The Great Gatsby Research Paper
Jeremy Chadwick
English III Honors Blended
Mr. Mennenoh
10 March 2023
The demise of the American Dream Many associate the idea of the American Dream with the belief that everyone, no matter what social class they were born into, has equal opportunities to gain prosperity through hard work and perseverance. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby follows this idea through the life and actions of Jay Gatsby, who is a thirty-year-old man in the 1920s. He has poor Midwestern roots and works hard to obtain a lavish lifestyle on the East Coast. Gatsby and his neighbor Nick Carraway both live in luxurious houses in a rich neighborhood near New York City, known as West Egg, since they have graduated from Ivy League schools to afford such prosperous
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When Nick Caraway describes Tom Buchanan of East Egg, he notes that Tom has always been rich because “his family [is] enormously wealthy” (Fitzgerald 6). Since Tom makes very little money on his own, the message he sends within The Great Gatsby argues that the wealthy elite should not have to work hard or persevere to earn their fortune. They receive everything they ever want. This claim defies the American Dream of working hard to earn prosperity since the wealthy elite receives money for simply being family. Furthermore, the gap between those who live in West Egg, who are the rich, and those who live in East Egg, who is the top elite, is so large that almost nothing can be done by those in West Egg to catch up. No matter how much the people of West Egg apply themselves to be better, no matter how much wealth they accumulate, the top elite of East Egg will always be further ahead of them. This fact counteracts the belief that working hard enough will eventually lead to a life filled with prosperity and contentment. Moreover, despite attempting to win back Daisy by working immensely hard to accumulate wealth, Gatsby is betrayed by Tom, who tells an acquaintance, Mr. Wilson, that Gatsby had killed the man’s wife. Mr. WIlson ultimately decides to take matters into his own hands by shooting Gatsby in …show more content…
Gatsby, despite all his success and fortune, grows dissatisfied with his belongings and practically throws them all away to chase the girl of his dreams, Daisy. The American Dream proclaims that after working enough and accumulating wealth, a cheerful and carefree life will ensue; however, this is not the case since Gatsby grows miserable and unsatisfied, ultimately denying such ideas in the American Dream. Along with Gatsby, Tom Buchanan also grows dissatisfied with his grand and luxurious lifestyle, as he is no longer happy in his relationship with Daisy. When Nick, Daisy, and Daisy’s friend Jordan all sit together, Jordan informs Nick that Tom is on the phone in another room, and whispers to Nick that “the rumor is, that [that is] Tom’s girl on the telephone” (Fitzgerald 116). Growing unhappy with his current relationship with Daisy, Tom pursues an affair with another woman, Myrtle, and practically does not even make an attempt of hiding it. If Tom is happy with all his wealth and luxuries in life as the American Dream claims, then he would have no reason to take part in an affair; however, he does partake, disproving the American Dream yet again. Not only does Tom not feel satisfied with his current relationship, but Daisy also feels a void within their unloving relationship. When Nick is invited over to the
Examples Of Daisy In The Great Gatsby
698 Words | 3 PagesTom becomes livid when discovering his wife’s affair, acknowledging the fact that the relationship between Daisy and Gatsby is far deeper than Daisy “making a fool of herself”. However, Daisy returns back to Tom, regardless of the fact that Gatsby treated her like a queen. While Gatsby was determined to recreate history, Tom was concerned with the present, which is what influenced Daisy to stay with him. The novel’s narrator depicts their relationship to have an“unmistakable air of natural intimacy...and anybody would have said that they were conspiring together.”, implying that their devious personas are what keeps their marriage
Examples Of Greed In The Great Gatsby
977 Words | 4 PagesWith tThis in mind Daisy and Gatsby have an affair behind the back of her husband Tom’s back and Gatsby is set on proving to Tom that Daisy loves him. Gatsby has corrupted the American Dream by believing it can be achieved with wealth and glamour, by illegally earning
Examples Of Wealth In The Great Gatsby
800 Words | 4 Pages“They smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into their money or their vast carelessness or whatever it was that kept them together…” (179). F. Scott Fitzgerald portrays the overwhelming of wealth and the sense of higher social status through many character relationships in The Great Gatsby. Jay Gatsby represents the wealthiest man in Long Island, who fell in love with the more affluent, Daisy Buchanan. Tom Buchanan, Daisy’s husband, also depicts a wealthy man, but less classy as he has an affair with the unprosperous Myrtle Wilson, George Wilson’s wife. “Money is the root of all evil.”
Corruption In The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald
901 Words | 4 PagesDaisy is blissfully ignorant to this. She is at a constant tug-of-war between her feelings for Gatsby and Tom, but she loves the both of them for all the wrong reasons. Daisy believes that she loves Tom when really; she is in love with the idea of having a wealthy, well-bodied man in her life. It is a well-known fact that Tom has cheated on Daisy an unfathomable number of times, but Daisy tries to block this out of her mind by attempting to keep track of his every move. Nick expands on this idea by retorting, “If he left the room for a minute she’d look around uneasily, and say: "Where's Tom gone?" and wear the most abstracted expression until she saw him coming in the door” (Fitzgerald 143).
