The Roaring American Dream Parties, Prohibition, alcohol, and wealth are common aspects that come to mind when thinking about the Roaring 20s. The end of World War I brought about an aura of discovery and desire. Many women became more provocative in their clothing and makeup. These women were known by the term “Flappers.” Authors, including F. Scott Fitzgerald, began emerging during this time which was also known as “the Jazz Age” (“Roaring Twenties”). The Great Gatsby, considered as one of Fitzgerald’s most famous works, allowed him to portray not only aspects of the Jazz Age, but also the American Dream of many individuals during the 1920s. Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald, seen as “bright, handsome, and ambitious,” was born in 1896 to …show more content…
Scott Fitzgerald portrayed The Great Gatsby in the 1920s, which many people refer to as “the Roaring 20s” or “the Jazz Age.” It was known that “Fitzgerald coined the phrase, ‘the Jazz Age’ that same year [1922] to describe the flamboyant – ‘anything goes’ – era that emerged in America after World War I” (The Jazz Age). Many individuals living in the Jazz Age were considered to be “reckless” and “extravagant,” however, some were viewed on the opposite end of the spectrum and seen as “sober-minded conservatives” who abided by the 18th Amendment (Class…Great Gatsby). Fitzgerald decided to use the more materialistic and racy characteristics of individuals living in the 1920s to create one of his most famous novels. In The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby, the wealthy neighbor of the main character, Nick Carraway, held extravagantly long and large parties that consisted of plenty of dancing, women in revealing clothing, and alcohol, regardless of the Prohibition occurring at the same time. This mantra of excessive partying and freedom influenced the view of the American Dream during this …show more content…
Originally, most people viewed the American Dream as striving toward success and happiness. However, in the 1920s, Fitzgerald showed that the American Dream began to revolve more around materialistic ideals and less around wholesome values. Throughout The Great Gatsby, various dreams of characters were revealed. A common theme within all of the different characters’ American Dreams is hope. At first glance, this may seem reasonable. But, many of the characters, such as Myrtle Wilson, hope for a higher social status, and others like Nick Carraway, hope to fit in with those with great wealth. Also, these characters are willing to do just about anything to achieve their dreams, including infidelity, and ultimately, some pay the price of losing their own life. Fitzgerald successfully portrayed a twisted view of the American Dream of different characters in his novel. What was once a positive view of the possibilities life may have in store, slowly began shifting to negative, temporary hopes of the future of an individual. This realistic portrayal of many people in the 1920s contributed to The Great Gatsby’s rising
In the novel The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald gives the reader a glimpse into the life of the high class during the 1920’s through the eyes of a man named Nick Carraway. Through the narrator's dealings with high society, Fitzgerald demonstrates how modern values have transformed the American dream's ideas into a scheme for materialistic power and he reveals how the world of high society lacks any sense of morals or consequence. In order to support his message, Fitzgerald presents the original aspects of the American dream along with its modern face to show that the wanted dream is now lost forever to the American people. Jay Gatsby had a dream and did everything he could to achieve it however in the end he failed to. This reveals that the American dream is not always a reality that can be obtained. Fitzgerald demonstrates how a dream can become corrupted by one’s focus on acquiring wealth and power through imagery, symbolism, and characterization.
The American dream. Every American has his or her own ideals and preferences, but all share more or less the same dream. In The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald explores what happens when this dream is taken too far. What is one to do when the dream begins to overshadow reality? What are the consequences when a successful man allows the dream to matter more than life itself? Fitzgerald tells all through the hopeless Gatsby, idealistic Nick, and ignorant Myrtle.
Since its publication in 1925, The Great Gatsby has remained a spot-on representation of a time in American history in which the people believed anything was possible. Gatsby is the definition of this idea. The underlying cause of everything in this novel is his--and in essence everyone’s idea. This idea is the ubiquitous notion of the American Dream. And Fitzgerald does not only write about the American Dream, but about its corruption as well. This following quote truly epitomizes what the American Dream had become in the eyes of Fitzgerald:
Through the use of symbolism and critique, F. Scott Fitzgerald is able to elucidate the lifestyles and dreams of variously natured people of the 1920s in his novel, The Great Gatsby. He uses specific characters to signify diverse groups of people, each with their own version of the “American Dream.” Mostly all of the poor dream of transforming from “rags to riches”, while some members of the upper class use other people as their motivators. In any case, no matter how obsessed someone may be about their “American Dream”, Fitzgerald reasons that they are all implausible to attain.
