The American Dream in the Great Gatsby
The ‘American Dream’ in The Great Gatsby
It has been said that “people are so busy dreaming the American Dream, fantasizing about what they could be or have a right to be, that they’re all asleep at the switch, [the American man has lost his focus]” <www.thinkexist.com>. What exists behind the vision of the American Dream is a paralleled unreality. Humans are dreamers, and desires often create beliefs in people’s minds that lead them to strongly believe in a successful outcome. Unfortunately, these driving desires take individuals from reality. They are then led place false hope in destructive factors. It is hard to see that dream does not actually exist, and the truth that it is not real. For that reason individuals pursuing the dream eventually destroy themselves. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, the spirited main character, Jay Gatsby is corrupted in his pursuit of the ‘American Dream’. The Great Gatsby is set to illustrate the roaring 20s, a period in which young men and women pursued a freer lifestyle. Fitzgerald attempts to exhibit the crisis that most of these individuals faced: they were chasing the ‘American Dream’. The ‘American Dream’ is a common aspiration shared between many young individuals who pursued a life of self-made wealth and true love. Corruption of the society by destructive factors, such as bootlegging and other felonious acts, resulted in an end to an intoxicating era, and eventually an end to the ‘American Dream’. Being deprived of ‘the good life’, impressionable Jay Gatsby is corrupted by men who persuade him, with their self-made image, to partake in illegal activities. Once a self made man, Gatsby transitions into high-class society, and his idea of respect is lost as he discovers the dark nature of the privileged society. Furthermore, Gatsby’s memories of an old love corrupt his mind when he sees that she embodies the unachievable ‘American Dream’. In The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby dreams of self-made
It has been said that “people are so busy dreaming the American Dream, fantasizing about what they could be or have a right to be, that they’re all asleep at the switch, [the American man has lost his focus]” <www.thinkexist.com>. What exists behind the vision of the American Dream is a paralleled unreality. Humans are dreamers, and desires often create beliefs in people’s minds that lead them to strongly believe in a successful outcome. Unfortunately, these driving desires take individuals from reality. They are then led place false hope in destructive factors. It is hard to see that dream does not actually exist, and the truth that it is not real. For that reason individuals pursuing the dream eventually destroy themselves. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, the spirited main character, Jay Gatsby is corrupted in his pursuit of the ‘American Dream’. The Great Gatsby is set to illustrate the roaring 20s, a period in which young men and women pursued a freer lifestyle. Fitzgerald attempts to exhibit the crisis that most of these individuals faced: they were chasing the ‘American Dream’. The ‘American Dream’ is a common aspiration shared between many young individuals who pursued a life of self-made wealth and true love. Corruption of the society by destructive factors, such as bootlegging and other felonious acts, resulted in an end to an intoxicating era, and eventually an end to the ‘American Dream’. Being deprived of ‘the good life’, impressionable Jay Gatsby is corrupted by men who persuade him, with their self-made image, to partake in illegal activities. Once a self made man, Gatsby transitions into high-class society, and his idea of respect is lost as he discovers the dark nature of the privileged society. Furthermore, Gatsby’s memories of an old love corrupt his mind when he sees that she embodies the unachievable ‘American Dream’. In The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby dreams of self-made
Bibliography: "American Dream quotes & quotations." Find the famous quotes you need, ThinkExist.com Quotations. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 May 2013. Fitzgerald, F Scott. The Great Gatsby. New York, NY: Scribner, 2004. Print. “The Great Gatsby.” Novels for Students. Ed. Diane Telgen. Vol 2.Detroit: Gale, 1997: 74-85 "F. Scott Fitzgerald Quotes (Author of The Great Gatsby)." Share Book Recommendations With Your Friends, Join Book Clubs, Answer Trivia. N.p., n.d. Web. 9 May 2013.