What Is Gatsby's Hope For Failure

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F. Scott Fitzgerald concludes his novel, The Great Gatsby, by claiming that the constant hope for the recreation of the past is an American Dream destined for failure. Many years after Gatsby’s death, Nick finds himself reminiscing over his friend’s struggle to fulfill his American Dream. Gatsby, an idealist character, believed in the “orgastic future” and was overly hopeful while setting high expectations for his life (Fitzgerald, 180). Gatsby’s “orgastic future” was to be completed when he married Daisy, and their love became mutual again. His American Dream had always been set up for failure because Daisy’s love was in the past, and recreating the past is impossible. Nick claims, “[Gatsby's] dream must have seemed so close that he could …show more content…

The past was behind Gatsby, therefore his success was also in the past. As Nick continues to narrate, he exclaims, “to-morrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther… And one fine morning ----”, and then stops (180). Nick cannot finish his sentence because he has realized that he can’t complete the American Dream. The hope for a better life by “run[ning] faster” and “stretch[ing] one’s arms farther” is no match for the inevitable failure that is the American Dream. Nick is a realist character and so he has the ability to make this realization beforehand, unlike Gatsby who was never able to let go of the past. Being a realist, Nick is not guided by the possibilities of his future, but by practical reality. Although, Nick still sees “green breast of the new world”, as “green” represents a sense of hope. Therefore, while even being a character without expectations, the yearn for hope is embedded inside of all humans. In the beginning of the book Nick latched on to Gatsby because of his continuous hopeful and lively character, and now that Gatsby is gone, Nick has realized that hope for the past has indirectly lead to

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