The Roaring Twenties was a time of excitement for the American people, with cities bustling with activity and a large community that appreciated Jazz, thus creating the title the “Jazz Age.” The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald takes place in this magnificent age characterized by Jazz and the popular new dance, the “Charleston.” Through the midst of all this new activity, we follow a character named Jay Gatsby through the eyes of the narrator, Nick Carraway. Fitzgerald’s themes of friendship and The American Dream is seen in The Great Gatsby through Nick and Jay’s companionship and Gatsby’s growth from being a simple farm boy to becoming a wealthy man.
Literature has been portraying the idea of the American dream in many different stories throughout all of history. This dream can be defined as someone rising from the bottom and finding wealth and love in their everyday life. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, the storyline illustrates the life of several characters pursuing the American dream in New York City. The characters are all by intrigued Jay Gatsby, the man who lives across the bay with the biggest house in the city. Every person wants to gain the wealth that Gatsby has. The corruption of this desired American dream develops throughout the novel as the characters pursue love and money yet ultimately end up broken-hearted, empty-handed, or dead. During the time period of The Great Gatsby, the empty and superficial way of life was masked by the glamour and wealth that the people were absorbed in.
Fitzgerald accurately portrayed the flamboyancy of the 1920s in The Great Gatsby. Many aspects contributed to this flamboyancy and indifference. The pursuit of the “American Dream” contributed to the actions of Americans and to the actions of Fitzgerald’s characters. The advent of prohibition in 1920 also pushed the actions of Americans, real and imaginary. Gangsters and organized crime were an influential force in the young aristocracy of the 1920s. The revolution of new women also greatly impacted society’s twists and turns during the 1920s. In The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald accurately portrayed these aspects of 1920s American society.
F. Scott Fitzgerald was one of the most influential writers of modern day society. He holds this title because he wrote about things that drive people's everyday life. He wrote in two different periods that were very significant in the social development of America. These two periods of time symbolized not only the generation that he was writing about, but it also speaks to the present day generation.
The American Dream is the concept that anyone, no matter who he or she is, can become successful in his or her life through perseverance and hard work. It is commonly perceived as someone who was born and starts out as poor but ambitious, and works hard enough to achieve wealth, prosperity, happiness, and stability. Clearly, Fitzgerald uses Gatsby to personify the destruction of the American Dream Gatsby started out as a poor farming boy, meticulously planning his progression to become a great man. When Gatsby’s father showed Nick the journal where Gatsby wrote his resolution, he says, “Jimmy was bound to get ahead. He always had some resolves like this or something. Do you notice what he 's got about improving his mind?” (182). The written resolution demonstrates how ambitious and innocent Gatsby was in pursuing his dreams and how much he wanted to improve himself that his father applauded him, which once characterized the process of pursuing the American Dream. While pursuing Daisy (Gatsby’s American Dream), Gatsby becomes corrupt and destroys himself. He did not achieve his fortune through honest hard work, but through dishonesty and illegal activities. Furthermore, Gatsby has a large, extravagant mansion, drives flashy cars, throws lavish parties filled with music and
The thesis of Kimberley Hearne’s essay “Fitzgerald’s Rendering of a Dream” is at the end of the first paragraph and reads “It is through the language itself, and the recurrent romantic imagery, that Fitzgerald offers up his critique and presents the dream for what it truly is: a mirage that entices us to keep moving forward even as we are ceaselessly borne back into the past (Fitzgerald 189).” Hearne’s essay provides information on the misconception of The American Dream that Fitzgerald conveys through “The Great Gatsby”. She provides countless evidence that expresses Fitzgerald’s view of The American Dream, and explains that Fitzgerald’s writing of the novel is to express to Americans what The American Dream truly is.
