Sunny She AP Language Martin PD.7 12/06/13 Essay In the novel, The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald peers into American life during the roaring 1920s. In the story, Fitzgerald not only discusses the ideas of power and greed but also that of social stratification. Fitzgerald focuses on the thought of a contemporary society: In chapter 3 Gatsby's holds a party that s both a description and parody of Jazz Age decadence. It presents the fortitude of conspicuous use, and is an amalgam of the boorish and the reputable. Fitzgerald accentuates the unique social classes through the descriptions of Gatsby himself, the guest’s behaviors, and the conclusion of the party, in order to suggest the superficiality of society. Fitzgerald illuminates the ostentation of society through his portrayal of a high class person such as Gatsby. For example, as a party guest commentates on her previous visit to one of Gatsby’s many parties, she states, “When I was here last I tore my gown on a chair, and he asked me my name and address- inside of a week I got a package from Croirier’s with a new gown in it. (43)” To Gatsby, money is not an issue as he tends to the troubles of strangers. Rather than a problem, wealth is something to be displayed in order to achieve a certain image, which is precisely what Gatsby is attempting to accomplish. By proving his wealth and his superiority, Fitzgerald succeeds in painting a superficial image of Gatsby. Furthermore, as Gatsby finally reveals his face to the guests, he begins to collaborate with Nick. Nick, in response, thinks that “His Elaborate formality of speech just missed being absurd. Some time before he introduced himself id got a strong impression that he was picking his words with care(48)” Fitzgerald demonstrates... ... middle of paper ... ...ny physical bond.(55)” The guests are unable to find the essence of the people around them and themselves as well. Instead, they live their lives in such a way as to perpetuate their sense of superiority, however unrealistic that may be. Fitzgerald succeeds in portraying society’s superficial status through his descriptions of Gatsby himself, the guests, and the destruction of the party. Fitzgerald is able to present the larger picture; that in reality, today’s society is cruel. The humanity he shows in The Great Gatsby seems to be headed straight for ruin. The roaring 20s, manifested a time of substantial post-war economic growth, allowing Fitzgerald to clearly portray the hectic society. People will erroneously place their faith in superficial external means but fail to develop the compassion and sensitivity that, in fact, separate us humans from that of animals.
This time era, in Long Island, is the basis of F. Scott’s Fitzgerald’s book, The Great Gatsby. It has become one of the great classics in American literature and is well known for its commentary on social status. Through the introduction of many “status” oriented characters, Fitzgerald comments on the social lives of those living in the twenties. But does it go beyond the social status issues it addresses, and focus on something deeper? Yes, the characters may focus on their constant climb to economic well being, but more importantly they reveal a theme of The Great Gatsby: in the midst of man’s heart is loneliness and the need to be needed, which is surrounded by the greed of money. “Gatsby offers a detailed social picture of the stresses of an advanced capitalist culture in the early 1920s” (Fitter), “Fitzgerald discloses in these people a meanness of spirit, carelessness and absence of loyalties. He cannot hate them, for they are dumb in their insensate selfishness, and only to be pitied.” (Clark).
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s acclaimed novel, The Great Gatsby, is a critique of the American upper-class, and furthermore, the overall degeneration of American society as a whole. Fitzgerald establishes Nick Carraway as the narrator, and it is through Nick’s insightful, and deeply philosophical commentary, that Fitzgerald expresses his own contempt towards upper-class society, as after witnessing the downfall of Gatsby, Nick (and thus Fitzgerald) concludes that the notion of aristocracy is established upon a “quality of distortion”, and in truth, “they [are] careless people… [who] [smash] up things and creatures and then [retreat] back into their money or their vast carelessness.” Thus, Fitzgerald establishes theme of duality, the motif of distorted images, and ultimately questions the extent to
...twenties looked to the “new-rich,” like Gatsby, and believed that they themselves could walk alongside this self-made upper class without the hard work that was once believed to be the only factor in success and happiness. People like Gatsby created an illusion for the rest of the country that distorted the idea of the American dream, and broke down the protective walls that moral values put around hopeful young Americans. In The Great Gatsby, the twenties are depicted as a time of rebellion from moral values, and Fitzgerald uses Gatsby’s parties as a utensil to demonstrate this loss of moral values in post World War I America. The “roaring” twenties were a time of great social decay, and Gatsby’s parties are a symbol for the moral degradation that occurred everywhere in the twenties, from the valley of ashes to the drugstores, where you can buy anything nowadays.
