The Great Gatsby was a novel written by F. Scott Fitzgerald. The book is told in the form of a narration and follows the life of the newly rich and the old rich in the 1920s. the main character of the book is a mysterious man named Jay Gatsby. Jay Gatsby is an interesting character that seems to have a lot of hidden secrets; Jay Gatsby always seems to keep the readers of the novel guessing. Though we are not introduced to the great character that the book was named after at the beginning of the book when we do eventually meet Jay Gatsby, he was well worth the wait. The book is called The Great Gatsby but what exactly does make Jay Gatsby as great as he is rumored to be. Jay Gatsby is a man of mystery and no one truly knows much about his life until he shares his version of his story with the narrator. We learn that Jay Gatsby and our narrator Nick Caraway were in the same army group, but Gatsby tells us that he won several …show more content…
Gatsby made most of his fortune from illegal activities.
“I found out what your ‘drug-stores’ were.” He turned to us and spoke rapidly. “He [Gatsby] and this Wolfsheim bought up a lot of side-street drug-stores here and in Chicago and sold grain alcohol over the counter. That’s one of his little stunts. I picked him for a bootlegger the first time I saw him, and I wasn’t far wrong.”
Gatsby, like most of the people that were newly rich, seems to have been involved in the illegal activity of selling alcohol all over the place. With his newly found money, Gatsby kept jumping at the chance to gain more money. In the end of the book, we learn that Gatsby is into more illegal activities than just transporting alcohol. After Gatsby’s death, Nick gets a phone call for Gatsby with a man on the other end that thinks he is talking to Gatsby.
“Hell of a note, isn’t it? Get my wires?” [man on other line named Slagle]
“There hasn’t been any wires.”
The story revolves around Jay Gatsby and his extraordinary life. Gatsby's lifestyle involves his great amount of wealth, an enormous mansion, and the hosting of parties that can only be dreamt of. All of Gatsby's qualities can be described as being purely "great", thus making him the Great Gatsby. MAIN CHARACTERS (a clear, concise description of each) Nick Carraway:
Chad Lynch Ferrell English 3 Honors 8 March 2016 The 20’s That You’ve Never Seen Before Have you ever wanted to feel the wind on your face while speeding away from the police as a bootlegger? Organized crime and prohibition were a very important part of the 1920’s. F. Scott Fitzgerald in the novel The Great Gatsby created the character Jay Gatsby, as an example of the “get rich scheme” this line of work offered.
I’ve been several things,’ he corrected himself. ‘I was in the drug business and then I was in the oil business. But I’m not in either one now’" (Fitzgerald 90). The quote says that Gatsby got his money through illegal means.
Jay Gatsby is a dead legend who not many people met but everybody heard about. He is an astonishing two-sided young man in a battle to win Daisy Buchanan over; however, he is fatally killed in his pool because of this girl. He is an alpha male who is extremely successful in all aspects of life except his escaping love of Daisy Buchanan. Gatsby is this mysterious awarded man who is highly praised by all people. Jay Gatsby, is a modest optimistic man liked by all people, but he truly isn’t known by anyone; therefore, no one truly knows the real Jay Gatsby because he truly is a dishonest criminal who only lives for one person, Daisy Buchanan.
In the beginning of the novel, Jay Gatsby’s accumulation of wealth is a mystery, and is speculated by others to be from a variety of sources, both respectable and illegal. While it is never directly explained by Gatsby, his riches are likely the result of an illicit bootlegging scheme: “‘He and this Wolfshiem brought up a lot of side-street drug stores here and in Chicago and sold grain alcohol over the counter. That’s one of his little stunts. I picked him for a bootlegger the first time I saw him and I wasn’t far wrong’”
“He and this Wolfshiem bought up a lot of side-street drug-stores here and in Chicago and sold grain alcohol over the counter. That’s one of his little stunts. I picked him for a bootlegger the first time I saw him, and I wasn’t far wrong.” In this paragraph Tom revealed Gatsby’s crime saying that Gatsby was doing illegal stuff, such as drugs and alcohol to make money. Gatsby is trying to become rich faster so he can be with Daisy because since her parents would rather have Daisy marry a rich man.
Whenever asked the question on how Gatsby maked his money, he would always answer that he built up a few drugstores and when his parents died he inherited money. Gatsby was never telling the truth about this; and Tom eventually figured this out. Gatsby wanted to appear as old money to impress Daisy which is why he lied. However, the reason why Gatsby never told the truth about how he made his money was because he was making his money illegally. In chapter seven, Tom accuses Gatsby of being a bootlegger, “He and this Wolfsheim bought up a lot of side street drug stores here and in Chicago and sold grain alcohol over the counter” (133).
The Great Gatsby is an extremely successful novel that was written by Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald. The story revolves around Nick Carraway, the narrator and one of the main characters. The story also focuses on Jay Gatsby. Nick’s affluent neighbor who often throws large parties at his mansion. The Great Gatsby is based on the idea of the American Dream; it is a belief that with sufficient work ethic, one can accomplish most, if not all of their goals.
The Great Gatsby is a novel narrated by Nick Caraway, who ends up being Jay Gatsby’s true lone friend. Jay Gatsby is an
and it drains any hope that Gatsby is a promising figure who used only legal tactics to make his money. Wolfsheim met Gatsby after the war and Wolfsheim asks Nick if he is looking for a “business gonnegtion” (Fitzgerald 70). One can only assume that this connection is for some type of illegal business and it puts the nail in the coffin. Gatsby 's reputation has been quickly ruined in the span of one
He and this Wolfsheim bought up a lot of side-street drug-stores here and in Chicago and sold grain alcohol over the counter. That’s one of his little stunts. I picked him for a bootlegger the first time I saw him, and I wasn’t far wrong.” (7.127) Gatsby earned his fortune through the illegal sale and distribution of liquor. Rumors of Gatsby’s being a bootlegger circulated with partygoers in chapter four while indications that Gatsby may be involved in criminal activity are suggested in chapter five.
The Great Gatsby is a love story about a young man from a poor background who loses the love of his life in his twenties and then, with extraordinary efforts, reaches the top and returns to claim what once belonged to him about yourself. Gatsby is a fabulously wealthy young man living in a Gothic mansion in West Egg. He is famous for the lavish parties he throws every Saturday night. dream was to have a future with his one true love, Daisy. Gatsby spent his life wishing for only one thing.
The Great Gatsby is a story of a man’s desire to reunite with a loved one and how every character desires to diverge from the 1920s societal norms. The story begins with a man named Nick Carraway. Nick begins with a short synopsis of his life before arriving in West Egg. Nick, whose profession is working in the bond business, bought a house on West Egg. Eventually, Nick meets a wealthy man named Jay Gatsby.
Jay Gatsby, the title character of the novel “The Great Gatsby” is a man that can not seem to live without the love of his life. Trying to win Daisy over consumes Gatsby’s life as he tries to become the person he thinks she would approve of. What most readers do not realize is that Jay Gatsby’s character mirrors many personality traits and concerns that the author of novel, F. Scott Fitzgerald, had. In fact, Gatsby and Fitzgerald are similar in that they both had a girl they wanted to win over, took a strong stance on alcohol, and ironically both had similar funerals, also, both people also symbolize the American dream.
I was in the drug business and then I was in the oil business. But I 'm not in either one now’” (Fitzgerald, 103). While this statement does not specifically imply illegal activity, one can assume Jay Gatsby gained money from any business in a way that was immoral. He chose to forget about conducting business ethically in order to climb the social ladder.