ipl-logo

American Dream In The Great Gatsby And Two Kinds

1065 Words5 Pages

The key to success is working hard to reach the goal. The workmanship and struggle for success can be called the American Dream. The idea of an American Dream has existed for a long time. The proof is its being a hidden theme for many American Literature stories. In Two Kinds by Amy Tan, there is an underlying theme of the American Dreams and there are different types of an American Dream .That is why the story should be included in the text books for the high school students to read. In most literature books there are many American Dream stories, but none of them have a modern theme that is even close to Two Kinds. Thus the story should be included in the textbook for students to read. In both The Great Gatsby and Two Kinds, characters sacrificed …show more content…

The wish is for them to have a gracious life because they are not always going to be there for them. That is why they make sure they grow up properly until they are satisfied. Usually parents do not care if they are successful or famous. All they want is the best for their children’s future. “We have nothing against successful careers or wealth or fame, but far more of us believe that the American Dream is about giving our kids a better life.” (Vanity Fair) Jing-mei’s mother is always bossing her around to make sure that she will have a good future. It is not just the children who have weights on their backs, it is also the parents. “It’s about giving your kids a better life-- as if parenting didn’t come with enough pressures already.” (Vanity Fair) Jing-mei’s mother has a lot of pressure on her because she does not want to be embarrassed by other parents who are better at parenting than she is. She is always trying to make sure her daughter is better than the other kids. The American Dream does not exist in the present anymore, thus all of the American Dream should be from past time periods. The American Dream is not dead, it still exist today. But it is seen differently than the ones people usually read in the books. The American Dream exist in many different format and can be interpreted in many ways. Two Kinds deals with an immigrant parent who wants the best for her daughter. In the Great Gatsby, Gatsby’s American Dream was to be rich and have the love of his life. The American Dream can all be different they do not all have to be the

Show More
Related

  • The Great Gatsby American Dream

    660 Words  | 3 Pages

    The novel The Great Gatsby by Scott Fitz Gerald embodies many themes. A major in the story is the pursuit of can be labelled the American Dream. The American Dream is defined as someone starting low on the economic or social level, and working hard towards prosperity and or wealth and fame. By having money, a car, a big house, nice clothes and a happy family symbolizes the American dream. The Great Gatsby shows what happened to the American Dream in the 1920’s, which is a time period when the dreams became corrupted for many reasons.

    Read More

  • Why Is The American Dream Attainable

    611 Words  | 3 Pages

    The American dream is a term used in a lot of ways. Although research has shown that American dream can’t be attainable by most people, closer examination shows that it can be attainable by the following reasons. As Daniel J. Mitchell stated in New York Times im January 1st, 2015 “The United States is not a perfect country, but the American Dream is still a reality.” By that he meant that even with America’s Grow rate, poverty, unemployment rate in the past years and still going Americans can still chase their American dreams If we look at the history and the definition it shows that infact it is possible to attain it.

    Read More

  • Corruption In The Great Gatsby

    735 Words  | 3 Pages

    In response to the simple idea of the American Dream, by the writer F. Scott Fitzgerald, the American Dream is a symbol of hope for success and that any goal can be achieved. Gatsby's lifestyle is portrayed as a corrupted dream: achieving his wealth illegally and attempting to resume an unattainable past love with Daisy. In the book The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald describes life during the 1920s and the craving for people to reach the American Dream. The author examines the corruption of Gatsby's life when trying to attain the American Dream.

    Read More

  • Examples Of Deception In The Great Gatsby

    674 Words  | 3 Pages

    If Gatsby is meant to represent the American Dream, the reader can assume that the American Dream had become corrupt; that it could only be achieved through illegal deals and lies that got him the life he wanted but didn’t deserve. The American Dream through Gatsby is built upon deception and sooner or later, the truth must

    Read More

  • The Great Gatsby Obstacles

    847 Words  | 4 Pages

    The American Dream has always been a big idea in the minds of americans and has always been that dream to achieve in their lifetime. As time progresses though there is a decrease in the chances of ever being able to make this

    Read More

  • The Great Gatsby American Dream Analysis

    855 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Failure of the American Dream in the Context of The Great Gatsby Sun Seo Jeon 전순서 20140880 The American Dream is a national ethos of the United States, which is a belief that anyone, regardless of their social class and the situation they are born into, is given opportunities to achieve their own version of success. It is emphasized that American dream is achieved through sacrifice and hard work, not just by chance. This meant to motivate Americans to attain prosperity and happiness. However, there is an ironic interplay between idealism and materialism in this statement of American Dream; the dream suggests hope, opportunity and equality, but in reality, it is to become rich and of higher social status, which is only

    Read More

  • Effects Of The American Dream In The Great Gatsby

    783 Words  | 4 Pages

    "The negative side of the American Dream comes when people pursue success at any cost, which in turn destroys the vision and the dream." In this quote, by Azar Nafisi, it explains how dreaming can be tainted by reality, and it that if you don 't compromise you may suffer. In the book The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the American Dream is one the many themes in this book. The American Dream that most people in this book obtains to have is wealth, statist, a fun social life, and someone to lust. It is the life we all strive to have until we obtain it and see it 's meaningless composure.

