Analyze how settings in The Great Gatsby contribute to the novel’s themes.
F. Scott Fitzgerald exhibits a glimpse of the American society in the 1920s in his novella The Great Gatsby; set ‘In the city that never sleeps’, he exposes the social hierarchy full of injustices, consumerism and excess. The novel tells the story of Jay Gatsby, a man whose desire to be reunited with his long lost love brings him from poverty to unimaginable wealth. Sadly being married to Tom Buchanan an arrogant, unfaithful and aggressive man; Gatsby’s beloved Daisy does not bring him happiness, but eventually, death. Fitzgerald deliberately sets up the story to show how each distinct social class -old, new and no money- has its own problems and uses various settings
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"The valley of Ashes," is constantly transited still simultaneously lonely and miserable, where the eyes of Doctor T.J. Eckleburg are always gazing, vigilant. A place so close yet so far from the worlds of the rich and vain; alluding to the indifference with which the wealthy see the lower class. Even though it forms part of their surroundings, it is treated with disdain. Fitzgerald's description shows how “ The valley of ashes is bounded on one side by a small foul river, and, when the drawbridge is up to let barges through, the passengers on waiting trains can stare at the dismal scene for as long as half an hour.”(pg. 20 ) This is also a rather accurate description of how the rich, when they bother to disconnect from their luxurious lifestyles and raise awareness to the world outside, look down on to the poor and feel the right to undermine them; further linking to the author’s concern over the inequality in society, which is demonstrated when Tom continually puts Wilson off “No, he doesn’t,” said Tom coldly. “And if you feel that way about it, maybe I’d better sell it somewhere else after all.” “I don’t mean that,” explained Wilson quickly. “I just meant ——”His voice faded off…” (pg. 21) Fitzgerald uses this to represent the difficulties of the poor, the fact that living among the ashes has made them lose their strength and vitality making them susceptible to manipulation. In a similar …show more content…
The extravagant condo were Tom maintains his affair “hidden” from the world “was crowded to the doors with a set of tapestried furniture entirely too large for it, so that to move about was to stumble continually over scenes of ladies swinging in the gardens of Versailles.” (pg. 24) As an overcompensation for the poverty and misery in which Myrtle lives alongside his husband. The pretentious furniture and art displays resembling “Versailles”, show how the apartment served the purpose of a “temporary castle”, a fantasy place where Myrtle was able to feel like the center of attention, throw away money and be surrounded with expensive gifts, for a wistful short period of time; but more importantly it represents Myrtle’s failed attempt in appearing high-class. The setting with the “Several old copies of TOWN TATTLE...”(pg.24) which was a gossip magazine from the 1920s, expose Myrtle’s desires for a momentary escape from her deplorable reality, the Valley of the Ashes. On the other hand this scene also portrays the dissatisfaction of the wealthy, how being raised with money and not dedicating themselves to proper careers , also creates in them the need to seek for amusement. A contrast Fitzgerald does on purpose to exhibit how regardless of their backgrounds poor or rich will always feel something missing in their
Fitzgerald depicts 1920’s America as an age of decline in traditional social and moral values; primarily evidenced by the cynicism, greed and the relentless yet empty pursuit of prosperity and pleasure that various characters in The Great Gatsby exhibit. He presents a society in which uninhibited consumerism, materialism and an all-pervading desire for wealth have perverted the previously righteous qualities of the American Dream, corrupting it in the process.
In book, “The Great Gatsby,” F. Scott Fitzgerald depicts how the American was corrupted through wealth. Fitzgerald provides many examples. The most common example shown was Jay Gatsby. Gatsby’s idea that to achieve his American Dream must be to acquire wealth. In order to show this, Fitzgerald uses various literary elements. Two of those being imagery and foreshadowing, these played a critical role in describing the theme, and specific moods to show what was to come and as well as describe the story as a whole. These play a vital role in representing Gatsby’s life and journey to acquiring Daisy, his version of the American Dream.
Themes of hope, success, and wealth overpower The Great Gatsby, leaving the reader with a new way to look at the roaring twenties, showing that not everything was good in this era. F. Scott Fitzgerald creates the characters in this book to live and recreate past memories and relationships. This was evident with Gatsby and Daisy’s relationship, Tom and Daisy’s struggling marriage, and Gatsby expecting so much of Daisy and wanting her to be the person she once was. The theme of this novel is to acknowledge the past, but do not recreate and live in the past because then you will not be living in the present, taking advantage of new opportunities.
One of the most important symbol that Fitzgerald presents is the Valley of Ashes. Introduced in chapter 2, the valley of ashes is portrayed as a dreary piece of land brimming with utter despair. It completely contradicts with the “American Dream” and West Egg, where opportunities are ubiquitous. As Nick states, “This is a valley of
Many novels are written as a means of scrutinising the details and flaws of a specific society. The author’s purpose is to use the novel as a lens through which they can offer their own critical perception. The highly praised novel The Great Gatsby provides such a view into 1920s America, an era which was often described as the “Jazz Age” or the “Roaring 20s,” mainly due to the +and carefree nature of the wealthy. This higher class, who were essentially safeguarded by their money, lived life as if it was an endless party. It is this particular group that F. Scott Fitzgerald mainly targets when providing his criticism
The 1920’s was an interesting time where social and political ideas were changing; women gained the right to vote, the jazz age created a large popularity in music and dancing, but most importantly, wealth became a new way to express one’s class in a society as people moved from rural areas to cities. The Great Gatsby is a significant example that F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote in order to show how one’s wealth can affect the people they meet and the way people treat each other. Along with wealth, this book is about love, both from the past and from the present, that soon twists into a tragedy when Gatsby was killed while protecting the other, all in the name of love. Everything Gatsby did was to impress or protect Daisy because he was deeply
Scott Fitzgerald’s famous novel ‘The Great Gatsby’ is set in America of the 1920’s, a predominantly materialistic society revolving around wealth and status above all else. Fitzgerald depicts this obsession with money and luxury through complicated relationships full of trouble, infidelity and sorrow. The relationships Fitzgerald portrays all symbolize the materialism and hedonism of the age; each relationship is doomed to a certain extent based on the social class of each character.
