Similarities Between The Great Gatsby And Mark Twain

Within the debate on who is to be crowned the “Great American Novel,” a valid factor that may be taken into consideration is how ideals in culture become altered with an evolving environment, and therefore, the argument can be made on the behalf of The Great Gatsby to be considered for the title. Due to its more recent ideological concepts, the novel addresses American ideals that are not fully developed or addressed at all within The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. These ideals can be boiled down to primarily two concepts: the fully-developed American dream of richness and upper-class goals, and consumerism in the industrialization of America. While Mark Twain’s piece touches on the “American dream” with Huck beginning the book off with $6,000

While Gatsby receives riches and fame beyond most, but fails to become apart of the social class he truly was aiming for. He fails to get the girl he loves Daisy, and fit in with the East Egg environment she comes from because he never lived with those people and continues to be an outsider of the world. Myrtle on the other hand never achieves wealth of the first class, and continuously puts on the façade of wealthy just hoping for that reality become her truth one day. Myrtle’s constant act of dress up also addresses, especially as she shows off her dress at a party, shows the unhealthy standard of wealth the comes with American ideals and assets. This is a concept that is commonly viewed today, as designer brands have become a more commonly bought item. This can be seen as brands such as “Supreme “ have become popular, places inhabiting wealthier citizens, particularly in L.A. This brand has t-shirts for hundreds of dollars. Consumerism is constant and everywhere with the interruptive

Push yourself. Go out of your comfort zone – it is how people grow. If everyone were to remain at the same level of comfortability and simply accept what comes plainly to the surface, the world would be a much less tolerable place. Oppression, though still found about the world would be much more prevalent, especially in places like America, where people have driven movement so that things change, to prevent the infamous saying of “those who do not remember the past are condemned to repeat it”. It is important to find a clear understanding of what one came from – the wonderful and painful – to determine what one wishes to become (Chadwick xiii). Twain’s American theme of the negro, criticizes a subject that has been engraved in American culture from the start, while employing an excess of additional American ideals. Though a close contender, The Great Gatsby falls just short of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn as it has become apart of the very culture it seeks to criticize. The discomfort that Twain’s narrative produces is indicative of the novel’s “greatness”. As David Smith concludes at the end of his analysis of the racism theme in his article, “Huck, Jim, and American Racial Discourse,” if as a society, “we, a century later, continue to be confused about Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, perhaps it is because we remain more deeply committed to both racial discourse and a self-deluding optimism