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The Faded American Dream in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby

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The Faded American Dream in The Great Gatsby

THESIS: In F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel "The Great Gatsby", the American Dream faded away due to materialism, infidelity, and an imposing lack of solidarity.

Hope, perseverance, hard working ambition and adventure are some of the characteristics of the American Dream. However, the American Dream didn't last forever. F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel "The Great Gatsby" clearly reflects how the society's life was during the roaring twenties and how it led to the American Dream's destruction. One of the American Dream's greatest causes for its death is materialism. This means that the modern values turned the American Dream's wholesome principles into materialistic ones making people …show more content…

All this materialisms revolves around money; "all they think of is money" (Fitzgerald 35). When Tom Buchanan and Nick are at Catherine's (Myrtle's sister) house with the McKees, all they do is talk about money. When they first mention the word "Gatsby", the first thing they say is "they say he's a nephew or a cousin of Kaiser Wilhelm's. That's where all his money comes from" (Fitzgerald 37). In this occasion the fact about where his money comes from is out of context. On that same evening, Mrs. McKee says that she "almost made a mistake" (Fitzgerald 38) by "almost [marrying] a little kyke who'd been after [her] for years, and [she] knew he was below [her]" (Fitzgerald 38). This not only shows materialism but superficiality. Mrs. McKee decides not to marry with him only because he was below her. These people do not go beyond a physical appearance or economic status. They are blind to the inner wealth: the soul. On the other hand, throughout the novel, it is evident that Gatsby's greatest desire is to gain Daisy's love again. He believes that in order to make his dream come true, he must be from the high class so he chooses to become rich so "wealth becomes his superficial goal overshadowing his quest for love" (Website2). However, at the end he becomes aware that he is only looking for money, not love. When Gatsby says that "her voice is full of money" (Fitzgerald 127), he realizes that by taking

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