Following World War I, many people from European countries flocked to the United States in search of the American Dream. Shortly after arriving to the US, many immigrants were faced with the truth of the American Dream; it is only available to certain people. This false hope that had brought so many creative, intelligent people to the US was stripped from them. Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald channels this disappointment that people had to face in his novel The Great Gatsby. The reader is brought to the conclusion that only people of a certain status can achieve the American Dream. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby demonstrates the exclusivity of the American Dream through the experiences of Tom and Daisy Buchanan, George Wilson, and Jay
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Their “old money” way of life allows for them to do what they want to do, when they want to do it; Tom and Daisy are of the highest status and the richest of the rich. They don’t suggest the idea of wanting to obtain a long term goal; simply because they have everything that they could possibly desire already. Additionally, they haven’t the strangest idea of how those below the 1% line work to achieve a goal. Fitzgerald reflects this in the first chapter; “‘What’ll we plan?’ She turned to me helplessly: ‘What do people plan,’” (Fitzgerald, 11). All these two imply to care about is maintaining their current lifestyle. This very loose interpretation of their American Dream leads them to find that because they are “old money”, they are above the law. Towards the end of the book, Fitzgerald depicts this idea in chapter 7 when Tom and Daisy conspire to throw Gatsby under the bus for Daisy’s murder of Myrtle; “There was an unmistakable air of natural intimacy about the picture, and anybody would have said that they were conspiring together,” (Fitzgerald, 145). The carelessness of the Buchanans illuminates their true selves; careless people who don’t care who gets hurt in order to acquire whatever their heart desires. The Buchanan come to the conclusion that they can achieve the American Dream, but only due to their “old money” …show more content…
Early on, it is clear that all Wilson wants to accomplish is providing for himself and his wife. He solicits Tom for his car so he can make a few extra bucks for his wife Myrtle (Fitzgerald, 25). He later finds that the wealthy can literally get away with murder (after the killing of his wife Myrtle), that careless, wealthy people can do careless things and have no form of punishment, and that everything boils down to money and power (Fitzgerald, 140). Wilson finds himself heartbroken when he learns of his wife’s infidelity and insists on moving her out West (Fitzgerald, 123). Furthermore, without Myrtle by his side, Wilson falls into a undefined ravine of feeling lost and thus commits both murder and suicide (Fitzgerald, 162). In the end, Wilson learns that he himself cannot achieve the American Dream due to
Their “old money” way of life allows for them to do what they want to do, when they want to do it; Tom and Daisy are of the highest status and the richest of the rich. They don’t suggest the idea of wanting to obtain a long term goal; simply because they have everything that they could possibly desire already. Additionally, they haven’t the strangest idea of how those below the 1% line work to achieve a goal. Fitzgerald reflects this in the first chapter; “‘What’ll we plan?’ She turned to me helplessly: ‘What do people plan,’” (Fitzgerald, 11). All these two imply to care about is maintaining their current lifestyle. This very loose interpretation of their American Dream leads them to find that because they are “old money”, they are above the law. Towards the end of the book, Fitzgerald depicts this idea in chapter 7 when Tom and Daisy conspire to throw Gatsby under the bus for Daisy’s murder of Myrtle; “There was an unmistakable air of natural intimacy about the picture, and anybody would have said that they were conspiring together,” (Fitzgerald, 145). The carelessness of the Buchanans illuminates their true selves; careless people who don’t care who gets hurt in order to acquire whatever their heart desires. The Buchanan come to the conclusion that they can achieve the American Dream, but only due to their “old money” …show more content…
Early on, it is clear that all Wilson wants to accomplish is providing for himself and his wife. He solicits Tom for his car so he can make a few extra bucks for his wife Myrtle (Fitzgerald, 25). He later finds that the wealthy can literally get away with murder (after the killing of his wife Myrtle), that careless, wealthy people can do careless things and have no form of punishment, and that everything boils down to money and power (Fitzgerald, 140). Wilson finds himself heartbroken when he learns of his wife’s infidelity and insists on moving her out West (Fitzgerald, 123). Furthermore, without Myrtle by his side, Wilson falls into a undefined ravine of feeling lost and thus commits both murder and suicide (Fitzgerald, 162). In the end, Wilson learns that he himself cannot achieve the American Dream due to