The Dual Nature of Dreaming Jay Gatsby from F. Scott Fitzgerald's, The Great Gatsby, and Gil Pender from Woody Allen's, Midnight in Paris are exemplary dreamers, striving to achieve a sacred goal inspired by an idealized past whether it be the interactions with cynicism which people often cruelly dismiss their hopes, or maybe its Gatsby and Gil who are driven by a profound nostalgia—Gatsby for the Daisy of his past time, and Gil reaching to go back for the Paris of the 1920s. While deeply personal, their dreams raise compelling questions about the nature of ambition and the balance between reality and disillusionment. However, does their longing for the past shape their aspirations for the future? Are their pursuits admirable acts of passion, …show more content…
Throughout his adventurous nights in Paris, Gil comes across some of the most famous people of the 1920s. For example, Picasso and Gertrude Stein, who even helped edit his book. One important person he meets is Adriana, a beautiful woman from the 1920s. However, at a tavern, Gil tells Adriana he wants to move to Paris, even telling her about his crazy desire to go back to the 1920s. However, Adriana disagrees with him and says that the 1890s are the true Golden Age. In the end, Gil mentions that the present will always seem not enjoyable only because life on its own can be unappealing at times. With this, Gil says, “The present is always going to seem unsatisfying because life itself is unsatisfying.” In addition, this shows Gil as an avid dreamer like Gatsby because even though they both strive for the past, sometimes, we have to deal and manage with what we have now and enjoy it. Secondly, they strive for hope. Hope can be best defined as the belief of someone that the future will be better and quite possibly more …show more content…
With this, like Gatsby, Gil’s hope is immense. Even though Gatsby’s hopes failed. They have an unobtainable amount of hope because they never give up, no matter the cost. Next, Cynicism. Cynicism is a belief that everything is a fraud or not worth the person’s time or skill. For example, when Nick finds out that Gatsby wants him to invite Daisy over for tea, he insists. However, before four o’clock, Gatsby had a sense of nervousness in him. With no hesitation, Gatsby gets up, explaining it is too late for tea. With this, Gatsby says, “Nobody’s coming to tea. It’s too late!” (Fitzgerald 66). In addition, Gatsby, even though nervous at the moment, waited for Daisy. In the end, Gatsby had a nice conversation with Daisy. However, it can be noted that he had just stayed calm and realized there was nothing to worry about. Another perfect example of Cynicism from Midnight in Paris is Gil’s fiancé, Inez. Inez is not truly invested in Gil’s dreams. Even to the point where she downplays her book and writing skills. For example, when Gil wants to express his ideas to Inez. He takes her to the spot where the old car once picked him
All stories have the same blueprint structure with the same type of ending whether it be good triumphs over evil, rags to riches, the voyage and the return, tragedy, or rebirth. The thing that sets these stories apart is the message they intend to in our minds. “ The power of a story to shift and show itself to anew is part of what attracts people to it, at different ages, in different moods, with different concerns” (Auxier 7). These messages are given by the characters in the story that all have their own reasoning but in the end have one meaning behind it. Some messages give specified personal messages rather than a broad stated such as the stories The Wizard of Oz and The Great Gatsby. Blinded by the ignorance of desires, the characters
All humans have dreams and goals for their future that they wish to someday turn into reality. Dreams are different for every person, and some dreams are greater and grander than others, but they are all similar in that humans live for dreams because humans innately crave a better tomorrow. While many people do achieve their ultimate goals within their lifetimes, some people have unattainable dreams that are destined for failure. Two quintessential American novels, The Great Gatsby and the Catcher in the Rye, recount the stories of two hopeful young men with lofty plans, Jay Gatsby and Holden Caulfield. Both of these utopian young men possess impossible, unreachable dreams; Gatsby desires to rewind his life so that he may enjoy it with his beloved Daisy instead of losing her while at war, and Holden wishes for time to halt altogether so that he must not face the challenge of growing up and becoming an adult in a cruel society. Through the example of both of their tragic stories, it is evident that humans often rely too heavily on dreams, and when these vital dreams fail because of corrupt societies, they lose touch with reality and fall into despair and defeat.
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.
He argues through Gatsby’s example that as dreams become as “colossal” as imaginably possible, they will become increasingly more disconnected from their realities. Gatsby lives a life “lost to the old warm world, pa[ying] a high price for living too long with a single dream” (Fitzgerald 169). Fitzgerald argues that while dreams can serve as guidance towards an ultimate goal, they can also lead to a pitiful downfall. Gatsby lives with a dream that guides him towards recapturing his love for Daisy. However, the money that Gatsby needs to recapture Daisy blinds his love for her.
