What Is The American Dream In The Great Gatsby Prompts
The Great Gatsby (Prompt # 1) The American Dream
Introduction The Great Gatsby by F Scott Fitzgerald is a tragic love story on the surface, but it is commonly known for it’s pessimistic critique of the American Dream. In the novel, Jay Gatsby overcomes his poor past to gain an incredible amount of money and a very limited social reputation to be closer to his American Dream (Daisy). He did all that only to be turned down by the “old money” crowd, he then gets killed after being tangled up with them. No amount of hard work could change where Gatsby came from. Merit and hard work aren’t enough, so the American Dream collapses just like the ballooning dresses of Jordan and Daisy when Nike first sees them. Fitzgerald uses the American Dream to show that the independence and the ability to make something of one’s self with hard work sometime ends up being more about materialism and selfish pursuit of pleasure.
Gatsby was known as a misterious wealthy man who threw luxrious parties at his mansion. No one knew who he really was, and never saw him enjoying the fruit of his own parties. One afternoon Nike saw him at the back of his mansion with his hands stretched towards the waters. “I decided to call to him. Miss Baker had mentioned him at dinner, and that would do for an introduction. But I didn't call to him, for he gave a sudden intimation that he was content to be alone—he stretched out his arms toward the dark water in a curious way, and, far as I was from him, I could have …show more content…
sworn he was trembling. Involuntarily I glanced seaward—and distinguished nothing except a single green light, minute and far away, that might have been the end of a dock. When I looked once more for Gatsby he had vanished, and I was alone again in the unquiet darkness. (Chapter 1.152)” After he had left Oxford, Gatsby worked for five years to buy his house closer to Daisy, but opposite from where she lived in West Egg. Gatsby threw parties to lure Daisy to his home, but he never knew that she wasn’t into large parties. He asked Nike to invite Daisy to tea at his house where he would ‘accidently’ meet her, Nike agreed and he was reunited with his dream. "If it wasn't for the mist we could see your home across the bay," said Gatsby. "You always have a green light that burns all night at the end of your dock." Daisy put her arm through his abruptly, but he seemed absorbed in what he had just said. Possibly it had occurred to him that the colossal significance of that light had now vanished forever. Compared to the great distance that had separated him from Daisy it had seemed very near to her, almost touching her. It had seemed as close as a star to the moon. Now it was again a green light on a dock. His count of enchanted objects had diminished by one. (Chapter 5.121-122)”
When Gatsby and Daisy finally get together, the dream vanishes.
Does this mean that the American Dream has to stay forever a dream? That it loses its meaning if we actually achieve it? Or that, once we achieve it, we find out that it wasn't so great to begin with, because after all he did to be with Daisy, she did not leave her husband to be him. He ends up getting killed in the end for taking the blame for Myrtle’s
death.
Another character Fitzgerald talked about was Myrtle. Myrtle’s American Dream was to be with a wealthy man, or to be known as wealthy person, which drove her husband crazy knowing that she felt that he wasn’t enough for her. Her attempt to achieve this dream was to have an affair with a rich man(Tom Buchanan). “I told that boy about the ice." Myrtle raised her eyebrows in despair at the shiftlessness of the lower orders. "These people! You have to keep after them all the time." She looked at me and laughed pointlessly... (Chapter 2.69-70)”Myrtle thinks that acting like a snob makes her sound fancy, but it just makes her sound even more like herself: a vulgar, common, cheating woman. You're not fooling anyone, honey. She went on a trip to a cabin with Tom and Nike. Her thoughts of starting something new, or having something her husband unfortunately couldn’t give her completely sparrowed to the top of her head when she thought she was allowed to talk about Daisy. “Some time toward midnight Tom Buchanan and Mrs. Wilson stood face to face discussing, in impassioned voices, whether Mrs. Wilson had any right to mention Daisy's name."Daisy! Daisy! Daisy!" shouted Mrs. Wilson. "I'll say it whenever I want to! Daisy! Dai –– “Making a short deft movement, Tom Buchanan broke her nose with his open hand. (Chapter 2.125-127)” She was later ran over by the car Daisy was driving while they were on the way to New York al in the name of ‘calming her nerves’.
Lastly, Fitzgerald also talked about Mr. Wilson who killed Gatsby and himself when he thought God spoke to him to avenge his wife. Poor George. He really gets the short end of the stick in this one. And, seeing as he's one of the few characters without staggering flaws, he doesn't even deserve it. From what we can tell, Wilson is hard-working and not cheating on his spouse. He's in a marriage with a woman who doesn't love or respect him, who walks through him as though he's a ghost; and meanwhile he just does what she says: "'Oh, sure,' agreed Wilson hurriedly" (Chapter 2.15)—and we think not for the first time.
After Myrtle's death, Wilson is in serious emotional pain. He cries out "Oh, my God" over and over—but because his wife is dead? Because he just found out she was having an affair? Or because he feels guilty for making her run out into the street?The other thing to note about Wilson is that he's the only character who talks about God. He tells Myrtle that she "can't fool God," that "God sees everything" (Chapter 8.105). His comment reminds us that, unlike the rich careless classes, the lower classes can't just retreat "back into […] money" (Chapter 9.136). Wilson and his class actually have to take responsibility for their actions, and they don't have trips to Paris to make it all more palatable. No wonder he decides that he doesn’t want to live the consequences.
Through Gatsby’s life, as well as that of the Wilsons’, Fitzgerald critiques the idea that America is a meritocracy where anyone can rise to the top with enough hard work. Like Fitzgerald and Gatsby, they worked hard to get their wealth, to get closer their American Dream.
If Fitzgerald was around today, he will still offer criticism toward our present day society because it hasn’t really changed since the 1920s when it comes to who people go after the American Dream.
