His hopeful quest for these ideals gives him a sense of honour and chivalry; however, it is the “foul dust” (4) of disillusionment and moral decay interfering with his dreams that leads to his undoing. Gatsby’s dreams are “great,” only they blind him from the cruel reality of humans’ inability to repeat the past. It is such disappointment that prompts his demise. Gatsby’s attachment to his past and desperation to attain the false notion of the American Dream compels him into an endless hurtle toward a dead end. Fitzgerald effectively highlights the fallacy of the American Dream through Gatsby’s sincere journey into the wealthy society--and eventually his traumatic decline--as he reaches out to Daisy’s ghostly heart.
Another significant name is Daisy Buchanan. Daisy has a beautiful outward appearance but is untrue to herself and insecure. “Her name shows a parallel to her flower counterpart daisy whose heart is yellow and its leaves white, just as Daisy perpetually dresses in white robes, but her soul is empty, vain, insincere, scheming, replete with alternative motives, inspiring ultimate deception” (Avsenak). The gold, yellow, and silver colors represent money and wealth as seen when Gatsby says: “Her voice is full of money” (65). Even though Gatsby and Daisy were in love they were separated due to money.
Both Daisy and the American Dream proved unattainable, and thus they leave their victims lost and ruined. Wharton and Fitzgerald convey a similar message in their novels The Age of Innocence and The Great Gatsby respectively. Wharton focused more on the elite as a detriment while Fitzgerald focused on the American Dream as a detriment. Even so, both authors illustrated their scorn through the development of their characters and symbolism. They illustrated their disapproval of a society that gives them false hope before destroying them in the
The Great Gatsby is a well-structured story that represents the decline of the American dream in the 1920’s. Not only does it tell about the facade between the east and west egg, but also the dreams and hope that are corrupted by the false idea of their own utopia. Not to mention the Valley of Ashes demonstrates the wasteland of America’s obsession and waste that shows the ugly consequence that occurred. As the green light vanished, the rusty billboard saw the interactions that took place throughout a land full of dust. Ultimately the symbols represent a life that was unattainable to reach which led to a tragedy in the end.
Just as the American Dream- the pursuit of happiness- has degenerated into a quest for more wealth, Gatsby’s powerful dream of happiness with Daisy has become the motivation for lavish excess and criminal activities. He used his dream to escape from his past, but then was stuck on hold for when he lost Daisy the only part of the dream he really cared for. Gatsby made a dream just for Daisy so she could be apart of his, but saw the meaningless of it when she didn’t choose him in the end. "Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgiastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that’s no matter—tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther….
Eventually, in his life, he becomes one of the richest and most famous people in America; it many ways it would appear that he had achieved the American Dream. However, if we analysed Gatsby’s life closer there is still things that were not accomplished in his life, specifically his love of his Daisy, marries someone else. Furthermore, while he is well known, he lacks many true friends, and finally, that even though he became rich, people still rejected him calling him a bootlegger. Fitzgerald uses The Great Gatsby to say that the American Dream is never truly attainable as there are always going to be unintended ups and downs, as seen through Gatsby’s failures and shortcomings. Throughout the book, many characters say that Gatsby was a
The Rise and Fall of the American Dream The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is a tragic love story but is also a clear representation of the American dream. Most characters in the novel wanted wealth, fame, and success and would do anything in their power to get this. What they did not realize was that money could not buy them happiness. Throughout the novel, Fitzgerald shows how relationships are broken and dreams are eventually ruined by the harsh reality of life. Fitzgerald does a great job representing the rise and fall of the American dream, through symbols like the valley of ashes, the eyes of T.J. Eckleburg, and the green light at the end of Daisy’s dock.
American society in the 1920s, as presented by F. Scott Fitzgerald in The Great Gatsby, is extremely superficial and obsessed with wealth, status, and appearance. Ironically, though, what lies beneath the beauty is the truth, neglected by the characters in the novel. Such deceptive nature of appearance is highlighted through the effective use of an unreliable narrator, a seemingly perfect setting, and dishonest characters. Fitzgerald employs the factors to force the readers to face the fact that appearances tend to be misleading and deceitful. Fitzgerald’s deliberate use of Nick Carraway as the book’s narrator results in the confusion between the reality and what Nick believes to be true, and this emphasises how appearances can be deceptive.
Daisy is morally corrupt and values money so much to the point that she led Gatsby to believe that she would leave Tom for him, But in the end she picks Tom 's money over Gatsby 's love. This is how Fitzgerald conveys how incredibly valuable money is in the
Gatsby thought she would be impressed with his wealth, but Gatsby doesn’t come from “old money” like Tom does, and that status means a lot to Daisy because she also comes from “old money”. And Gatsby’s money isn't secure like Tom’s is because Gatsby deals with illegal money. Gatsby thought that he could break up Tom and Daisy’s marriage just because he had money. His immense amount of money led him to believe that he could rekindle a relationship that had been long