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Critical analysis of the tragedies of the great gatsby
Critical analysis of the tragedies of the great gatsby
Critical analysis of the tragedies of the great gatsby
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People around the world dream of America and the opportunity that it brings. America is the place where you can become someone from nothing and build a name for yourself. Whether it be fleeing from somewhere, or attempting to create a better life for your family, America is the only place where a true chance can be given. With the freedoms that no other country possesses, America’s purpose is to give its inhabitants the ability that most matters: opportunity. In The Great Gatsby, by Scott Fitzgerald exemplifies this idea of excelling despite the circumstance through the character, James Gatz; otherwise known as Jay Gatsby. Gatsby came from a family unlike many of the characters portrayed throughout the novel. Never coming from any money himself, …show more content…
Once Gatsby had built his fortune, he established a reputation through the lavish parties that he hosted at his mansion. Carraway described his house filled with, “ air [that] is alive with chatter and laughter, and casual innuendo introductions forgotten on the spot, and enthusiastic meetings between women who never knew each other’s names” (Fitzgerald 40). Carraway further explains the amount of performances and excess that Gatsby created in order to establish himself. Through this depiction, Gatsby is viewed as a establishing success for himself against the odds of circumstance. Gatsby not only attempts to find wealth, but further concludes that his dream of Daisy should now be a reality. Gatsby believes that since he has now established himself financially, him and Daisy can create a life for themselves. Gatsby has fantasized of her for so long that he “‘...bought that house so that Daisy would be just across the bay’”(Fitzgerald 78). Gatsby further attempts to gain Daisy through orchestrating a meeting through Nick and inviting her to one of his superfluous gatherings. Ultimately, everything that Gatsby does is a rouse to gain Daisy’s attention. His reflection of a sophisticated and refined man is only an embodiment of who he wishes he was. Gatsby projects himself in one way, in order to achieve his overall dream of wealth and
Gatsby’s explanation of this dream focused on money and social status. He has always yearned for this, even when he was a child. Fitzgerald frequently emphasises Gatsby’s desire, throughout the entirety of this novel. Though, Fitzgerald accentuates this desire when Nick discovers the truth of Gatsby’s past. During this elucidation, Nick explains that “his [Gatsby’s] parents were shiftless and unsuccessful farm people-his imagination had never really accepted them as his parents at all.” (Fitzgerald, 98) This shows the reader Gatsby’s lifelong determination for wealth and power. Even in his adult life, he strives for more than what he has. In John Steinbeck’s essay, he explains that “we [Americans] go mad with dissatisfaction in the face of success” (Steinbeck, 1) This is exactly how Gatsby feels, he is not content with his success, the amount of money he has, or the height of his social status and is constantly wishing for more than he has. Though, once he meets Daisy he no longer strives for wealth, but rather for her. As shown in this novel, even though Gatsby has achieved all he had wanted when he was growing up, he will not be content until he is able to call Daisy his
“ Its attitude is one of disillusionment and detachment; Fitzgerald is still able to evoke the glitter of the 1920s but he is no longer dazzled by it; he sees its underlying emptiness and impoverishment” (Trendell 23)The story is narrated from the point of view of Nick, one of Gatsby’s friends. The problematic and hopeless romantic, Gatsby, sets out to fulfill his dream in acquiring Daisy, his lifelong love, through his many tactics and ideas. Gatsby is introduced extending his arms mysteriously toward a green light in the direction of the water. Later, Gatsby is shown to be the host of many parties for the rich and Nick is invited to one of these parties where Gatsby and Nick meet. When Gatsby later confesses his love for Daisy he explains she was a loved one who was separated from him and hopes to get her again explained when he says, “I hope she'll be a fool -- that's the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool”(Fitzgerald 56). There are several obstacles that Gatsby must overcome and the biggest one that is Daisy’s current fiancé but that still does not get in the way of him trying to recover Daisy’s old feelings. His attempts are made through money and wealth because he tries to buy her love back instead of letting it happen naturally.
The Great Gatsby is an emotional tale of hope of love and “romantic readiness”(1.2) that is both admirable and meritorious .Yet, the question of Daisy ever being able to measure up to Gatsby’s expectations is one that reverberates throughout the course of the novel. Be that as it may, Daisy is never truly able to measure up to Gatsby’s expectations because the image of Daisy in Gatsby’s mind is entirely different from who she actually is. Even during his younger years, Gatsby had always had a vision of himself “as a son of God”(6.98) and that “he must be about his fathers business, the service of a vast, vulgar and meretricious beauty”(6.98). Gatsby’s desire for aristocracy, wealth, and luxury is exactly what drives him to pursue Daisy who embodies everything that that Gatsby desires and worked towards achieving. Therefore, Gatsby sees Daisy as the final piece to his puzzle in order realize his vision. Gatsby’s hyperbolized expectation of Daisy throws light on the notion if our dreams as individuals are actually limited by reality. Since our dreams as human beings are never truly realized, because they may be lacking a specific element. Daisy proves to be that element that lingers in Gatsby’s dreams but eludes his reality.
