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The Illusion of the American Dream in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s “The Great Gatsby”
Gatsby’s Pursuit of the American Dream
The Great Gatsby is one of the best pieces written in American literature. Written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, an American novelist, and writer who shows the American Dream that is represented by Jay Gatsby, a character in his book The Great Gatsby. Gatsby has a humble background and works to gain wealth and build his social status. He believes that by achieving all of this, he will be accepted by the first class; instead, he is rejected and then later killed after mingling with them. Fitzgerald blames the notion that America is a country where anyone can surface from immersed poverty and grow to the top with enough hard work and dedication.
The American Dream is believed that any person, despite age and social status, class, and nationality, can be successful and bloom in America only if they fulfill the American Dream and work hard enough. The dream assumes crucial aspects of tax evasion, income, and class equality when the country has a well-established hierarchy of classes. In The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby is from a very poor family that makes little to nothing, and the only thing that his father is good at is farming. Gatsby falls in love with and young girl named Daisy, but she does not want to marry him because he is poor (Fitzgerald 44).
The Corrupting Influence of Wealth and Morality in the 1920s
This then motivates Gatsby to work hard and earn a lot of money with the thought on the back of his head that when he returns to town, he will ask for Daisy’s hand in marriage again. This time Gatsby hopes that Daisy will accept him now that he has wealth, but to his surprise, Daisy gets married to another man with wealth named Tom. Gatsby’s wealth is corrupt with dirty money. He is involved with many drug stores that are connected to prohibition, but when his guilt awakens and torments him, he consoles himself by saying that he is doing it all for Daisy. The Great Gatsby and 1920 had powerful and rich people who had bad morals ranging from cheating, bootlegging, and even murder.
They were full of shameless and corrupt people who hid behind their wealth when things went wrong. Later the people would resurface when all the pressure had gone away with their illegal activities. “They were careless people, Tom and Daisy-They smashed up things and creatures and then retreated into their money…(Fitzgerald 187). Both Tom and Daisy cared little about other people’s life and, as shown in the book. Daisy drove into Myrtle and killed her by accident. Daisy was so heartless that she did not stop at all, even to see who she hit and if the person was okay, and if she needed any help to save her life. But Tom knew that he was the downfall of Gatsby and his death when Tom mentioned Gatsby as the murderer of George’s wife, Myrtle.
Wealth, Morality, and the Pursuit of the ‘Elect’ in the 1920s Society
Tom felt no remorse for the mess he started. The Buchanans hid behind their wealth by traveling out of town until the murder story of Myrtles dyed down. It is shown the level of irresponsibility by not owning careless actions. In 1920, the United States endorsed immigrants, which brought with them their own culture, like “The Doctrine of Elect” by John Calvin. John believed that the human race was subjected to downfall because of the sin Adam & Eve committed. Due to this, the humanity people could not be saved. John called it” The Elect” If someone failed to have a hardworking life and rich life, God would leave them and forget their status. It made humans more aggressive for money against the fact they had been instructed it was impossible.
After a lot of research, it was concluded that material wealth could be an explanation for their prayers, and dedication had finally been answered. Goodliness and money were the basic claims for one to be considered an “Elect” They set up a basic in which if a person did not earn or allow them was not only considered damaging but also a sinner. An example of this is if you did not dress in classy clothes, lived in a big house and attended a certain school, or drove an expensive car, you would be considered lesser than everyone. It was the right amount of motivation for people to strive and work to gain wealth and status within their power. It would turn and improve their ideal ways of living and empower them to have more comfortable lives by attempting the original sin and helping the human race.
The lifestyle was very different in ways where they threw a lot of parties. An individual would be recognized by the amount of cash they spent on alcohol and fancy clothes. In the search for wealth and people that lost their morals. They battle to be the best in everything, like their status, the position they have, and the amount of wealth they are worth. In chapter 4, Jordan Baker tells Nick the story of Gatsby and Daisy (Fitzgerald 22). Daisy was so dazed by the idea of gaining wealth and becoming famous. She fell in love with Gatsby but would not marry him because he had no money and was poor. Gatsby was motivated to work very hard and had the view if he got money and built up his social status, Daisy would accept him. Fitzgerald was showing how it is to portray his money and unique lifestyle that makes people lose their ethics because they are to do what they have to achieve it.
References:
- Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby. Scribner, 1925.
- Bloom, Harold, editor. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. Infobase Publishing, 2010.
- Bruccoli, Matthew J. Some Sort of Epic Grandeur: The Life of F. Scott Fitzgerald. University of South Carolina Press, 2002.
- Mizener, Arthur. The Far Side of Paradise: A Biography of F. Scott Fitzgerald. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2009.
- Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby. Scribner, 1925. (For page references, e.g., Fitzgerald 44, Fitzgerald 187, and Fitzgerald 22)
- Johnston, Carol Siri. “The American Dream in The Great Gatsby: A Critical Consideration.” American Literature 76.4 (2004): 751-782.
- Kazin, Alfred. “F. Scott Fitzgerald: The Man and His Work.” The American Scholar 21.1 (1951): 33-47.
- Hochschild, Jennifer L. “Facing Up to the American Dream: Race, Class, and the Soul of the Nation.” Princeton University Press, 1995.
- Truslow, James Adams. “The Epic of America.” Little, Brown, and Company, 1931.
- Leuchtenburg, William E. The Perils of Prosperity, 1914-32. University of Chicago Press, 1958.
- Scharnhorst, Gary, editor. F. Scott Fitzgerald: The Critical Reception. Camden House, 1984.
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