    Read More

  • Disillusionment Theme In The Great Gatsby

    950 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Great Gatsby is not simply a story of Jay Gatsby’s undying and misguided love for a Daisy Buchanan. The novel, The Great Gatsby, encompasses a number of themes, the most significant one is the disillusionment and corruption of the American dream. The ability to obtain prosperity such as happiness, or a car is what comprises of the American dream. It is a belief that anyone who is self-sufficient, or who is a hard worker can obtain this dream regardless of their social standing. In the book, the facade of a dream appears to be at the tips of Gatsby and Myrtle’s fingers but this “pursuit of happiness” sentiment is in actuality impossible.

    Read More

  • American Dream In The Great Gatsby And The Epic Journey

    601 Words  | 3 Pages

    The view of the American Dream is different for everyone. The Epic Journey, by James Truslow Adams, views the American Dream as a dream of attaining one’s fullest stature regardless of one’s social status. Similarly, in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s book, The Great Gatsby, Gatsby’s American Dream relates to Adam’s dream but limited to materialistic wealth- a dream that seeks for motor cars, higher wages, and to impress the people of high status. Both Adams and Gatsby believe that everyone has an equal chance of achieving their dream. Adams says “The dream is that dream of land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement”.

    Read More

  • The American Dream In The Great Gatsby And I Hear America Singing

    785 Words  | 4 Pages

    How has the American Dream changed from the 1920’s to now and how has the theme of the American Dream been supported by works of American Literature. We will see how the American Dream though time did not follow what the founding fathers set out for us in the declaration of independence and when they said, “The authors of the United States’ Declaration of Independence held certain truths to be self-evident: that all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness". We will see how the American Dream suffers, what an American Dream is centered on, and how, for some, the American Dream is unattainable. In "The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald, "I Hear America Singing" by Walt Whitman and in "Harlem" by Langston Hughes we see the American dream depicted, as the loss and utter death of a distracted corrupt American Dream, as the love of the American dream, and as the American Dream for Blacks in a time of segregation and discrimination.

    Read More

  • Failure Of The American Dream In The Great Gatsby

    1141 Words  | 5 Pages

    The Failure of the American Dream in The Great Gatsby In an era of greed and corruption, the American dream became less important in the 1920’s as social values decayed in people 's lives. Materialism became most important in society, resulting in selfishness and carelessness. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby shows this reckless behavior with Tom and Daisy Buchanan, a spoiled couple married for the wealth. The failure of the American dream is represented in The Great Gatsby with the upper class’s overindulgence and recklessness with material objects . F. Scott Fitzgerald emphasizes the difference between old money and new money in The Great Gatsby with the East and West Eggs and the residents who live there.

    Read More

  • Immigration In The Great Gatsby

    539 Words  | 3 Pages

    The American Dream is a vision held by the working class of America: a dream in which one can achieve all that he desires through hard work and perseverance. The reader sees Gatsby as a self-made man: a man with everything you could possible want in life, a man who has achieved the American Dream to its fullest, and yet, this image is marred by his unhappiness. A barrier between the inherently wealthy and ‘new money’ blocks his ability to win back the girl he loves, placed there by by the embodiment of the upper class in America - Tom Buchanan. Tom never saw Gatsby as his equal because Gatsby was not born with money, calling him a “Mr. Nobody from Nowhere” (130). The working class sees this statement as an example of why the American Dream is not worth the effort.

    Read More

  • The Great Gatsby Outline Essay

    871 Words  | 4 Pages

    I. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, the American Dream is depicted as a mirage due to its ultimate lack of fulfillment, outsider’s inability to obtain it, and the corruption it causes. A. Those who have achieved their idea of the American Dream are ultimately unfulfilled emotionally even though they possess tremendous wealth. B. The American Dream is a mirage, and thus unattainable as it limits success of an individual by their class and ethnic origin. C. Not only is the American Dream exclusive and unfulfilling, but it also causes corruption as those who strive for the American Dream corrupt themselves in doing so and the old rich hide behind their wealth in order to conceal their immoralities.

    Read More

  • Personification Of The American Dream In The Great Gatsby

    1140 Words  | 5 Pages

    The American dream stands as a symbol for hope, prosperity, and happiness. But F. Scott Fitzgerald 's The Great Gatsby, examines the American dream from a different perspective, one that sheds light on those who contort these principles to their own selfish fantasies. Fitzgerald renders Jay Gatsby as a man who takes the Dream too far, and becomes unable to distinguish his false life of riches from reality. This 'unique ' American novel describes how humanity 's insatiable desires for wealth and power subvert the idyllic principles of the American vision. Jay Gatsby is the personification of limitless wealth and prestige, a shining beacon for the aspiring rich.

    Read More

  • The Negative Side Of The American Dream In The Great Gatsby

    772 Words  | 4 Pages

    "The negative side of the American Dream comes when people pursue success at any cost, which in turn destroys the vision and the dream." In this quote, by Azar Nafisi, it explains how dreaming can be tainted by reality, and that if a person doesn’t compromise they may suffer. In the book The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the American Dream is one the many themes present. The American Dream that most people in this book hope to have involves wealth, status, a fun social life, and someone to lust after. It is the life they all strive to have until they obtain it and see its meaningless composure.

    Read More

More about American Dream In The Great Gatsby And Two Kinds

Open Document