The American Dream In The Great Gatsby

The American Nightmare The idea that anyone, regardless of ethnicity, religion, or socio-economic background can succeed through hard work is what is commonly referred to as the American Dream. This dream, regardless of whether it truly exists or not, is a pursuit of all Americans, and is what brings people from all four corners of the Earth to the United States of America. Most would view the desire to succeed and fulfill the “American Dream” as a valuable and praise worthy endeavor. Fitzgerald however, through his novel The Great Gatsby, reveals to us that the pursuit for success and fame is not necessarily a positive thing. As evidenced by The Great Gatsby, the American Dream is a corrupted ideal. It is a destructive endeavor, and does
not bring true happiness or satisfaction. In The Great Gatsby, the wealthy members of the East Egg, who have clearly accomplished the American Dream, are characterized as corrupt, self-centered individuals.
The Buchanons, specifically, lack morality and any real form of consideration for other people. Tom Buchanon, the epitome of wealth and success, indulges in sinful shameful activities such as having extra-marital affairs. He does not even seem to truly love his girlfriend, Myrtle, and only sees the relationship as a fling, an escapade of self indulgence. Even his wife Daisy, after running over Myrtle with her car by accident, runs away from the scene, refusing to face the consequences. Since she has a wealthy husband to fall back on, Daisy feels a false sense of exemption from moral consequences. The members of the upper class, while they have seemingly achieved the American Dream, are failures as moral human beings, and lack any redeeming or noble qualities. They are selfish, and look upon the lower classes with disdain and
disgust. At the same time however, the lower class blindly pursues the wealth and success of the upper class while not realizing their demoralizing effects. They have a disillusioned concept of the American Dream, mistaking material wealth and a lavish lifestyle for happiness and satisfaction. In Myrtle’s apartment party, Caroline and the other people who were invited get intoxicated off of expensive liquor, and act sophisticated and wealthy to appear of a higher class. Myrtle, perhaps the biggest culprit of this, shows her disillusionment when she says, “I married him because I thought he was a gentleman, I thought he knew something, but he wasn’t fit to lick my shoe.” Myrtle and all of the people invited at the party are pursuing an American Dream not of success, hard work and prosperity, but of materialism, class distinctions, and egotism. The pursuit of the American Dream in The Great Gatsby is a destructive path of moral decay rather than a path towards success and happiness. Ironically, even the title character, Jay Gatsby, apparently the quintessential success story of the American Dream, is still unhappy with his life.
Gatsby throws lavish parties and lives in an extravagant mansion, but is still unable to find happiness due to his failed relationship with Daisy. Gatsby, initially a member of the lower class, committed his life to becoming wealthy and successful to become a more suitable husband for Daisy. When he is unable to rehabilitate his relationship with Daisy, Gatsby is left with nothing but his extravagant wealth, most of which was acquired illegally and is now useless to him. The tragic story of Gatsby’s pointless pursuit to fulfill the American Dream shows how corrupted and destructive the dream has become. Even a successful achievement of wealth and success does not promise
happiness. The American Dream, as evidenced by Fitzgerald, is not even a dream. It is an illusion that has been contaminated with corruption and greed, leading to dissatisfaction and unhappiness. The lower class is trapped in a misguided struggle to become successful, while the actually successful people drown in a pool of moral decay and mindless self indulgence. The entire pursuit of the American Dream is depicted as a corrupted cycle of materialism and narcissism. Fitzgerald is perhaps urging us to look beyond the material world, to strive for a sense of happiness and security beyond those offered by wealth and abundance.