The Roaring Twenties was a period of greed characterized by an avaricious compulsion to accumulate material goods. After The Great War, the booming economy elevated the middle class and led to the sexual and moral revolution. Coming from modest means, Scott Fitzgerald aspired to assimilate into this new social class. The Great Gatsby is considered one of Fitzgerald’s best novels; it mirrored his own personal triumphs, defeats, and disillusionments. Gatsby’s steadfast determination to reconstruct his past led to his demise. Furthermore, Gatsby's capacity to forgive, his idealistic dream of loving Daisy, and his ability to make a name for himself demonstrated his “greatness”.
Throughout the novel The Great Gatsby, there is a constant theme present: social class. Fitzgerald makes a connection between the theme of social class, and the settings in the novel for example The Valley of Ashes which is described as a “desolate area of land” (p.21) and a “solemn dumping ground” (p.21) which is where the poor people live. The Valley of Ashes is situated between West Egg and New York, West Egg being the place where the aspiring classes are situated, which is the “less fashionable of the two” (p.8), this is where Gatsby lives. West Egg is the place of ‘new money’, Fitzgerald shows this by the idea of the main character Jay Gatsby, rumoured to be selling illegal alcohol (prohibition) which means he is quickly making vast amounts of money.” Who is this Gatsby anyhow? Some big bootlegger?”(p.86) Gatsby shows off the amount of wealth he has by his fabulous parties and oversized mansion. “There was music from my neighbour's house through those summer nights. In his enchanted gardens, men and girls came and went like moths, among the whispering and the champagne and the stars.”(p.33) Fitzgerald uses the word ‘enchanted’ to paint a visual picture of what the house and the scene looks like, a magical and enchanted castle, with elegant furniture. This is in comparison to East Egg where Tom and Daisy Buchanan live, in a house where “The windows were ajar and gleaming white against the fresh grass outside” (p.10). East Egg being the place of ‘old money’ which is made from the inheritance of their past generations, the people who live it East Egg are mainly well educated, historically wealthy and live quite elegantly, but they are also quite ‘snobbish’. Gatsby’s background does not fit into the social standards of East Egg...
During the earlier times, the “American Dream” was simply an idea and encouragement to many people, young and old. Americans wanted nothing but to live the American Dream. Nonetheless soon those exact dreams were distorted with greed and corruption. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, the American Dream is depicted as corrupted as it was once was a candid and principle way to live. The concept that the American Dream was one way or another about the affluence and possessions one had set in was in the mentality of Americans during the early 1920’s. In F. Scott Fitzgerald 's novel, The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby wants to be reunited with the love that he lost five years ago, Daisy Buchanan. Gatsby’s journey leads him from scarcity to wealth,
The Great Gatsby is a novel written by author F. Scott Fitzgerald that provides insights of the social landscape during the Jazz Age. This era is well known for economic prosperity along with the creation of jazz music, bootlegging and other economic struggles that lead to an increase in materialism and capitalism. These philosophies were damaging as they changed the behaviour of people and increased their needs. Fitzgerald expresses the corrupt nature of wealth in the Roaring Twenties by creating materialistic mindsets in the characterization of Jay Gatsby and Tom Buchanan, as they both live in different geographical and economic locations that define the money and the lifestyle one lives, and the actions both Gatsby and Tom take to impress
Novels and stories are often written by an author with the intent on leaving the reader with some important piece of advice or a message. In several stories, readers can find hints and underlying themes about social problems and solutions to such problems. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s style of writing drips with underlying themes and symbols. His most popular work, The Great Gatsby, focuses on social classes in the 1920’s. The social divides between different classes cause many problems and people get mentally and physically hurt. Jay Gatsby and Nick Carraway are two characters in this novel that get caught up in their social classes and are living in the past.
