Happiness In The Great Gatsby

Chris Farrell
Pursuing Happiness Why is it that when writing the Declaration of Independence Thomas Jefferson stated that American’s had the right to the pursuit of happiness instead of automatic happiness? Did he believe happiness was unachievable? In the book , The Great Gatsby by F.Scott Fitzgerald, Jay Gatsby is in the pursuit of happiness trying by all means necessary to achieve this goal, the goal that all human kind shares, happiness. For his entire life, Jay Gatsby has been striving to find happiness. From when he was a young boy keeping a journal on how to better himself, until his adulthood where he worked as a bootlegger. All of these activities had one main goal in the end; to better himself and to acquire a higher social status.
During this portion of the story, which involves the mantle clock, Gatsby is at Nick’s house for his first meeting with Daisy since they last met five years ago. The mantle clock sits upon the ledge above the fireplace looking over the reunion of the two. “His head leaned back so far that it rested against the face of a defunct mantelpiece clock, and from this position his distraught eyes stared at Daisy” (Fitzgerald 91). As Gatsby stares at Daisy he is remembering the past they shared and the love they felt. In order to find happiness Gatsby knows he must make the past reoccur. His entire “pursuit of happiness” revolves around this idea, which is what the mantle clock symbolizes entirely. Gatsby becomes lost in his thought and his head drifts heavier and heavier upon the clock. Gatsby and Daisy begin to talk and Gatsby says to Daisy “we’ve met before”. “The clock took this moment to tilt dangerously at the pressure of his head, whereupon he turned and caught it with trembling fingers and set it back in place” (Fitzgerald 91). The fact that the clock falls provides us with some foreshadowing. We see through this event that Gatsby will be unsuccessful in turning back time and never find true
In the library, a man that Nick refers to as Owl Eyes is sitting there admiring the collection of vintage books. ""See!" he cried triumphantly. "It's a bona fide piece of printed matter. It fooled me. This fella's a regular Belasco. It's a triumph. What thoroughness! What realism…"" (Fitzgerald 50). Owl Eyes is raving about the books. Hundreds of books were in this library of Gatsby's, and not one of them had been touched. Every single one was in pristine condition. These books show the material aspect of wealth that Gatsby hopes will upgrade him in social class. In Gatsby's mind if he wants to win the heart of Daisy he must be at the same level of wealth as her. By having possessions such as the books Gatsby believes he will reach that level. Later on in the story, during Gatsby and Daisy's first meeting, Gatsby decides he will give Daisy a tour of his mansion. They go up to Gatsby's room and into his closet where piles of beautiful shirts are stacked high. "He took out a pile of shirts and began throwing them one by one before us, shirts of sheer linen and thick silk and fine flannel which lost their folds as they fell and covered the table in many-colored disarray" (Fitzgerald 97). By tossing the fine shirts around Gatsby is trying to show to Daisy how meaningless they are to him. He is trying to show Daisy, through example, his