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The Role Of Pessimism In The Great Gatsby

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The American Dream, a term coined by James Truslow Adams, is the dream that any person, neither influenced by familial economic standing nor social hierarchical ranking, could succeed based on his or her intelligence and merit; success, defined as happiness, is achievable by all. However, the world has changed since Adams lived, for great wealth disparities and ineffective governing have created a rift within American society. Even Francis S. Fitzgerald, in the novel, The Great Gatsby, acknowledges the perversions of the American Dream. This Dream has effectively withered over the past decades, evident in the public pessimism of the future, the inadequacy of the government, and Fitzgerald’s portrayal of Jay Gatsby. Many people throughout

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