The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald

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

‘ "Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone," he told me, "just remember the advantages that you 've had..." In consequence I 'm inclined to reserve all judgments.’

For America, the 1920’s was a time of economic prosperity, and political and social changes. The growth of cities, consumer buying, and fashion changes were some of the key changes and developments during this time. Everyone wanted to achieve the American Dream. They were to achieve this dream no matter what they had to go through, whether it be illegal or not. The Temperance Movement took place during this era and many citizens were upset with the government and disagreed with the prohibition. The Temperance Movement was the prohibition of alcohol by the government. It banned the buying, selling and the consumption of any type of alcohol. Many women began to abandon the long and conservative dresses; They wore short, revealing dresses with long necklaces and they had the classic bobbed hairstyle. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald is about the relationships between the main characters: Nick Carraway, Daisy and Tom Buchanan, and Jay Gatsby. It is set in New York during the “Roaring 20s”. The Great Gatsby incorporated the aspects of the 1920s by including the effects of the idea of American Dream, the rich and careless lives of its citizens during the Temperance movements and the emergence of women’s more sexual and independent in society.

The 1920s gained its nickname, The Roaring Twenties from its wild and carefree lifestyle. The extensive wealth of the time filled most nights with parties, dancing, crazy antics, and illegal alcohol. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, encompassed all of the aspects listed above. Not only did the book express the exciting side of the Twenties, it also expressed lack of morality of the time. According to The Great Gatsby, this lack of morality stemmed from the focus on material items, drinking, and dreaming.

Do 
obstacles 
in someone’s 
life
 change 
their 
passions?
 If 
something
 
 unexpected 
occurs,
 does 
one 
turn 
his
 or 
her 
back
 on 
all
 that 
has 
been 
worked 
for? 
In
 an
 American
 society,
 there
 is
 an
 idea
 of
 a
 dream.
 Most
 people
 have
 dreams
 that
 differ 
from 
one
 another. 
Dreams
 are 
not 
limited 
only 
to 
society. 
Countless 
numbers
 of
 times
 in
 American
 literature,
 there
 are
 moments
 when
 an
 obstacle
 slows
 or
 possibly
 halts
 progression.
 Dreams
 can
 also
 be
 found
 in
 American
 literature;
 however,
 like
 the
 reality
 of
 society,
 barriers
 can
 be
 a
 component
 of
 having
 aspirations.
 Barriers
 create
 obstacles,
 whether
 emotional
 or
 physical,
 that
 make
 achieving 
a
 dream 
difficult 
or
 even 
appear 
to 
be 
impossible. 
In 
American 
literature
 dreams 
seem 
to 
be 
unattainable 
because 
of 
barriers.

The exuberant, wild, freewheeling time of the roaring twenties was a period that will go down in the history books for the rest of time. But was the roaring twenties everything it was cracked up to be? The disregard for the status quo, twisting of social conventions, and the normalcy of law breaking was frowned upon by the “good” citizens, but considered revolutionary to almost everyone else. So why is it that F. Scott Fitzgerald, who took great part in the new social trends of the roaring twenties, would write about the time period with such resentment. The Great Gatsby is a reflection of the poor decision making and idiocy of the people from the twenties.

The novel The Great Gatsby helps generations portray what life was like in New York during the Roaring twenties and the era of Prohibition. (Moss). The Great Gatsby reflects America’s own loss of influence in the face of the crass materialism of the 1920’s (Pavolski). The 18th amendment, the people’s disregardment of morality resulting to lack of spiritual views and the vast corruption during this time period are all displayed by F. Scott Fitzgerald. During this novel color symbolism and other various types of symbolism are portrayed. The influence of money greed and fortune are also vastly displayed throughout this novel. In

The characters from the novel The Great Gatsby by Scott F. Fitzgerald are used to portray the roles of men and women that lived in the time period of the 1920’s. Fitzgerald uses the fictional characters from to the novel to criticize this time period because he believed that the majority of the people that existed in the 1920’s were naïve and unworthy. The American society from the 1920’s lacked of freedom, moral value, and sincere happiness.

Nick also helps Gatsby realize that no one truly cares but only care about his parties and of course, his money. Jay Gatsby is another main character in the story. The symbolism in the story is about his quest for Daisy, which later he is shot taking the blame Daisy, saving her life.