Dreams are goals in life where people aspire to execute their passionate desire to an extent where it motivates them, allowing many to grasp their objectives (Dictionary). However, the dream can consume someone’s thoughts and acts, altering their persona. The nature of each protagonist in the novel, The Great Gatsby by Scott Fitzgerald, and in the film American Gangster by Ridley Scott, were very similar due to the fact that their dreams destroyed their character. The protagonist in The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby, first aspired to become a rich man. In efforts of fulfilling his desires, his own dream destructed his emotional conscious. Similarly, the main character of American Gangster, Frank Lucas was destructed, but by immorality and wrongdoing
The American Dream has long been thought of as the pinnacle idea of American society. The idea that anyone, regardless of race, ethnicity, or financial status, could rise from the depths and become anything they wanted to be with no more than hard work and determination has attracted people from all around the world. Two writers from America’s past, however, have a different opinion on the once-great American Dream. F. Scott Fitzgerald and John Steinbeck have given the public their beliefs on the modern Dream through the novels they have written, The Great Gatsby, and Of Mice and Men, respectively. One novel placed during the Great Depression and the other during the Roaring Twenties both illustrate how their author feels about the Dream itself through the use of many literary devices.
“Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eluded us then, but that’s no matter—tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther. . . . And then one fine morning—” So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.” (The Great Gatsby, Chapter 9) This quote from Jay Gatsby shows that Fitzgerald portrays his own unique view of the American Dream through both what his characters do, as well as what they say. This view of enjoying life to its fullest, to never stop and reflect on the past, is very characteristic with Gatsby. Gatsby sees life one day at a time. He is not concerned about what happened before this moment, or what the future holds. He is only concerned with the now, the present. This shows greatly in not just how Gatsby carries himself, but in the decisions he makes as well. Gatsby’s view of the American Dream however isn’t truly
Everyone has a dream of their desired future, they dream of the one thing that makes them happy that they do not have now. In Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby and Miller’s Death of a Salesman, Willy Loman and Gatsby are characters dominated by an American dream that destroys them. Their dream comes from a fantasy past. These dreams were made outside of who they truly are.
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.
What distinguishes a dream from reality? Many combine the two, often creating confusing and disappointing results. In The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald emphasizes the impact that reality has on an individual by examining the life of Jay Gatsby. This twentieth-century piece of literature holistically portrays the Jazz Age and accurately captures life in the 1920s. This decade was a time in which many individuals strove towards fulfilling the American Dream. The extravagant and lavish lifestyle which many people lived depicted their romantic desire for wealth. This constant greed and artificial attitude consequentially produced fantastic misconceptions of reality. Jay Gatsby’s life parallels the lives of those who lived during the 1920s because similarly to Gatsby, they too had no astonishing beginnings and created deceptions that were the only route to the American dream. The significance of understanding the difference between what is fantasy and what is reality is crucial, as Gatsby is the epitome of the result of dreams dictating a person’s actions. Fitzgerald suggests that fantasy never matches reality and successfully proves this by comparing the fantasy that Gatsby creates to reality.
Dreams can be a way of escaping reality. Dreams enable a motivating force that leads one to pursue unrealistic aspirations. Dreams distort and manipulate the world’s circumstances. They can be ever elusive and misleading; in turn leading one down the path of personal destruction and regret. Jay Gatsby has a dream. His romantic dream is not only “naïve, gaudy, and unattainable,” but also leads to his demise (Ornstein 34). Initially, F. Scott Fitzgerald portrays Gatsby’s dream of recapturing Daisy’s love as attainable and probable, however he later reveals that Gatsby’s dream will, in reality, not be realized. As the novel progresses, Fitzgerald reveals how consumed Gatsby really is when it comes to reviving his relationship
Dwelling on the past will make the future fall short. When longing for the past one often fails to realize that what one remembers is not in actuality how it happened. These flashbulb memories create a seemingly perfect point in time. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s modernist novel the Great Gatsby, the ill-fated Jay Gatsby wastes the present attempting to return back to that “perfect” time in past. Acknowledging the power of the imagination, Nick states that, “No amount of fire or freshness can challenge what a man will store up in his ghostly heart” (Fitzgerald 101). Nick realizes that because the past is irretrievable, Gatsby’s struggle, though heroic, is foolish. Gatsby’s great expectations of Daisy leads to great disappointments. Through Gatsby, Fitzgerald tries to instill his
Gatsby’s obsession of his love for Daisy and wealth prove his dream as unattainable. Throughout the novel, he consumes himself into lies to cheat his way into people’s minds convincing them he is this wealthy and prosperous man. Gatsby tries to win Daisy’s love through his illusion of success and relive the past, but fails to comprehend his mind as too hopeful for something impossible. In the end, Nick is the only one to truly understand Gatsby’s hopeful aspirations he set out for himself but ultimately could not obtain. In the novel, F. Scott Fitzgerald is able to parallel many themes of the roaring twenties to current society. The ideas of high expectations and obsession of the material world are noticeable throughout the history and is evident in many lives of people today.
“The loneliest moment in someone’s life is when they are watching their whole world fall apart, and all they can do is stare blankly.” F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby. 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.
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.