The Great Gatsby demonstrates many ideas of the Roaring Twenties, or also known as the Jazz Age. World War I had a huge control over America which carried political and dramatic social changes with it. This was a good thing for the Americans due to the fact that the economic status increased during the Jazz Age and fortified mass production and consumption in America. The technology began improving as the music and pop culture came back to town which brought positivity in people’s life and gave them less time to focus on other undesirable things. Fitzgerald lived through this time period and portrayed the events his writing which also brings back how history supports
The Depiction of the Lower Classes in Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Jane Eyre, and The Great Gatsby
Due to ‘American Dream’, disillusionment, and materialistic trend of the contemporary time, social class has become a prestigious issue to the people of ‘Jazz Age’. Mirza’s study “F. Scott Fitzgerald: The Jazz Age and The Great Gatsby” put the novel in a historical and cultural context, exploring the trends of the Jazz Age and the myth of the American Dream (Lindberg, 2015, p.6). Streissguth’s claim, in The Roaring Twenties, is that the American Society went through many changes during the 1920s. For the first time in history, the United States became an urban society, with more than half of the population living in cities (Streissguth, 2007, p. xi). Cowley (2008) acknowledges that the urbanization of American Society is reflected in the novel as Jay Gatsby grew up in the country, but moved to the city, a choice that was typical for the time (p. 32). Fitzgerald uses the theme of social stratification to illustrate the contemporary USA society in his successful novel.
In the book The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald, the author, explores the lives of the upper class through the narrator Nick, who is not quite inside the upper class, but isn’t lower class either, and so is in the perfect position to tell the story from an impartial standpoint. Tom and Daisy represent the upper class, and Gatsby represents the lower class that has risen to wealth, and has since found out that wealth is not all it seems to be. Through Nick, Fitzgerald is trying to teach readers that being rich isn’t all it cracks up to be, because wealthy people tend to live immoral, lonely, and unpassionate lives.
The Great Gatsby is one of the finest pieces of literature written in the 20th century. It explores the nature of westerners during hardships and other social problems. The Great Gatsby is not just a mere historical novel from 1920’s. Fitzgerald gives a great in depth analysis of the lives of ordinary people through the characters and the symbols in this book. Through these characters and symbols Fitzgerald portrays on the lack of moral and spiritual values of the people and different aspects of the society.
The desire for high status in the 1920’s has a volatile impact on humanity. The Great Gatsby written by F. Scott Fitzgerald is one of a few American literature novels to draw distinct lines between socio-economic classes. The novel accurately depicts the people of this time period and displays their troubling actions. The high society class lives life with a disregard of the law and exhibits their ignorance. The people in the Valley of Ashes, or the lower class of humanity, are driven to despair. Meanwhile the middle class is portrayed as fair-minded with more fundamental decencies. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby presents the opulence of the higher class, the anguish of the lower class… and somewhere in the middle lies the truth.
The great Gatsby, among other things, portrays the tension and conflict which existed between different social classes of the 1920s. Stated less simply, the novel, as one individual described, explores “the preoccupation with class” and “the hunger for riches” (Yardley par. 5). It therefore remains fitting that Fitzgerald begins the book with the quote "Whenever you feel like criticizing anyone just remember that all the people in this world haven't had the advantages that you've had" (Fitzgerald 1). These words set the tone for the book and provide the reader with the first clue as to why Gatsby fails to achieve his dream. Gatsby dreams of marrying a woman separated from him by a few, or more, social classes. In the end, Gatsby fails to achieve his dream because of an acute and oppressive class-consciousness.