The Failed American Dream Individualism, happiness, and discovery used to be the primary goals of the American Dream. By the time the 1920’s began, people started to stray away from these three objectives. Scott Fitzgerald shows the moral decay that occurred during the 1920’s throughout the classic novel The Great Gatsby. There is a clear increase in organized crime, materialism, and there is a theme of unfaithfulness throughout the book. Through the use of the character’s actions, Fitzgerald is able to show the reader how corrupt and immoral many people were. Gatsby does not want to get rich by honest means and gets involved with bootlegging, among other illegal activities to become wealthy. After realizing that Daisy is reluctant to be with a man below her social class, Gatsby’s desire for Daisy and wealth leads him to get involved with bootlegging, among other unlawful activities. When Tom and Gatsby are fighting …show more content…
over Daisy, Tom exclaims, “I found out what your ‘drug stores’ were. He and this Wolfsheim bought up a lot of side-street drug stores here and in Chicago and sold grain alcohol over the counter. I picked him for a bootlegger the first time I saw him, and I wasn’t far off” (Fitzgerald 133). Gatsby’s greed for Daisy overwhelms him and leads him to participating in illegal activities to get rich fast. While Gatsby may seem like a well mannered and well meaning man, he is unscrupulous when it comes to getting what he wants. He would rather go against the law to be with Daisy than to work hard to achieve not only a stature of wealth, but happiness with Daisy. The significant increase in organized crime and bootlegging shows moral decay, as following the law no longer matters to Gatsby. Gatsby focuses on accumulating and spending money instead of more important matters. His materialism is evident by his decadent parties, which he throws every week. Instead of spending his money wisely, he wastes much of it on entertainment and schemes to bring Daisy back. Nick describes the orchestra at the party as being, “no thin five piece affair, but a whole pitful of oboes and trombones and saxophones and viols and cornets and piccolos, and low and high drums” (Fitzgerald 40). Clearly, no expense is spared when it comes to Gatsby’s party. This focus on material items causes him to spend money without restraint. His relentless spending, which was typical of many other people in the 1920’s, demonstrates the decay of morals during that period. Instead of focusing on more important matters, like discovery, happiness, and individualism, Gatsby focuses on money and what it can buy. There are many instances of unfaithfulness in this novel, and it seems to be the norm.
Daisy cheats on Tom with Gatsby, Tom cheats on Daisy with Myrtle, and Myrtle cheats on George with Tom. When talking about unfaithfulness, Tom states, “And what’s more, I love Daisy too. Once in a while I will go off on a spree and make a fool of myself, but I always come back, and in my heart I love her all the time” (Fitzgerald 131). To Tom, it is okay to have occasional affairs, because he truly loves Daisy. This way of looking at his unfaithfulness is a way to justify his actions and to relieve some of his guilt. While he may or may not truly believe what he is saying, it is clear that he does not care much about Daisy’s feelings if he thinks it is acceptable to cheat on her, and then act as if nothing happened. While other adulterers in the book do not justify their actions, they do not seem to have much remorse, except when they get caught. Daisy, Tom, and Myrtle morals are weakened, as they do not take faithfulness and loyalty to their spouse
seriously. By the 1920’s, people started to stray away from the American Dream and focus on new goals. This moral decay was portrayed throughout the entirety of the novel The Great Gatsby. Many people did not take their relationship with their spouse seriously, resulting in adultery. There was also a surge in organized crime and bootlegging, and materialism (placing money at a high value). The author, Scott Fitzgerald uses the character’s actions to demonstrate how society’s morals decayed in the 1920’s.
Tom Buchanan is arguably the character who possesses the most corrupt set of morals. His actions can be described as “some of the most immoral and senseless actions in the entire novel” (“Ranking…). He cheats on Daisy “simply because he can” (“Ranking…”). This shows that he has no care or regard for anyone but himself. He is going to do what he wants no matter how it affects other people. It is this mindset that causes the deaths of Myrtle, Gatsby, and Mr. Wilson. He knows this, but “he runs away from the entire situation… as if he was never part of it in the first place” (“Ranking…”). He and Daisy mess things up and leave. They go back to their normal, careless life of wealth and leave someone else to fix their mess (Fitzgerald 187-188). Together Tom and Daisy are absolutely incorrigible people with no regard for others.