It could be interpreted that Scott Fitzgerald had used the valley of ashes to foreshadows future events in the novel, which conclude with other people (Gatsby and Mr Wilson) having to deal with the effects caused by the rich (Tom and Daisy Buchanan).
Through Fitzgerald’s characterisation of the protagonists, the moral chaos within the society becomes evident, with a society of immense greed and wealth being born, revealing the dreaded materialistic trait within individuals in the society leading to drastic consequences. Similarly to the prodigious increase in wealth during the “roaring 20’s”, the luxurious society of New York revolves heavily around money, with “the rich getting richer and the poor getting children”. The materialistic trait is evident within the protagonist Daisy Buchanan - ‘a careless person”. We learn of Daisy’s materialistic behaviour through her decision to marry Tom Buchanan over Jay Gatsby “because she was
The novel “The Great Gatsby” written by F. Scott Fitzgerald tells the story of a group of people living on an imaginary city close to the New York city. the story is more concentrated on the character of Jay Gatsby, a mysterious rich man who making big parties to attract his love, Daisy Buchanan and how is he trying to win her. A deep reading of the novel shows that in addition to the love story, the writer is more concerned to shows the social life and relationships of people in American society in the 1920s. This essay will argue that the writer wanted to show the bleak perspective of American society on that time. In order to show this, the essay will
Music, liquor, and gold, everything you need to make a great party. And, that’s what it was, the roaring twenties, it was a never ending party of financial gain and materialism. However, there were some who viewed it to be a gilded age. They were the Lost Generation, Fitzgerald among them. After the Great War they viewed society as rotten from the inside, gilded gold while systematic problems broiled underneath. This social breakdown masked by wealth and success is nowhere better seen than in Fitzgerald’s greatest work, The Great Gatsby. The Great Gatsby, if anything, is excellent at exemplifying many moral shortfalls, anywhere from adultery and deceit to bootlegging and murder. The most natural and the most vile of human actions coupled with flawed and disillusioned characters constructs a perfect stage for society to crumble. Gradually, Fitzgerald takes us on a depressing journey while we watch the breakdown of modern, civil institutions.
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, acclaimed as one of the greatest classics of the twentieth-centre literature, expresses the erosion of the great American dream. Established around 1920s America, Fitzgerald focuses on the emptiness of excessive wealth and the extinction of morals. Told from the perspective of Nick Caraway, a man who inherited his wealth, as he settles into life in the West Egg district of Long Island, known as the home of the newly rich. He becomes acquainted with Jay Gatsby, his next-door neighbor, who throws tremendously flamboyant parties every Saturday night. Gatsby first appears aloof and driven by an exorbitant lifestyle with little purpose, but as the story progresses Fitzgerald reveals more about Gatsby’s ambition and objective. In his youth he fell in love with Daisy Buchanan, but due to his low status and poverty Daisy became out of reach and she married Tom Buchanan, and extremely wealthy man. Because Gatsby lost Daisy, he decided to center his whole life around winning her back, so he turned to a life of organized crime where he made his millions and began
The Great Gatsby a, novel written by American author F. Scott Fitzgerald, follows a cast of characters abiding in the town of East and West Egg on affluent Long Island in the summer of 1922. Each of the characters, while part of the same story line, have different priorities and agendas, each character working towards achieving what they think would benefit them the most. As The Great Gatsby’s plot thickens the characters constantly show their discontent of the American Dream that they are living, always expressing their greed for more, three particular offenders of this deadly sin are Tom, Daisy and Gatsby himself. The characters motives stem from a mixture of boredom, a need and longing for the american dream, and simple selfish human
Through dressing rooms and poolrooms, and bathrooms with sunken baths. The dresser was garnished with a toilet set of pure dull gold. P.96-97" Tom and Daisy also live in a mansion which is Georgian Colonial, which establishes their status as "old money" characters. The people living in the "valley of the ashes" depict a third class. The "valley of ashes is described as " a fantastic farm where ashes grow like wheat in ridges…where ashes take the form of houses and chimneys". Myrtle and George Wilson are the inhabitants in the "valley of ashes", which is depicted as a wasteland. They live in a car garage which, shows that they live a common or impoverished existence in the desolate wasteland of the "valley of ashes". The Wilson's financial and physical environment instructs their distance from characters like Tom Buchanan and Nick Carraway in every way, including their lack of education and class. In this way, Fitzgerald emphasizes major monetary differences through materialistic as well as solidifying the premise for ideological differences.
In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, the setting of New York in the nineteen twenties performs an extensive role in the novel. Although the nineteen twenties are a time of economic prosperity, they appear to be a time of corruption and crime as well. In New York, particularly, the nineteen twenties are a time of corruption and moral scarcity. The setting is during the Jazz Age as well, where popularity, fashion, and commerce are a primary inclination. The setting of The Great Gatsby efficaciously portrays the behavior of the characters in The Great Gatsby, as well as the plot and development. The setting assiduously delineates how themes, motifs, and symbols can fluctuate in relation to the time or location. The setting of The