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Materialism In The Great Gatsby Analysis

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In F. Scott Fitzgerald 's The Great Gatsby, as Jay Gatsby delves into his pursuit of wealth and need for materialism, his hopes and aspirations become shattered in a world of unobtainable and unreachable possibilities. While Jay Gatsby confidently believes that material excess will ultimately bring about love, admiration, and prosperity, the audience understands that the possession of material objects does not always lead to the possession of these intangible virtues. The richest and happiest man is the one who sets the joy and happiness of others in the center of his wealth. As Jay Gatsby dedicates himself to winning over Daisy Buchanan and falls in love with her aura of luxury, Gatsby becomes overwhelmed with an unremitting desire for money and pleasure that eventually triggers his downfall. He has one purpose in life: to attract Daisy with his ornate house on West Egg and with his overflowing sum of money. But there is a danger for Gatsby in this redeeming purposefulness. When he buys his fantastic house, he thinks he is buying a dream, not simply purchasing property (Lewis 51). Obsessing over the certain attraction that links Daisy with Gatsby, muttering the words, "Her voice is full of money" (120), Gatsby emphasizes his growing belief that money, indeed, will entice Daisy. What Gatsby, with surprising consciousness, states is that Daisy 's charm is allied to the attraction of wealth (Lewis 50); he regards materialism as fine bait to lure Daisy into his arms. When Nick
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