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.
The classic novel of a corrupt American dream– F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby – makes a bold statement of the era of disintegrating goals and low expectations of Americans commencing in the 1920s. F. Scott Fitzgerald was known to be one of the greatest American writers of the 20th century and many of his literary works have been recognized for their brilliance. This flawless novel being an essential basis for Fitzgerald’s fame and certainly one of my favorites, exemplifies that more worthwhile goals have gone out the window, and wealth truly doesn't buy happiness or in this case love.
Tom, Daisy, and Myrtle were all unfaithful to their spouses. Their love for themselves far outweighed their love for each other. Tom and Myrtle have a notorious affair throughout the novel while Daisy becomes very close to her ex- beloved, Jay Gatsby. Even with their new lovers, none of them displayed true love. Each wanted something from the other.
Myrtle is, as Daisy, impressed with Tom's wealth and appearance, but, like Jay Gatsby, is stuck in a fantastic, idealized perception of her object of affection. Even when abused and trampled over by Tom, Myrtle continues to adore him, just as Gatsby continues to dote upon Daisy after being obviously rejected by her. As far as ethical considerations, Gatsby tends to prove himself a sincere and caring person, while Daisy and Tom just destroy the lives of two people and then leave town to escape the consequences of their actions.
The 1920’s was a time of great change to both the country lived in as well as the goals and ambitions that were sought after by the average person. During this time, priorities shifted from family and religion to success and spontaneous living. The American dream, itself, changed into a self centered and ongoing personal goal that was the leading priority in most people’s lives. This new age of carelessness and naivety encompasses much of what this earlier period is remembered for. In addition, this revolution transformed many of the great writers and authors of the time as well as their various works. The Great Gatsby, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, perfectly symbolizes many emergent trends of the 1920’s. More importantly the character of Jay Gatsby is depicted as a man amongst his American dream and the trials he faces in the pursuit of its complete achievement. His drive for acquiring the girl of his dreams, Daisy Buchanan, through gaining status and wealth shows many aspects of the authors view on the American dream. Through this, one can hope to disassemble the complex picture that is Fitzgerald’s view of this through the novel. Fitzgerald believes, through his experiences during the 1920’s, that only fractions of the American Dream are attainable, and he demonstrates this through three distinct images in The Great Gastby.
The Great Gatsby: The Destruction of Morals. In The Great Gatsby, the author F. Scott Fitzgerald shows the destruction of morals in society. The characters in this novel, all lose their morals in an attempt to find their desired place in the social world. They trade their beliefs for the hope of acceptance.
The Roaring Twenties is considered a time of mass corruption and excessive absurdity. F. Scott Fitzgerald uses his novel, The Great Gatsby, to criticize the American society and its values in this era. This criticism is best shown in the behaviour of the people who go to Gatsby's parties; they are careless, rude and only looking out for themselves. It is also shown in the corruption of the police, who are easily paid to look the other way. It is finally apparent in the corruption of friendship and love, the truth being that there is none. This society and its values are self-centered and materialistic, caring very little for consequences and others. Fitzgerald's message is delivered magnificently and causes one to be appalled by the behaviour of the people during this time in history.
