The Amazing Dream : F. Scott Fitzgerald 's The Great Gatsby

       In F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel The Great Gatsby, the principle character, Jay Gatsby makes an exhaustive effort in his quest for the American Dream. The novel is Fitzgerald's vessel of commentary and criticism of the American Dream. “Fitzgerald defines this Dream, he depicts its’ beauty and irresistible lure”(Bewley 113). Through Gatsby's downfall, Fitzgerald expresses the futility and agony of the pursuit of the dream.

The Great Gatsby, a novel written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is a story of misguided love between a man and a woman. Fitzgerald takes his reader through the turbulence and trials of Jay Gatsby’s life and of his pining for the girl he met five years prior. The main theme of the novel, however, is not solely about the love shared between Daisy Buchanan and Jay Gatsby. The main purpose is to show the decline and decay of the American Dream in the 1920’s. The American Dream is the goal or idea which suggests that all people can succeed through hard work, and that all have the potential to live happy, successful lives. While on the surface, Gatsby

Everyone in society has dreams, some bigger than others and some will go so far to lose what's most important to pursue the one dream they believe in. In the book The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Fitzgerald tells the dream of Jay Gatsby and how it was too out of reach for him to obtain. Jay Gatsby is a very wealthy man who only cares about one thing in his life and that is to be with Daisy Buchanan. Daisy is an upper class lady that Gatsby used to be in a relationship with before he went into the World War. While Gatsby was at war Daisy got married to someone else and for the past five years Gatsby has been trying to win her back through materialistic and un moral ways. Gatsby’s dream is to be with Daisy and to once again repeat his long lived past. In the novel The Great Gatsby, Scott Fitzgerald uses Gatsby's pursuit of the green light to reveal that due to materialism and lack of moral rights that the American Dream is unattainable for society.

Dreams may be defined as a goal a person will do anything to achieve during their lifetime. In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Jay Gatsby creates a false sense of wealth and affluence to achieve his dream of marrying Daisy, and in the process he loses his identity.

Everyone has dreams of being successful in life. When the word American comes to mind one often thinks of the land of opportunity. This dream was apparent with the first settlers, and it is apparent in today’s society. In F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby (1925), he illustrates the challenges and tragedies associated with the American dream. By examining Jay Gatsby, Tom Buchanan, and Myrtle Wilson through the narrator Nick Carraway, I understand the complex nature of the American dream. Jay Gatsby represents the cost complex of them all.

the green light at the end of daisy’s dock is mentioned throughout the novel. It’s clear that Gatsby is aware that the light belongs to her, which is why he stares at it night after night. “The dream [that] must have seemed so close that he could hardly fail to grasp it" (Fitzgerald 149). It’s clear from this quote that the green light is symbolic for an unobtainable dream. On the surface, it may appear that it’s symbolic of Gatsby never having Daisy for himself, but when looking at the novel as a whole, the light symbolizes the life that Gatsby dreamed of, but will never have.

Gatsby’s Life and the American Dream In the 1920’s, the American dream was, to say the least, not at its best. It was slowly becoming more and more corrupt. In the novel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, he writes about a character named Gatsby and his dream, and how it embodies the American dream. Jay Gatsby was a thirty-two-year-old rich man who had one goal: winning the heart of Daisy Buchanan.

In the book The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald portrays the American Dream by using many symbols to describe the American Dream. For example, Fitzgerald uses the “Green Light” at the end of Daisy’s dock; this light symbolizes Gatsby’s dreams and desires to have a life with Daisy. The color green symbolizes money which is Gatsby’s desire and dream, along with being with Daisy. The American Dream can be defined as the acquisition of wealth that is attainable and fulfilling. The Great Gatsby is a story about a “millionaire” named Jay Gatsby who falls in love with the lovely Daisy Fay Buchanan, who is married to her husband Tom. Tom is having an affair with the garage owner’s wife Myrtle. The story is told by Gatsby’s neighbor Nick Carraway,

The realization of a person’s dreams may be the threshold between the falsehood and reality of them. In The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, he shows the difference between the west and east eggs and the dreams the residents have. Dreams are complex illusions that give a falsity in life so that people can escape into their fantasies or paradises.

      America is a land of opportunity and hopes and dreams can become reality. The "American Dream" consists of the notion that the struggling poor can achieve financial success through hard work. F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel, The Great Gatsby, puts this premise to the test while also warning against the dangers of believing too passionately in any dream. The central character, Jay Gatsby, "proves a tragic hero who succeeds financially but fails emotionally when he attempts to hold onto something from the past"(Mizener 126).   Gatsby not only possesses imaginative dreams, but also idealistic illusions. These illusions eventually result in the unfortunate downfall of Jay Gatsby.

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is a novel about the American Dream. In the Great Gatsby, the dream is that one can acquire happiness through wealth and power. To get his happiness Jay attempts to reacquire the love of his lost sweet heart, Daisy. The main problem with Jay's dream is that Daisy is married. Gatsby's personal dream symbolizes the larger American Dream 'The pursuit of happiness'.

it is what preyed on Gatsby, what foul dust floated in the wake of his

The Great Gatsby is set in post WWI America and at the time, the American dream was for any hardworking person to be able to achieve success and happiness regardless of their background or social class. This was a time of great change and revolution with the roaring twenties and rising middle class.

Gatsby was very successful in life and used the American Dream to his advantage, but not it's full potential. He never had a family, was never happy, and had hardly any friends. Jay Gatsby is not a good representation of the American dream because he missed the very essence of it. Gatsby used it not to succeed in life but to get Daisy Daisy know. That is not what the American dream is about. Gatsby abused and perverted the American dream to try and split up a family, which is at the very core of America itself not to mention the dream. Gatsby is not and will never be a good representation of the American

In Gatsby’s case, his dream is short lived when he realizes he can never “repeat the past”(Fitzgerald Page #). Jay Gatsby is a physical representation of a man so blinded by his own greed, that he cannot see the true reality. After realizing the failing promises that the American Dream offers, and the ways in which the American Dream is only applied to specific people, these protagonists want to create their version of an America that actually fulfills their promises of the American Dream.