Gatsby Dishonesty Quotes
958 Words | 4 PagesDaisy, Tom’s wife, is a source of inspiration for Gatsby, and has built her life on half-truths. Gatsby is a millionaire who created a new persona about himself with lies to try to win back the love of his life, Daisy. Through the narrative of Nick, Fitzgerald shows the destructive
Scott Fitzgerald's Use Of Materialism In The Great Gatsby
1040 Words | 5 PagesTo begin, Fitzgerald highlights that people take advantage of wealth in which they become selfish and do not have morals anymore because they think they are better than everyone else and no one can stop them. The characters in East Egg were known to have “old money” which was passed down from generation to generation, yet Gatsby lived in West Egg ``new money” and he made the money all on his own but nobody quite knows how he made it. Although Tom says, “... He and this Wolfsiem bought up a lot of side street drug-stores here and in Chicago and sold grain alcohol over the counter…”(Fitzgerald 133). No one really knew how Gatsby made all his money but Tom managed to find out. But the only reason why Gatsby wanted to have so much money was to impress Daisy.
Examples Of Daisy In The Great Gatsby
932 Words | 4 PagesHowever, in reality, Daisy is a shallow, greedy, and selfish woman. She yearns to have a lavish lifestyle and because of this, marries Tom, a very wealthy man. However, it is not just the wealth that interests Daisy, it is also the fact that Tom is an Old Rich as opposed to Gatsby, a New Rich. Tom, unlike Gatsby, inherited his wealth from his family while Gatsby obtained his wealth independently in his lifetime. Old Rich live in the lavish East Egg and New Rich live in the West Egg “the less fashionable of the two” (5).
Examples Of Dishonesty In The Great Gatsby
710 Words | 3 PagesGatsby is constantly trying to revive his past relationship with Daisy, which ends up taking him away from reality. Gatsby’s obsession with living in the past and daydreaming about Daisy shows when he is talking to Tom and mentions that, “Your wife doesn’t love you … she’s never loved you. She loves me” (Fitzgerald 130). Gatsby needs Daisy to tell Tom that she never loved him so they can make up for the past time they lost together. Later, finding out the true reason “Gatsby bought that [mansion is] so that Daisy would be just across the bay” (Fitzgerald 78).
What Does Daisy Wilson's Death Represent In The Great Gatsby
752 Words | 4 PagesThroughout the novel, Daisy is a critical character that acts as a symbol to Gatsby’s broken American Dream. A prime example of this is when Gatsby continuously attempts to impress Daisy, in hopes to get back together and re kindle the short relationship they once had before he was sent off to war. This leaves Gatsby feeling rejected, from being unsuccessful at capturing Daisy’s love again, ultimately supporting the false promise the American Dream offers. A long time ago when Gatsby was in love with Daisy, her parents never approved or liked Daisy dating Gatsby, because he didn’t have any, “pomp and circumstance” (75) like the man Tom Buchanan who Daisy ends up marrying.
Gatsby Lust Quotes
1236 Words | 5 PagesWithin the novel, Tom chooses worldly desires over his relationship with his wife. Instead of being a loyal husband to daisy, Tom takes part in an affair with another woman. This claim is supported when Tom says to Nick “I want you to meet my girl.” ( Fitzgerald 24) Tom says in front of Gatsby, Jordan, Nick, and Daisy “ Once in a while I go off on a spree and make a fool of myself, but I always come back, and in my heart, I love her all the time.”
Similarities Between Tom Buchanan And The Great Gatsby
1344 Words | 6 PagesEven though they both loved Daisy, Gatsby had a made up dream of his life with Daisy while Tom was more realistic with their relationship. In the novel Nick and Tom are on their way to New York when Tom makes them get off early. He tells Nick, “We’re getting off, I want you to meet my girl.” (24). Tom was cheating on Daisy, and wasn't afraid to hid it.
The Role Of Wealth In The Great Gatsby
747 Words | 3 PagesF. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby describes the life of Jay Gatsby in the 1920’s. The novel shares his love story and his loneliness. A major question the author raises is how does wealth impact class structure and society? Fitzgerald answers this question through the distinction between “New rich” and “Old rich” and the significance of East and West Egg.
How To Write A Brief Summary Of The Great Gatsby
671 Words | 3 PagesAs a result, Nick invites Daisy to have tea at his house, without telling her that Gatsby will also be there, and here Gatsby and Daisy are able to reestablish their connection and their love is rekindled once more. After a short time into their affair and frequent visits to Gatsby’s house, Tom grows suspicious of his wife’s relationship with
Social Class Differences In The Great Gatsby
405 Words | 2 PagesF. Scott Fitzgerald, in his novel The Great Gatsby, illustrates social class differences in the modern 1920’s society. For example, when we are first introduced to Nick he is talking about how he first came across West Egg and readers are introduced to the setting and the differences between West Egg, where people have to work for their riches, and East Egg , where people are born into their rich lifestyle. The main character named Nick Carraway lives in West Egg, where those who worked their way to the top of the social ladder. East Egg is where is where two other main characters, Tom and Daisy Buchanan, live.
Book Report The Great Gatsby
1023 Words | 5 PagesThe Great Gatsby is a story about the American dream and the people that lived it and those who pursued it. The story consists of the very rich, Tom and Daisy Buchannan, who inherited their wealth and lived in east egg. In the west egg lived, Mr. Gatsby, who it was rumored to have made his money in bootlegging. Also in west egg there was our narrator, Nick Carraway, who moved from the Middle West to learn the bond business. This was very popular at the time, early 1920’s, when the American dream of becoming rich seemed more attainable then it ever had before.
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