Bootleggers In The Great Gatsby

The 1920’s were a wonderful and beautiful era that had occurred in America, probably

one of the most significant eras that had once been. The Great Gatsby has a great impact on

showing us how the 1920’s were, in a more settle way and luxurious way as well. Most of the

themes in the Great Gatsby have lots to do with the 1920’s such as, bootleggers, the involvement

The 1920’s had many illegal issues that occurred and one of those issues were

Bootleggers, Bootleggers were individuals who would unlawfully make, sell or transport alcohol

that has no registration on it to other individuals for cheap. This was extremely common for

individuals to get easy fast money; they would sell it in street corners or even at a local corner

store under the counter. In the book

“Tom: Nick… I figured he’s

just a bootlegger. A lot of these newly rich people are just bootleggers.” (Source 1). This

screenplay from the 1974 film states how bootleggers were a pretty common issue for people

back then, it also backs up the fact that Gatsby was involved in bootlegging but no one had any

The 1920’s were also a dangerous era as well due to the gangsters that would walk the

streets and be accompanying to many under the counter businesses and illegal actions. Gangsters

of the 1920’s were men who would murder people and do illegal actions to make money, for

example one of the biggest gangsters of the 1920’s was Al Capone. The Great Gatsby has

involvement of a gangster by the name of Meyer Wolfsheim, he is the man that gets Gatsby into

the bootlegging business he was in and Gatsby basically worked for him. Source 5 shows a

group of Al Capone’s gangsters armed with guns and standing by a vehicle. (Source 5). That

shows a realistic picture of how gangsters were back in the 1920’s and how they