Jay Gatsby Downfall

There is one main over-arching purposes of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. The purpose being that the “American dream” is unachievable. While Fitzgerald does not directly say the “American dream” cannot be real or cannot be accomplished, he uses different characters as well as the plot itself to represent his argument. The “American dream” also known as goals; are standards that people set for themselves to reach success or greatness. Fitzgerald is saying that the people who pursue the “American dream” can never be satisfied because they will always strive for more. Tom Buchanan’s life represents the typical “American dream” in the 1920’s, Myrtle Wilson and Jay Gatsby represent why the “America dream” corrupts and destroys. The desire
Myrtle craves the dream of living a lavish lifestyle. Myrtle knows she is the mistress everyone speaks of, but she does not care because Tom offers her the life she wants. Unlike George Wilson; her husband; Tom can provide her a nice apartment in the city, a dog that cost ten dollars, and anything she wants. Myrtle takes full advantage of Tom’s generosity, until she wants more; she wants to be married to Tom, Myrtle strives for more than what she already has. She becomes accustomed to lying to George and sneaking away from him. “Wilson? He thinks she goes to see her sister in New York.” (Gatsby 26) Myrtle rejects her own social class and tries to pursue a life she can never have. Fitzgerald purposely makes Myrtle non-accepting of her own life because the modern definition of the “American dream” stands only for people who can go from being poor to having an abundance of money. Fitzgerald wants people to know that in order to try to reach the “American dream” they cannot just impersonate someone they want to be, but they have to actually work hard to obtain
“He and this Wolfsheim bought up a lot of side-street drug-store here and in Chicago and sold grain alcohol over the counter.” (Gatsby 133). In this time period people who did not inherit their money are considered “new money” and people who did inherit their money are called “old money”. Everyone who seems to live the “American dream” (Tom Buchanan and Jordan Baker) are “old money”, all their lives they have had money. Gatsby’s dream is to be prosperous and marry daisy, but within the plan of accomplishing his dream, he has some flaws. One is selling alcohol illegally to become a part of the upper-class and the other being he chases daisy, even though she is married. Gatsby only throws massive parties in hopes that Daisy will come to one. He spends a prolonged amount of his life searching for her. When he finally finds her, he thinks he will marry her and they will leave the perfect life, but Daisy does not go for it, she tells him “Oh, you want too much…I love you now – isn’t that enough?” (Gatsby 132). She only likes the material things Gatsby possess. “They’re such beautiful shirts,” “she sobbed.” (Gatsby 92) Daisy falls into the class of “old money” along with Tom. She will always be wealthy, so she does not have to flaunt her money, so when sees what an enchanting life Gatsby lives, she is intrigued and