The Great Gatsby And The American Dream

There have been many people whose success stories reflect the American Dream. Among these people is Richard DeVos who got his start by selling soap and distributing food products. Through hard work and good marketing, his business grew and turned into his own company called Amway. Through all his hard work, DeVos gained a great deal of money and became quite wealthy. A similar, but fictional story, is that of Jay Gatsby, whose central mission, to win Daisy, is the embodiment of the American Dream, the belief that anyone can achieve a solid career, have freedom to pursue their own dreams, and fundamentally in the values of optimism and hope.

Fitzgerald’s Great Gatsby tells a story of a man who had a great American Dream that unfortunately

for him didn’t end up as he’d hoped. Nick goes to have tea with Jordan one afternoon, and is told that Gatsby had a favor to ask of him. He wanted to know if Nick would invite Daisy over to tea. Jordan explains the connection between the two and how her family wouldn’t let her marry him because they thought he was too poor. (Fitzgerald 75-79) Jordan goes on to tell Nick that when Gatsby came back from the war, somehow he gained a lot of money and a big house. It seems that Gatsby gained all his money and possessions to somehow get Daisy back, which was his dream. We see hints of the American Dream through Gatsby’s story. In the end however, he didn’t get Daisy, and ends up being killed.
The American Dream today isn’t quite what it used to be back when it was still considered “alive and well.” Today many people don’t achieve the goals that they had set for themselves and sometimes blame their failures on the dream. (Michels np) The dream is struggling due to technology taking the place of many manual jobs leaving people out of work. This is contrary to what the American Dream is all about (Augustine np). For so many people stories of the American Dream seem like myths because of all that has changed and evolved in our world. We think that it would be impossible to make a huge business by starting with something small. (Maggiacomo np) We can restore the American Dream if we are willing to put forth the time and effort that it takes to solve the problems and issues that are keeping it from staying alive.
The Dream is about having the freedom to pursue your dreams and interests.

Americans have the opportunity to pursue what they love and achieve their goals in life (Rank np). Many people in America have different ideas and pictures in their heads of what the American Dream means. From the idea that it's about making a lot of money and owning a big house, to creating a good life for your children in a good environment there is a wide range of meanings of the dream. Others believe that America is this great melting pot full of people with all sorts of different ethnic backgrounds (Michels np). The American Dream was first introduced during America’s great depression by a man named James Truslow Adams. He first came up with the phrase “The American Dream” in his book, The Epic of America. In his book he taught Americans what they had to do in order to live the dream (Wills np). Explaining the Dream, Adams told America, that “the American Dream is the belief of the American society that each individual can, through hard working and strength of mind, achieve anything.” (Michels np) People still use the ideas from his book and use them in everyday

life.
It’s also about having economic security and getting ahead. People go to college to get a degree in something that will help them land a good job that will make them money. Steadily more and more people have been going to college. Because of this, tuition has gone up. Now once students graduate, their jobs end up paying for student debts instead of bills. Another effect of this raise in college tuition is that many people cannot go to college and use their talents to help enhance and make the world better (Augustine np). This however is not the American Dream.
There has always been this divide between white collar jobs and blue collar jobs. It used to be that more highly educated people would have white collar jobs and would tend to make a fair amount of money. Blue collar jobs were typically obtained by less privileged and less educated people, however, they still made a decent wage (Bryant np). Today there is still a divide between the two, however instead of getting a white collar job right after college, graduates end up working at a blue collar job where they don't make as much money as they had hoped to. In 2016, the unemployment rate went way up and economic inequality worsened (Meacham np). However, the belief that you can provide a good life for your children through hard work and saving money is still present today.
Currently, many people have jobs to pay for different expenses. Back in the 50’s everyone had health insurance. Health insurance is a very important factor in helping to pay bills. However, those costs have gone way up since the 50’s (Bryant np). Per Capita, health care costs in the 50’s were roughly $134. Per Capita, health care costs today are roughly $8,953 (Bryant np). The drastic change from now and then are quite unbelievable. Back when the dream was considered “Alive and well,” if you wanted to retire, you’d get a pension from the company or business that you worked for. Today, companies have realized that they cannot afford to give out pensions anymore. This means retirement is another expense that you have to pay for (Bryant np). Expenses keep building up these days making it hard for many people to keep sight of the American Dream.
We tend to form three different classes of people: Upper, Middle, and Lower. Often, when we think of upper, middle and lower class, we think of who has more money. Usually, people in the upper class tend to have more money, middle have an average amount, and lower class tend to barely have enough money to live on. However, there isn't really a true deffinition of each class. Now, each are described more by their aspirations and education level rather than their income (Meacham np). Income for the lower and upper classes have gradually increases while income for the middle class has gradually decreased. The middle class today has evolved into striving to keep what they have instead of trying to gain more (Sullivan np).
Finally, the American Dream is about being hopeful and having an optimistic view and attitude on life.

Throughout American history, there have been a number of people who have exemplified and supported Adam’s idea of the American Dream (Meacham np). One of these was Benjamin Franklin with his “way to wealth.” Another was Franklin D. Roosevelt, the great symbol of hope to the American people during rough years. Calling the nation toward a more positive mindset, Roosevelt declared, “The great fact to remember is that the trend of civilization itself is forever upward, that a line drawn through the middle of the peaks and the valleys of the centuries always has an upward trend.” (Meacham np) Roosevelt was right, though people fail, it doesn’t mean their chances of succeeding are over. They can still achieve the American Dream if they stay positive about it and really work toward it.

The Great Gatsby is an example of a few certain people who had dreams to become wealthy and have a better life which is what the American dream is all about.

Tom and Daisy are extremely wealthy and have a stereotypical “American Dream” life. Nick describes Tom and Daisy’s house as being big and elaborate overlooking the bay with a huge lawn. (6) He also describes Tom and all his accomplishments of being on the football team in New Haven and being from an enormously wealthy family.

(6) The way that Nick describes Tom and Daisy’s house gives you an idea of how wealthy they are. They also give you a

good picture of what it looks like to achieve the American Dream. They have a lot of money, a big house, they are more than able to support their daughter ….they basically have it all.
Jay Gatsby made a ton of money like Tom and Daisy, but his dream did not end up the way he had hoped. Although Gatsby had a huge house and lots of money, he did not gain all of that the same way that Tom and Daisy did. He started out poor and had to get into bad dealings and the drug business in order to gain all that he had. In a sense, you could say that he did live out the American Dream more realistically than Tom and Daisy, however not in an honest way. Gatsby had a plan to make all this money just to get Daisy back, but didn’t plan on Daisy wanting to stay with Tom, so in the end of the book, his dream comes crashing down.
“And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.” (King np)