In fact, it could be argued that Fitzgerald created an “...alter ego, Nick Caraway, [and] recalls wistfully the America of his youth” and the chaos of a transition to the eastern way of life through this character (Zeitz). Fitzgerald appeared to have a sense of contempt for the wealthy and it is evident in the way he often described them: “wanderers, confident girls who weave here and there among the stouter and more stable become for a sharp, joyous moment the center of a group, and then, excited with triumph, glide on through the sea-change of faces and voices and color under the constantly changing light” (Fitzgerald 41). Fitzgerald was surrounded by these shallow, vivacious women and, logically, they would fill the background of the extraordinary parties that Scott and Zelda would attend. Besides accurately portraying the personalities of the jazz age, Fitzgerald also artfully recounted the historical aspects that his generation faced. The prohibition had little effect on the characters of the novel, as insinuated with Gatsby’s “drug store business”, just as it had little effect on the wealthy during the 1920’s. More Americans than ever could afford electricity, glassware, jewelry, and trips to the theater or an amusement park (Zeitz). The line between classes became more and more blurred as luxuries became easier to gain.
The American Dream, a long standing ideal embodies the hope that one can achieve financial success, political power, and everlasting love through dedication and hard work. During the Roaring 20s, people in America put up facades to mask who they truly were. In The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald conveys that the American Dream is simply an illusion, that is idealist and unreal. In the novel, Gatsby, a wealthy socialite pursues his dream, Daisy. In the process of pursuing Daisy, Gatsby betrays his morals and destroys himself. Through the eyes of the narrator, Nick, one sees the extent of the corruption Gatsby is willing to undertake in order to achieve his dream. Although Fitzgerald applauds the American Dream he warns against the dangers of living in a world full of illusions and deceit; a trait common during the Roaring 20s. The language and plot devices Fitzgerald uses convey that lies and facades, which were common during the Guided Age, destroys one’s own character and morals. Through Fitzgerald use of symbolism, expectations, and relationships, he explores the American dream, and how it is an illusion that corrupts and destroys lives.
Hope and ambition are vital aspects of the American Dream. Gatsby is a man of infinite hope and ambition. Gatsby’s father says, “Jimmy was bound to get ahead. He always had some resolves like this or something. Do you notice what he’s got about improving his mind? He’s always great for that.”(Fitzgerald, 173) Gatsby waited 5 years, hoping that he would obtain Daisy’s love once more. Nick acknowledges these qualities of Gatsby: “It was an extraordinary gift for hope, a romantic readiness such as I have never found in any person and which it is not likely I shall ever find again.”(2) These two qualities in Gatsby’s character represent the uncontaminated American Dream.
The American dream has an inspiring connotation, often associated with the pursuit of happiness, to compel the average citizen to prosper. In Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby’s infatuation for Daisy drives him towards wealth in order to respark his love. Due to Daisy’s rich background, the traditional idea of love becomes skewed because of the materialistic mindsets of people in the 1920s. In the novel the wealthy are further stratified into two social classes creating a barrier between the elite and the “dreamers”. Throughout the novel, the idea of the American dream as a fresh start fails. As Nick, the narrator, spends time in New York, he realizes the corruption pursuing goals. Characters such as Gatsby and Myrtle constantly strive toward an the American dream, which Nick realizes to be fruitless in the end.
Since the early colonization of America, the American dream has been the ultimate symbol for success. In retrospect, the dreamer desires to become wealthy, while also attaining love and high class. Though the dream has had different meanings in time, it is still based on individual freedom, and a desire for greatness. During the 19th century, the typical goal was to settle in the West and raise a family. However, the dream progressively transformed into greediness and materialism during the early 20th century. The indication of success soon became focused on wealth and luxury. The Great Gatsby is a story focused on the deterioration of the American dream. Throughout the novel, Jay Gatsby is shown with a desire to achieve his dream by all means. Utilizing the Roaring Twenties as part of his satire, Fitzgerald criticizes the values of the American dream, and the effects of materialism on one’s dream.