In The Great Gatsby the American Dream assumes a huge part. In it you can see what occurred it during the 1920s. The qualities have completely changed, as opposed to striving for achievement, they simply need to get as rich as they could get.so it is not astonishing that the new sort of American dream falls flat a few times, which F. Scott Fitzgerald depicts in his book. He demonstrates that individuals are not yet treated just as and that social segregation still exists, which is depicted in the scene where Tom and Wilson converse with one another in Chapter II. For the reader it is promptly clear that Tom sees himself as better than Wilson. We can see that when Wilson needs to exchange Tom 's old auto. Tom essentially goes ahead with his amusement with Wilson since he needs to proceed with his issue with Wilson 's wife, as a consequence of that he doesn 't give the auto to Wilson. Wilson’s fantasy is to acquire enough cash to move away with his wife and to begin another life some spot lovely. In any case his fantasy can simply get to be valid with the assistance of Tom. Despite the fact that, Wilson does not understand that Tom would not like to help him get a car whatsoever. His fantasy fizzles, when his wife is murdered, which is the fact of the matter were life gets to be silly to him. Another example of how the American dream is portrayed in The Great Gatsby is Mr. Wilson wife, Myrtle Wilson, her dream; she needs to turn into a young lady of the high society.

“The Great Gatsby” By F. Scott Fitzgerald is the tale of the glamorous lifestyle of the 1920s. Following World War I, America entered the roaring economic boom called the “roaring twenties.” The novel follows the life of Jay Gatsby through the eyes of his friend, and narrator, Nick Carraway. The American dream is based on living well, and earning money. Michael Schudson from Oxford University American Literary History describes the American dream as the idea “anyone, with hard work according to the rules, has a reasonable prospect of succeeding in life.”(566). Meanwhile, Jay Gatsby’s life revolves around the American dream of wealth and extravagance. However, critics argue if Gatsby is a good representation of the American dream. George Wilson, a hardworking mechanic, is a more accurate representation of the American Dream. Unlike Gatsby, Wilson earns his living honestly, pursues his dream, and aims for happiness despite the hardships.

The Roaring Twenties was a time of great changes. The economy in that time was through the roof and Americans felt cheerful and carefree after WWI ending which caused people to party everywhere. During this time, there was a legal ban on making and selling alcohol which was the prohibition. All of these events tie into F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel The Great Gatsby’s historical background.

America had become enormously wealthy during the 1920s. Not only in money, but also in culture; everything had significantly changed. There were large parties filled with alcohol despite prohibition, rich people spending their money recklessly as if there were no tomorrow, and jazz music filling the ears of this new vigorous generation. It has been said that during this time the morals were “looser”. This particular decade has been given several nicknames such as “The Roaring Twenties”, “The Lost Generation” and “The Jazz Age” because of the many events that occurred at the time. Nearly all the people enjoyed their fortunes and fed their hunger for materialistic items by constantly buying new things that they did not need. This strange desire for material items had become the American Dream; this is what people wanted. In the novel The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald writes about various characters who spend their entire life trying to achieve their money-based American Dream. Despite their vast efforts, they never reach it. Fitzgerald illustrates in his novel that the American Dream is desired by all, but cannot be obtained by everyone because it has been corrupted by materialism.

The way she decorates the apartment, it is tasteless and cheap, despite her consistent efforts to imitate the wealthy. Myrtle was trying her best to climb the social ladder and using Tom as an asset. She was demolishing what she was born into to get where she wanted, she was imitating the wealthy in her best struggles to fit in. Myrtle has her affair with Tom due to the privileged world it grants her access to, which is her version of the American Dream, where wealth and being at the top of social class hierarchy is success. Myrtle idolizes the corruption of the 1920s, that one must be born into money in order to reap

Of all of Fitzgerald’s novels, this one was considered the greatest book. Fitzgerald coined the term "Jazz Age" to refer to the period more commonly known as the Roaring Twenties. Jazz is an American style of music marked by its complex and exuberant mix of rhythms and tonalities. The Great Gatsby portrays a similarly complex mix of emotions and themes that reflect the turbulence of the times. Fresh off the nightmare of World War I, Americans were enjoying the fruits of an economic boom and a renewed sense of possibility. But in The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald’s stresses the darker side of the Roaring Twenties, its undercurrent of corruption and its desperate, empty decadence.