In The Great Gatsby Fitzgerald explores the idea of the American Dream as well as the portrayal of social classes. Fitzgerald carefully sets up his novel into distinct social groups but, in the end, each group has its own problems to contend with, leaving a powerful reminder of what a precarious place the world really is. By creating two distinct social classes ‘old money’ and ‘new money’, Fitzgerald sends strong messages about the elitism underlying and moral corruption society. The idea of the American dream is the ideal that opportunity is available to any American, allowing their highest aspirations and goals to be achieved. In the case of The Great Gatsby it centres on the attainment of wealth and status to reach certain positions in life,
Scott Fitzgerald also makes it a point to show similarities between Gatsby and Tom. One of the first similarities that the reader can see is that both men use people to obtain what they want. Gatsby uses Nick Carraway to meet Daisy “‘I don 't want you to get a wrong idea of me from all these stories you hear.’”(Fitzgerald, 65) He befriends Nick to find out information on Daisy. Gatsby also uses all the people he invites to his party as his only objective was to find anyone who might know Daisy. Gatsby didn’t want all these people he was just doing it for selfish reasons. Gatsby uses Nick to ensure that Daisy will come to tea so that he can see her again. While Daisy and Nick are at Gatsby’s house, Gatsby forgets all about Nick and only concentrates on Daisy. Once Gatsby got what he wanted he forgot about Nick. Tom also uses people to obtain his desires. The first person Tom uses is Daisy when he marries her. He does not love her; he just wants someone that’ll fit into his socialite life. Even on their honeymoon, Tom cheats on Daisy, which shows how much he cares and respects her. “The girl who was with him got into the papers, too, because her arm was broken-she was one of the chambermaids in the Santa Barbara Hotel.” (Fitzgerald, 77) Tom also uses Myrtle as he does not treat her right because he has no plans of leaving Daisy to stay with Myrtle. Tom would not jeopardize his status as he loves himself more than anyone else. This is seen when Myrtle dies; Tom
In the past century in America, one of the decades that has stood out most as a time of change is the 1920s. In a post-war economic boom, the decade was a time of cultural and societal change. Among the parties and the more relaxed way of life, Americans experienced new wealth and luxury. Capturing the essence of the Roaring Twenties is a daunting task, especially because of the many different factors contributing to the decade’s fame. However, F. Scott Fitzgerald managed to capture and define the spirit of the 1920s through his novel. In Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, the characters and events of the novel manifest the trademark qualities of America in the 1920s.
The 1920’s were a time of social and technological change. After World War II, the Victorian values were disregarded, there was an increase in alcohol consumption, and the Modernist Era was brought about. The Great Gatsby, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is a perfect presentation of the decaying morals of the Roaring Twenties. Fitzgerald uses the characters in the novel--specifically the Buchanans, Jordan Baker, and Gatsby’s partygoers--to represent the theme of the moral decay of society.
The pursuit of the American Dream has been alive for generations. People from nations all over the world come to America for the chance to achieve this legendary dream of freedom, opportunity, and the “all American family”. However, in the 1920’s this dream began to take a different form. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s, The Great Gatsby, unfolds what the American Dream really meant during the roaring 20’s. The Great Gatsby tells a story of the affluent Jay Gatsby and his dream of attaining the love of the married Daisy Buchanan. In this novel, Gatsby’s dream of love is unmasked and reviled as a dream of materialistic things. Fitzgerald shows that each character truly glorifies only money, power, and social stature. During the 1920’s, these things were the only thing people dreamt about. The symbolism in The Great Gatsby illustrates how the American Dream became corrupt in the 1920’s.
In The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald employs the use of characters, themes, and symbolism to convey the idea of the American Dream and its corruption through the aspects of wealth, family, and status. In regards to wealth and success, Fitzgerald makes clear the growing corruption of the American Dream by using Gatsby himself as a symbol for the corrupted dream throughout the text. In addition, when portraying the family the characters in Great Gatsby are used to expose the corruption growing in the family system present in the novel. Finally, the American longing for status as a citizen is gravely overshot when Gatsby surrounds his life with walls of lies in order to fulfill his desires for an impure dream. F. Scot. Fitzgerald, through his use of symbols, characters, and theme, displays for the reader a tale that provides a commentary on the American dream and more importantly on its corruption.
Upon first glance, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby and the critically acclaimed film Chicago tell two different and unique stories. However, closer analysis reveals a shared theme between the two: moral decay. Taking place in the 1920s after World War I, Fitzgerald takes the reader to the epicentre of American society - New York City. The restless and hectic city lifestyle reflects upon the lying, selfish, and deceiving characters. Meanwhile, in the bustling streets of Chicago, the nightlife and the ethics of society are explored through music and dance. Characters often make decisions while disregarding the emotions of others, showing their morality through their actions. Both stories comprise of many characters that exhibit egocentric