Fitzgerald, alludes to this sudden time of loss and despair through an alcoholic man, Charlie Wales, who practically

When the sounding of America occured, the definition of the American Dream was a possible way to better one’s circumstances; however, Fitzgerald shows through his novel The Great Gatsby that the definition and attainableness of the American Dream has changed: it became an unachievable dream that focused on making it big. Fitzgerald’s novel The Great Gatsby focused on the American Dream and mainly reflected how Fitzgerald himself felt about it. It showed how the 1920’s changed the dream and turned it into a fantasy rather than a reality. Fitzgerald’s opinion of the American Dream was that it was an unattainable dream that left behind the notion of hard work and embraced improving one’s life; however, there are parts of Fitzgerald’s work that support the concept of an obtainable dream and the importance of hard work.

First of all, Daisy’s character seems very gentle and perfect at the beginning of the book. She is the innocent woman whose husband had been cheating on her. The first time Nick, the narrator, introduced us to Daisy he said she was charming. Later in that scene we find out that her husband, Tom, is cheating on her. He got a phone call during dinner and Jordan tells Nick that it is Tom’s mistress.

The American dream During the 1920s was a lively era for American citizens, with new leisure times and wealth from their previous civil war America was doing well for itself. This was a time where the rich got richer and every poor man was given the opportunity to find financial freedom through hard work. The ideal way of life was to be socially equal and economically worry free. During the success of post WWI the phrase the American dream is to be known as having financial freedom and an equal role in society. As this historical period grew in America so did the new innovations and the massively widen job market that has got the economy booming. The Film directed by (Jack Clayton) 1974 The Great Gatsby based on its novel written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, portrays Scotts idealization of the American dream through its main character Jay Gatsby. Though Gatsby has appeared as a mystery character in the beginning portion of the film. This leaves viewers wondering what made, Gatsby so great, and is he an example of the American Dream; or is the American Dream just a mirage that slowly fades away as the reality of the Great depression reveals.

Harsh view of America’s materialistic standard of living, the tragic death of Gatsby, the negligence displayed by Gatsby’s friends, the reveal of Gatsby’s innocent childhood, and Fitzgerald’s personal life experiences. All lead the reader to see Fitzgerald’s unforgiving blow towards American Society.

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald highlights the idea of relationships between real and the Flawless during the 1920s. This limited structure of the text portrays the concept of the American Dream. What is the American Dream? America has advanced from a striving nation to become a world superpower through its unknown and unsteady economic growth. Driven by self-reliance, independence, and freedom, Americans have the opportunity to chase success. To many individuals, this is the American Dream. To others, such as Gatsby, Tom and Jordan, the American dream is more so happiness. These characters are driven by their dreams, seeking what they deem will make them happy. Gatsby and Tom seek happiness through love while Jordan seeks happiness through money. The belief that happiness, paradise, and peace are within their hands drives these characters. Yet the small fact that their dreams are unachievable makes them faulty. Without their dreams, Gatsby, Tom and Jordan lose their purpose in life. This makes the pursuit of the American dream a paradox. Achieving it is impossible, but without it, life will lose its purpose.

F. Scott Fitzgerald the great Gatsby has been one of the greatest literary works of modernism. The tone of this movement was he American literature in the old days and the present days. F. Scott Fitzgerald sets the great Gatsby in the jazz age to show the decline in the 1920s, about how wealth does not bring happiness and those with unrealistic dreams are unsuccessful and dishonestly can ruin relationships.

The whole story of “The Great Gatsby” is showing the stigmatized version of the American dream. That it is so perfect and fun to be rich and if one is rich one is happy. F. Scott Fitzgerald tries to show the consequences of pursuing the american dream. He shows this through many different characters, most importantly being Jay Gatsby. Living the American Dream may seem like the life wanted from afar, but if one gets to close it just might eat him/her up.