Temperance Movement In The Great Gatsby

The term “The American Dream” was coined in 1931 by American writer James Truslow Adams and described America as a place of opportunity based on one’s ability and hard work. Although the term originated in 1931, the fundamental ideas of the American Dream debuted in 1920’s society and contrasted greatly with previous notions of a stagnant class structure. This was due to the booming post-WWI economy, which provided an increase in accessibility to leisure items and activities, allowing luxuries typically reserved for the upper class to be enjoyed by the masses. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel The Great Gatsby, published in 1925, reflects these social and economic changes. The novel follows the rise and fall of Jay Gatsby, who achieved prosperity in spite of being born the son of a poor, North Dakota farmer. Though many believed in an emergence of class mobility in the 1920’s, the novel The Great Gatsby demonstrates the ultimate inaccessibility of the American Dream - a holistic realization of social and economic equality.

An ocean of immigrants arrived in America to start a new life searching for any available jobs during the seventeenth century. They brought upon a new belief of self-innovation through their hard work and a dedication called the “American Dream.” This dream represented the idea that a person wanting to become successful would put in hard work striving for advancement and that this potential advantage actually exists. F. Scott Fitzgerald helped seek the undergoing routines among the elite during the Jazz age. It was primarily through the narrator, Nick Carraway, that the author presents the illusion and aura of a man named Jay Gatsby. Jay Gatsby is an example of the corruption of the American Dream during the 1920’s. Gatsby, the main character within the novel,

The Great Gatsby, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, provides a reflection on the societal issues and attitudes of a modernist, post-war era. The “Roaring Twenties” was an age of prosperity, consumerism and liberalism that led to unprecedented economic growth and significant changes in culture and lifestyle. The right to vote redefined women’s roles and gave rise to a “new breed” known as the flapper, that drank, wore excessive makeup, and flaunted her disdain for conventionalism. The introduction of prohibition led to an increased demand for black market alcohol and bootlegging, thereby providing a financial basis for organized crime. Despite the progression, the 1920s was an era of social tensions

The American Dream is a worldwide known idiom and it emphasizes an ideal of a successful and happy lifestyle which is oftentimes symbolized by the phrase “from rags-to-riches”. It originated out of the ideal of equality, freedom and opportunity that is held to every American. In the last couple of decades the main idea of the American Dream has shifted to becoming a dream in which materialistic values are of a higher importance and status. The Great Gatsby is a novel written by F. Scott Fitzgerald in 1925 during the “Jazz Age”. Jay Gatsby is a parvenu who worked himself his way up. He is the main character and he has a quixotic passion for Daisy Buchanan and he has a need for

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.

In The Great Gatsby, the author, F Scott Fitzgerald depicts the post - war roaring 20’s, a time of overwhelming prosperity and a new found sense of hope for the future. While this novel is often perceived as a romance, it is also a criticism on the devastating nature of the elusive american dream. The story of Jay Gatsby is a representation of what had become the values of the individual at the time. With the progression of the early 1920’s the vision of the perfect life, or the american dream, had been skewed. It was replaced with greed, and an abundance of reckless spending in which the wealthier individuals placed their misguided ideas of happiness. In the Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald chooses to expose the hidden truth behind the illustrious concept of the American dream. Through his use of literary devices such as, symbolism, metaphor, and, irony the central idea of the truly unattainable American dream is supported throughout the novel.

Ahhh The American Dream, the one entity that most people are reaching out trying to grasp. The Great Gatsby, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald displays the life of America in the 1920s, “The Roaring Twenties”. The twenties were a time of prosperity for America. The Great Gatsby lived in a time of new cars, expensive parties and as some in the roaring twenties might say it was “spiffy!” The American Dream seems unattainable to some but to others, it is right around the corner. Jay Gatsby had the rags-to-riches story that hits all of us so dear. The Great Gatsby had The American Dream by working hard to get where he was. Everyone has the inner desire to do something great and achieve The American Dream. There are many routes people take in order to get there such as; inheritance, deceit, or working hard for it. It is the ideal that everyone should have the opportunity by working hard to achieve success.

“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

     While there are numerous themes throughout the text of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, the most prominent is that of the American Dream. The American Dream is the idea that any person, no matter what he or she is, or from where he or she has come, can become successful in life by his or her hard work; it is the idea that a self-sufficient person, an entrepreneur, can be a success. In this novel, however, it is the quest for this ‘dream’ (along with the pursuit of a romantic dream) that causes the ultimate downfall of Jay Gatsby.

While everyone has dreams, some being far greater and more ambitious than others, these dreams aren't always within the grasp of reality. The Great Gatsby was focused around a man whose own dreams were so close to being obtainable, it seemed almost impossible for him to not achieve them. The “American Dream” centralises around the idea that everyone has the opportunity to be successful through hard work, determination, and by having the right mindset. Triumphing over life's obstacles during the “Roaring 20’s”, Gatsby was able to achieve success in the heart of the country; New York. ​F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, is a novel about the American dream. ​Through the use of symbolism and characterization,

Jay Gatsby believed that to live a happy life he had to have money and a high status. Gatsby however "fails to overlook the fact the fullest kinds of pleasure come from the understanding of accomplishments"(Fahey 70) and not the flaunting of the results of his success. Gatsby foolishly tries to get the approval of every one around him but fails to see that it was slowly guiding him towards failure. Gatsby used the American Dream as a way “ to create a new self as though the self is all surface and appearance,”(Leone 127) which was a way the dream was twisted in the 1920’s.

In the 1920’s the United States was rapidly changing. World war 1 was great for American businesses, and the economy grew immensely. Americans, of all races and gender, were living the high life, and the American dream was born. The idea of this dream was that everyone should be rich, happy, loving, and can be if they work hard enough. The American dream was very diverse and looked different for everyone; women were completely new people, African Americans were free, and immigrants were flooding into America. In the story, The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald does a poor job of portraying the American dream for most of the country.

In the book, The Great Gatsby, it shows what happened to the American Dream in the 1920's, which is a day and age when the dreams got the opportunity to be particularly polluted for a few reasons. The American dream is both a blessing and a curse in light of the way that unfortunately for Myrtle, Gatsby and Daisy it has brought on pleasure and destruction. The American Dream is defined by, “the set of ideals (democracy, rights, liberty, opportunity, and equality) in which freedom includes the opportunity for prosperity and success”, and the people in the 1920’s are obsessed with having more and not appreciating what they already have. Gatsby has the wealth, connections with people of a higher power, a large home, and throws parties every weekend

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.

To many people, The Great Gatsby is a perfect example of the American Dream because of its positive portrayal of it. James Gatz was the product of unsuccessful farm people (Fitzgerald 98). From the text, one can also find out that in the year before James Gatz became Jay Gatsby, Jay had been beating his way along the south