Fitzgerald alludes to this cleansing experience immediately in a pivotal monologue by Nick: “Gatsby turned out all right at the end; it is what preyed on Gatsby, what foul dust floated in the wake of his dreams…” (2). Foul dust surrounded and engulfed Gatsby’s dreams, which possessed his life. Nick reveals the overarching nature of this obsession when he notes the “colossal vitality of his [Gatsby’s] illusion” as an engine for all that he had accomplished: “it had gone beyond her [Daisy], beyond everything. He had thrown himself into it with a creative passion, adding to it [and subsequently the foul dust that accompanied it] all the time” (95). By the time his plan is fully initiated, nearly five years after his last meeting with Daisy, he has accumulated a lot of ‘dust’ and is
Tom Buchanan Mr. Tom Buchanan is the classic representation of American greed in the nineteen twenties '. In the novel The Great Gatsby, Toms role is of the powerful, reckless, controlling, and cheating husband to Daisy Buchanan. Tom is of the upper class, he is proud of his old money, of where he lives, and his white race. Mr. Fitzgerald described Tom as a manipulator this being the worst of his qualities. Everything around Tom is destructive.
We see the characters of this book go slowly wander from their path of finding wealth and love and enter a new journey of immoral actions. By examining Gatsby, Daisy, and Tom, one can see that the journey to obtain the American Dream results in fake materialistic behaviour, unhappiness, and death. By examining Gatsby, one can see that he did anything to get Daisy’s attention and make her love him. This leads him to be extremely careless about his money and himself. Gatsby throws huge extravagant parties, which is seen many time through the book.
However, the concept of an ideal is constantly evolving based off one’s previous achievements and surroundings, which ultimately results in greed and dissatisfaction. Baz Luhrmann, Director of The Great Gatsby, demonstrates how the pursuit of an ideal may be promising, however, it can also easily lead to destruction, due to the course of action taken for achievement. This is significant since Gatsby was driven to the point of using dirty money in order to obtain wealth, which leads to Gatsby’s shaming, and ultimately, the death of others and of he himself. Luhrmann expresses emotion and awareness by using
Though the themes waver a bit and employ the noble savage stereotype to its full effect, The Lost City of Z beautifully surveys the spirit of adventure and obsession that consumes each and every one of us – in one way or another. Set at the turn of the 20th century, Z begins in the classic doldrums of the Hero’s Journey, when our hero is still a nobody. Despite his excellent soldiery, Percy Fawcett (Charlie Hunnam) “has chosen his ancestors poorly”. He is passed up for every promotion, and his professional prospects are bleak. Then the
The Contrasting Forms of Wealth The Great Gatsby, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is a story of the emptiness and recklessness of the 1920s. His condemnation of the period reverberates through the novel as he explores and displays insufficiencies of the time. The 1920s were a period of sloth and moral despondency, as shown often, but by using the character Jay Gatz (a.k.a. Mr. Gatsby), we see a true shift in the ‘American dream’ and what wealth means. Fitzgerald contrasts Gatsby’s original wishes with his dreams after meeting his true love using wasteland imagery, symbolism, and metaphor to show the ever-changing definition of wealth.
•Edmond Dantès: Protagonist. Edmond’s unequivocal happiness is cut short when his enemies, who are blinded by their jealousy and self-bitterness, plot against him. Edmond’s gullibility and willingness to incoherently trust everyone around him precipitates his downfall. His destruction of character and desire for vengeance leads him to overstep moral boundaries. With the transformation of Edmond into the Count of Monte Cristo, he experiences a metaphorical death, the death of his virtuous self.
Heathcliff’s ambition stems from his desire to get revenge on the people that have mistreated him, Hindley Earnshaw and Edgar Linton, and to be reunited with his love, Catherine. “[...] they forgot everything the minute they were together again: at least the minute they had contrived some naughty pan of revenge” (Bronte, 1847). This shows that Heathcliff was unwilling to accept abuse, even when he was a child and that Catherine has always been his love interest and co-conspirator. He plans to get revenge and love by reinventing himself and becoming rich. “I was amazed, more than ever, to behold the transformation of Heathcliff [...] a half-civilized ferocity lurked yet in the depressed brows and eyes full of black fire, but it was subdued; and his manner was even dignified: quite divested of roughness...” (Bronte, 1847).
Poetic Knight • 180 • Nat Berhanu The working class Selling out their soul For a penny, They see fornication As rediculous And funny. The enforcers got them in their throat Their life is dangling In the hands of the rich, Their future dangerously float. Stranger to morality It’s not just those with plenty Their wretched soul cross paths. For a moment Then they separately jump In to the descent. Nat Berhanu • 181 • Poetic Knight Hope fades, they say When reality bites, But faith in the heart fights.
Nick begins to get introduced into the world or riches and fortune being attracted to this world of wealth, but being a part of the “new rich,” he becomes first witness to their speculation of love and deception in life. He’s a witness to the new rich and the poor in which he lives. This speculation of love and deception in the life of the rich is yet too scar Nick for life, writing his scars in a journal to support him through this hard and difficult time. The action displayed in this film is