Myrtle's Dream In The Great Gatsby

A billionaire, an astronaut, or the next president of the United States of America. Every child grows up with a dream in their head of who they want to be when they grow up. While for many people, this dream fades throughout their lifetime or becomes something more realistic, some will stop at nothing to become what they have always wanted to be and obtain what they have always desired. For the characters of The Great Gatsby, a novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald, these dreams manifest themselves as a man who has obtained true love, a wealthy woman living among the elite of East Egg, and a passionate lover. The characters, fully and utterly centered around achieving their greatest aspirations, powerfully portray the catastrophic repercussions that result from a lack concern for the well-being of others in attempt to reach one’s dream. In The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald suggests that when people are blinded by desire, they become indifferent to the negative consequences their actions
Scott Fitzgerald shows the disastrous repercussions that occur when people are focused purely upon attaining their aspirations while neglecting how others will be affected. This is demonstrated through the lack of concern Gatsby displays for Daisy’s marriage in the pursuit of finally being with her, Myrtle's thoughtless emotional abandonment of Wilson in an attempt to gain a higher social status, and Tom’s reckless affair that results in fatal consequences for many. Much like in the novel, everyday, millions of people pursue their desires, but their decisions and compromises are, hopefully, based not only on what is best for themselves, but what is ideal for their friends and family as well. While these resolutions are often extremely difficult to make, it is crucial that society continues to take into account how pursuing one’s desires may affect others, as a mere moment of thought and careful consideration may save many from unnecessary hardship and