The Theme Of American Dream In The Great Gatsby

What is the American Dream? The American Dream is the ideal that every U.S. citizens achieve their dreams through hard works and determinations, as portrayed in The Great Gatsby; a novel that pursuits the American Dream, by F. Scott Fitzgerald. Through the uses diction and imagery, the author, Fitzgerald has successfully revealed how each character in the story pursuit their own versions of the American Dreams; prompted numerous life lessons at the end of the story. To begin, the author uses man great diction to create certain tones, where these tones then lead to ways that the characters pursue their American Dreams, and expose life lessons that readers can easily take away. For example, in chapter 5, the author states, “Gatsby got himself

James Truslow Adams defines the American Dream as the “dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement” (The American Dream). An idea sought after by millions of people is the American Dream; they believe there is a reward for hard work and that that reward is happiness and prosperity. The Great Gatsby, Of Mice and Men, and The Crucible are all works, which portray the pursuit and destruction of the American Dream. Jay Gatsby’s American dream was to marry the woman he loved. This is evident throughout the novel; Gatsby is determined to transform his life from dirt to diamonds all to be a suitable man for Daisy.

The American Dream suggests that every American citizen should have an equal opportunity to achieve success and prosperity through hard work. One of the major ways that Fitzgerald portrays this is by alluding to outside events or works of literature specifically from that time period. Another major relationship that develops in The Great Gatsby is between Tom and Daisy. F. Scott Fitzgerald alludes to things such as the World’s Fair and “The Love Nest” to display the eventual dismantling of Tom and Daisy’s relationship. Both of these separate plots consolidate under the idea of Gatsby trying to become the epitome of the American Dream, as seen through his strive for a “perfect life.”

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald embodies the American Dream in a sense where it shows the way that the concept had been twisted by greed, self-satisfaction and near or full obsession. No one in The Great Gatsby ever truly obtains the “American Dream” as it is a fantasy- never having been a dream but more of a name for the failure of so many that try to better their lives but wind up making it worse. Dreams are unattainable and, though for a moment, it might seem one has grasped the dream, no one truly holds onto it. Jay Gatsby takes the American Dream as it is, a warped sense of self-improvement in one's life, and twists it further in a way that better exposes that the “American Dream” is just that – a dream. Greed is a seed of destruction

In response to the simple idea of the American Dream, by the writer F. Scott Fitzgerald, the American Dream is a symbol of hope for success and that any goal can be achieved. Gatsby's lifestyle is portrayed as a corrupted dream: achieving his wealth illegally and attempting to resume an unattainable past love with Daisy. In the book The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald describes life during the 1920s and the craving for people to reach the American Dream. The author examines the corruption of Gatsby's life when trying to attain the American Dream.

The novel The Great Gatsby by Scott Fitz Gerald embodies many themes. A major in the story is the pursuit of can be labelled the American Dream. The American Dream is defined as someone starting low on the economic or social level, and working hard towards prosperity and or wealth and fame. By having money, a car, a big house, nice clothes and a happy family symbolizes the American dream. The Great Gatsby shows what happened to the American Dream in the 1920’s, which is a time period when the dreams became corrupted for many reasons.

The view of the American Dream is different for everyone. The Epic Journey, by James Truslow Adams, views the American Dream as a dream of attaining one’s fullest stature regardless of one’s social status. Similarly, in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s book, The Great Gatsby, Gatsby’s American Dream relates to Adam’s dream but limited to materialistic wealth- a dream that seeks for motor cars, higher wages, and to impress the people of high status. Both Adams and Gatsby believe that everyone has an equal chance of achieving their dream. Adams says “The dream is that dream of land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement”.

The American dream stands as a symbol for hope, prosperity, and happiness. But F. Scott Fitzgerald 's The Great Gatsby, examines the American dream from a different perspective, one that sheds light on those who contort these principles to their own selfish fantasies. Fitzgerald renders Jay Gatsby as a man who takes the Dream too far, and becomes unable to distinguish his false life of riches from reality. This 'unique ' American novel describes how humanity 's insatiable desires for wealth and power subvert the idyllic principles of the American vision. Jay Gatsby is the personification of limitless wealth and prestige, a shining beacon for the aspiring rich.

"The negative side of the American Dream comes when people pursue success at any cost, which in turn destroys the vision and the dream." In this quote, by Azar Nafisi, it explains how dreaming can be tainted by reality, and it that if you don 't compromise you may suffer. In the book The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the American Dream is one the many themes in this book. The American Dream that most people in this book obtains to have is wealth, statist, a fun social life, and someone to lust. It is the life we all strive to have until we obtain it and see it 's meaningless composure.

The American Dream is the opportunity to become successful with hard work and initiative. Gatsby himself achieves the American dream of success just to impress the love of his life, Daisy

"The negative side of the American Dream comes when people pursue success at any cost, which in turn destroys the vision and the dream." In this quote, by Azar Nafisi, it explains how dreaming can be tainted by reality, and that if a person doesn’t compromise they may suffer. In the book The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the American Dream is one the many themes present. The American Dream that most people in this book hope to have involves wealth, status, a fun social life, and someone to lust after. It is the life they all strive to have until they obtain it and see its meaningless composure.

Fitzgerald focused on the shift in the American Dream - from being the idea of self-fulfillment, dignity and comfort that is achieved through hard work, to being equated with the pursuit of wealth and power, and identifying happiness with having money. The novel depicts the rise and fall of the concept and describes the causes of its decay. The downfall of the American Dream is most accurately shown through the main protagonist of the story – Jay Gatsby. To reiterate, the American Dream is the concept that anyone can achieve a better life and become self-fulfilled, if they put enough effort to it and make the most of their abilities.

Seth Harvey Ms. Maggert English Honors III 7 April 2017 The Death and Resurrection of the American Dream In The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald quietly critiques the American Dream and the way it has been besmirched through the use of strong symbolism and the story of Jay Gatz. In the novel, Gatsby symbolizes the American Dream, coming from rags to riches. The 1920s is where the American Dream began to change.

First, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, further depicts this idea through the bygone love shared between Jay Gatsby and Daisy Buchanan. As Gatsby and Daisy wrap up their first time back together in five years, the narrator explains, “There must have been moments even that afternoon when Daisy tumbled short of his dreams (…)” (95). Fitzgerald’s inclusion of Gatsby’s and Daisy’s relationship within the novel ultimately furthers the development of the idea that the American Dream deters people’s minds to the past. In the novel, the two characters depicted fight for a love that is lost and unattainable, very similar to the American Dream.

The dream is represented by the ideas of a self sufficient man or woman, who is willing to do anything to achieve the goal of becoming successful. The Great Gatsby shows what happened to the American Dream in the 1920’s, a time period when dreams became corrupted for many reasons. The desire for a luxurious life, the hope for happiness, and the ambition for something unachievable and work together to ruin the American Dream. The Great Gatsby shows a time when the American Dream is failing, humanity is corrupting it by their wants of possessions leading to the all out demise of the American Dream.