For five years, Gatsby was denied the one thing that he desired more than anything in the world: Daisy. While she was willing to wait for him until after the war, he did not want to return to her a poor man who would, in his eyes, be unworthy of her love. Gatsby did not want to force Daisy to choose between the comfortable lifestyle she was used to and his love. Before he would return to her, he was determined to make something of himself so that Daisy would not lose the affluence that she was accustomed to possessing. His desire for Daisy made Gatsby willing to do whatever was necessary to earn the money that would in turn lead to Daisy’s love, even if it meant participating in actions...
Gatsby downfall came when he sacrificed his morality to attain wealth. Gatsby realises that the illusion of his dream with Daisy, demands wealth to become priority, and thus wealth becomes the desire overriding his need for her [Daisy’s] love. Gatsby claims to others that he has inherited his wealth, but Nick discovers "[h]is parents were shiftless and unsuccessful farm people" (Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby, pg 104) and that Gatsby has lied about his past. In a society that relies on luxuries, Gatsby throws parties to attract Daisy’s attention. Also, Gatsby expresses that same need to keep busy, just as Daisy does, in a society of the elite. Nick describes Gatsby as "never quite still, there was always a tapping foot somewhere or the impatient opening and closing of a hand" (Fitzgerald, pg 68). Gatsby fills his house "full of interesting people...who do interesting things" (Fitzgerald, pg 96). Gatsby's dream is doomed to failure in that he has lost the fundamental necessities to experience love, such as honesty and moral integrity.
Nick describes Gatsby as “one of those rare smiles with a quality of eternal reassurance in it, that you may come across four or five times in life(Ch.3).” Such description unifies the appearance of Gatsby with people’s expectation of a man who accomplished the American dream. The obsession with wealth often blinds people from the potential crisis. The crisis of having everything they worked and struggled for redefined if the reality fails them. Just like strivers who chase the American dream, Gatsby also spent his whole life in pursuit of his American dream, which Daisy was a major component of.
Gatsby is a dreamer, he dreams that one day he and Daisy will be able to be together once again. To achieve this dream Gatsby has made himself a rich man. He knows that in order to win Daisy back he must be wealthy and of high social stature. Gatsby becomes rich, has a beautiful mansion, nice things, things like shirts “They’re such beautiful shirts. . . it makes me sad because I’ve never seen such-such beautiful clothes” (pg.98).Gatsby believes his dream will come true because of all the money and nice things he has. The way that Gatsby becomes rich is in a way the demise of his dream. Gatsby becomes wealthy by participating in organized crime, including distributing illegal alcohol and trading in stolen securities. Daisy eventually learns about this and it is one of the reasons she will never again be with Gatsby. The other reason is Daisy a...
When he first meets Daisy Buchanan, Gatsby has “committed himself to the following of a grail” (156). With extreme dedication, he stops at nothing to win her love back, after years of separation. Gatsby’s idealized conception of Daisy is the motivating force that underlies his compulsion to become successful. Everything he has done, up to this point, has been directed toward winning Daisy’s favor and having her back in his life. The greatest example of this dedication is the mansion he has constructed, “a colossal affair by any standard...with a tower on one side, spanking new under a thin beard of raw ivy, and a marble swimming pool, and more than forty acres of lawn and garden” (9). Once a “penniless young man without a past” (156), he transforms himself into a self-made millionaire and builds an extravagant mansion, all for the love of Daisy Buchanan. He also strategically places the mansion across the lake from Daisy’s house. From his window, Gatsby can see the blue colored lights of her house. Gatsby seems to be caught in a conflict between materialism and idealism that created and still defines the American character.
The novel, The Great Gatsby focuses on one of the focal characters, James Gatz, also known as Jay Gatsby. He grew up in North Dakota to a family of poor farm people and as he matured, eventually worked for a wealthy man named Dan Cody. As Gatsby is taken under Cody’s wing, he gains more than even he bargained for. He comes across a large sum of money, however ends up getting tricked out of ‘inheriting’ it. After these obstacles, he finds a new way to earn his money, even though it means bending the law to obtain it. Some people will go to a lot of trouble in order to achieve things at all costs. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s, The Great Gatsby, conveys the numerous traits of Jay Gatsby through the incidents he faces, how he voices himself and the alterations he undergoes through the progression of the novel. Gatsby possesses many traits that help him develop as a key character in the novel: ambitious, kind-hearted and deceitful all of which is proven through various incidents that arise in the novel.