Introduction The Great Gatsby by F Scott Fitzgerald is a tragic love story on the surface, but it is commonly known for it’s pessimistic critique of the American Dream. In the novel, Jay Gatsby overcomes his poor past to gain an incredible amount of money and a very limited social reputation to be closer to his American Dream (Daisy). He did all that only to be turned down by the “old money” crowd, he then gets killed after being tangled up with them. No amount of hard work could change where Gatsby came from. Merit and hard work aren’t enough, so the American Dream collapses just like the ballooning dresses of Jordan and Daisy when Nike first sees them. Fitzgerald uses the American Dream to show that the independence and the ability to make something of one’s self with hard work sometime ends up being more about materialism and selfish pursuit of pleasure.
Gatsby was known as a misterious wealthy man who threw luxrious parties at his mansion. No one knew who he really was, and never saw him enjoying the fruit of his own parties. One afternoon Nike saw him at the back of his mansion with his hands stretched towards the waters. “I decided to call to him. Miss Baker had mentioned him at dinner, and that would do for an introduction. But I didn't call to him, for he gave a sudden intimation that he was content to be alone—he stretched out his arms toward the dark water in a curious way, and, far as I was from him, I could have …show more content…
sworn he was trembling. Involuntarily I glanced seaward—and distinguished nothing except a single green light, minute and far away, that might have been the end of a dock. When I looked once more for Gatsby he had vanished, and I was alone again in the unquiet darkness. (Chapter 1.152)” After he had left Oxford, Gatsby worked for five years to buy his house closer to Daisy, but opposite from where she lived in West Egg. Gatsby threw parties to lure Daisy to his home, but he never knew that she wasn’t into large parties. He asked Nike to invite Daisy to tea at his house where he would ‘accidently’ meet her, Nike agreed and he was reunited with his dream. "If it wasn't for the mist we could see your home across the bay," said Gatsby. "You always have a green light that burns all night at the end of your dock." Daisy put her arm through his abruptly, but he seemed absorbed in what he had just said. Possibly it had occurred to him that the colossal significance of that light had now vanished forever. Compared to the great distance that had separated him from Daisy it had seemed very near to her, almost touching her. It had seemed as close as a star to the moon. Now it was again a green light on a dock. His count of enchanted objects had diminished by one. (Chapter 5.121-122)”
When Gatsby and Daisy finally get together, the dream vanishes.
Does this mean that the American Dream has to stay forever a dream? That it loses its meaning if we actually achieve it? Or that, once we achieve it, we find out that it wasn't so great to begin with, because after all he did to be with Daisy, she did not leave her husband to be him. He ends up getting killed in the end for taking the blame for Myrtle’s
death.
Another character Fitzgerald talked about was Myrtle. Myrtle’s American Dream was to be with a wealthy man, or to be known as wealthy person, which drove her husband crazy knowing that she felt that he wasn’t enough for her. Her attempt to achieve this dream was to have an affair with a rich man(Tom Buchanan). “I told that boy about the ice." Myrtle raised her eyebrows in despair at the shiftlessness of the lower orders. "These people! You have to keep after them all the time." She looked at me and laughed pointlessly... (Chapter 2.69-70)”Myrtle thinks that acting like a snob makes her sound fancy, but it just makes her sound even more like herself: a vulgar, common, cheating woman. You're not fooling anyone, honey. She went on a trip to a cabin with Tom and Nike. Her thoughts of starting something new, or having something her husband unfortunately couldn’t give her completely sparrowed to the top of her head when she thought she was allowed to talk about Daisy. “Some time toward midnight Tom Buchanan and Mrs. Wilson stood face to face discussing, in impassioned voices, whether Mrs. Wilson had any right to mention Daisy's name."Daisy! Daisy! Daisy!" shouted Mrs. Wilson. "I'll say it whenever I want to! Daisy! Dai –– “Making a short deft movement, Tom Buchanan broke her nose with his open hand. (Chapter 2.125-127)” She was later ran over by the car Daisy was driving while they were on the way to New York al in the name of ‘calming her nerves’.
Lastly, Fitzgerald also talked about Mr. Wilson who killed Gatsby and himself when he thought God spoke to him to avenge his wife. Poor George. He really gets the short end of the stick in this one. And, seeing as he's one of the few characters without staggering flaws, he doesn't even deserve it. From what we can tell, Wilson is hard-working and not cheating on his spouse. He's in a marriage with a woman who doesn't love or respect him, who walks through him as though he's a ghost; and meanwhile he just does what she says: "'Oh, sure,' agreed Wilson hurriedly" (Chapter 2.15)—and we think not for the first time.
After Myrtle's death, Wilson is in serious emotional pain. He cries out "Oh, my God" over and over—but because his wife is dead? Because he just found out she was having an affair? Or because he feels guilty for making her run out into the street?The other thing to note about Wilson is that he's the only character who talks about God. He tells Myrtle that she "can't fool God," that "God sees everything" (Chapter 8.105). His comment reminds us that, unlike the rich careless classes, the lower classes can't just retreat "back into […] money" (Chapter 9.136). Wilson and his class actually have to take responsibility for their actions, and they don't have trips to Paris to make it all more palatable. No wonder he decides that he doesn’t want to live the consequences.
Through Gatsby’s life, as well as that of the Wilsons’, Fitzgerald critiques the idea that America is a meritocracy where anyone can rise to the top with enough hard work. Like Fitzgerald and Gatsby, they worked hard to get their wealth, to get closer their American Dream.
If Fitzgerald was around today, he will still offer criticism toward our present day society because it hasn’t really changed since the 1920s when it comes to who people go after the American Dream.