Gatsby is obsessed with wealth and the higher social class. Daisy Buchanan is someone Gatsby loves but he also loves the idea of her wealth and class. "Her voice is full of money," he said suddenly. That was it. I'd never understood before. It was full of money – that was the inexhaustible charm that rose and fell in it, the jingle of it, the cymbals' song of it… high in a white palace the king's daughter, the golden girl […]” (Fitzgerald 120). If Gatsby could have Daisy in his life he could have the classy lifestyle every middle and lower class American dreams of. Jay Gatsby also embodies the surge of materialism during this era, he throws the biggest parties and owns the fanciest of things even down to the shirts. Gatsby has a loss of morals when he goes to great lengths to move from the lowest social class to the social elite. Gatsby’s appearance is much different from his reality, at first the reader is introduced to Gatsby as someone had a privileged upbringing and had been educated at Oxford, ’”Well he told me once he was an Oxford man”’(Fitzgerald 49). The reader later finds out that Gatsby has lied about his background. Gatsby was raised in poverty,”His parents were shiftless and unsuccessful farm people-” (Fitzgerald 98) and had attended a small college for two weeks then dropped out, “An instinct
Gatsby has all the money yet he is not happy when he throws gigantic parties at his house. Daisy, the one he tried to lure in with his parties, never cared to show up. The love shown by Gatsby towards Daisy, “’I want to wait here till Daisy goes to bed. Good night, old sport.’ He put his hands in his coat pockets and turned back eagerly to his scrutiny of the house as though my presence marred the sacredness of the vigil. So I walked away and left him standing there in the moonlight – watching over nothing” (Fitzgerald 145).
Gatsby’s morbid urge can be distinguished when he finds the courage to confront Tom with false accusations involving his feeling for his wife. Gatsby yells, “Your wife doesn’t love you...She’s never loved you. She loves me.” (Fitzgerald 130) His selfish thoughts do not consider Daisy’s opinion, establishing a feeling of reassurance that Gatsby is blinded by ambition. Gatsby’s profound love for Daisy’s “excitingly desirable” character, (Fitzgerald 150) includes luxuriance language that gives details concerning her financial situation, revealing the sincerity of what she really meant for Gatsby, a goal driven by ambition to satisfy his conscience. Gatsby knew that their relationship meant nothing, as Daisy “vanished into her rich house, into her rich, full life, leaving Gatsby--- nothing. He felt married to her, that was all.”(Fitzgerald 149) Gatsby’s never loved Daisy as much as he thought he did. She was always the perfect target to move one step forward, leading towards his success. From the beginning of time, Gatsby’s desired to be a man worthy enough to associate with her, drawn to the success that she represents. In the film, Gatsby is perceived as romantic passionate guy who is willing to wait 5 years for her, plan parties and move across the bay, all in order to win back her heart. He is attracted
He showed an immense amount of innocence after obtaining a large amount of money. Through illegal ways, their desires were met and adultery was committed. Daisy and Tom, living in the East Egg experience such extravagance and elegance, while Gatsby is not very much affected by the amount of materialistic items. Through the eyes of Nick Carraway, he viewed Gatsby as if there was “something gorgeous about him, some heightened sensitivity to the promises of life” (page 2). Gatsby can be easily seen as an optimist, taking life for what it is and having his extraordinary gift for hope and luck. He had earned a large amount of wealth and materialistic items, in hopes that he can one day win back the love he once had with the perfect girl, Daisy Buchanan. Gatsby had gone above and beyond in ways to impress Daisy, buying a large mansion just across the bay from her. Gatsby had “half expected her to wander into one of his parties some night” (page 79). He wanted their interaction after so long to be a coincidence, showing off the wealth he had gained. Gatsby was known to throw these lavish and extreme mansion parties, in the single hopes that the woman of his dreams would once walk through that door. The innocence in Gatsby was something that could not be tampered or tainted with. Deep down, the West Egg new money stuck with him during his search for his
Jay Gatsby, a self-determined man, teaches himself how to be well mannered, writes ideas down so that he will be successful. He always determined to do anything that comes in mind. His obsession with Daisy makes him willing to do anything for her. Gatsby begins with throwing parties and waits until Daisy comes to one of them; however, Gatsby’s idea never really works until Daisy’s cousin, Nick, comes to town, and Gatsby has an idea for him to meet Daisy. Gatsby has always had that endeavor to get anything he wants so that he can relive the moment he has with Daisy. Jay Gatsby has to strive; that makes him keep going and feeling alive.
Reality is written within the facts whereas illusion is a perception of what is reality. The ideas illustrated by F. Scott Fitzgerald in The Great Gatsby are the ways individuals within this novel respond to conflict between illusion and reality. He describes this concept through the life of James Gatz, also known as Jay Gatsby, and his desire to create a new, brilliant past and a desirable current moment. His history, his wealth, and his object of longing are all illusions he creates. Jay Gatsby's life is presented through is idea of his past as an opposite of how it really was, his longing for his former love; Daisy Buchanan, and in how he crosses the boundary of illusion versus reality in creating his new ‘identity’ so to speak and how his