New Historicism Look at The Great Gatsby The literary criticism of New Historicism involves analysing the world in which the work was written. No event in history was caused by only one event, instead historians have to look at the web of society in that time period. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby the politics, the American dream, and economy of the 1920s control the actions of the characters. The politics of the 1920s can shown through the Prohibitions Party’s ticket. “Still, the party was known primarily for its core issue. The passage of the eighteenth amendment to the U.S. Constitution in 1919, which banned the manufacture, sale, and transport of alcoholic beverages, was a victory for the Prohibitionists” (Gale Encyclopedia
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Rags to riches. The idea everyone works toward in their lives. "That dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement...a dream of social order in which each man and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature of which they are innately capable, and be recognized by others for what they are, regardless of the fortuitous circumstances of birth or position" (Adams 214-215). The American dream plays a big role in The Great Gatsby. Jay Gatsby was born Jay Gatz to a poor family of farmers from the midwest. Jay rescued Don Cody’s ,a wealthy mogul, yacht from crashing and he took Jay on as his assistant. They sailed around the world and Don taught Gatsby how to be a gentleman. Gatsby then got involved with Meyer Wolfshiem and bootlegging. “ ‘Meyer Wolfshiem? No, he’s a gambler.’ Gatsby hesitated, then added coolly: ‘He’s the man who fixed the World’s Series back in 1919.’ ” (Fitzgerald 79). Gatsby now had the money wealth part of the American dream, all he needed was someone to love. From that point on his main goal in life was to impress Daisy and for her to fall back into love with him. “ ‘It was a strange coincidence,’ I said. ‘But it wasn’t a coincidence at all.’ ‘Why not?’ ‘Gatsby bought that house so that Daisy would be just across the bay’ ” (84-85). However the question comes to mind, is the American dream …show more content…
The price of goods was low, unemployment was low, WWI was over, there was a higher standard of living, and the biggest thing that attributed to this boom was the soaring stock prices. In the 1920s you could buy stocks cheap and become a millionaire by playing the market. This booming economy lead to excess wealth. This is seem in The Great Gatsby in the lavish parties thrown by Gatsby. “There was music from my neighbor’s house through the summer nights. In his blue gardens men and girls came and went like moths among the whisperings and the champagne and the stars” (43) The parties were funded by bootlegging. The inflex in money spent on alcohol definitely stimulated the 1920s economy. These huge parties however were just a ploy for Gatsby to see Daisy again. “I think he half expected her to wander into one of his parties, some night,’ went on Jordan, ‘but she never did. Then he began asking people casually if they knew her, and I was the first one he found”.
Rags to riches. The idea everyone works toward in their lives. "That dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement...a dream of social order in which each man and each woman shall be able to attain to the fullest stature of which they are innately capable, and be recognized by others for what they are, regardless of the fortuitous circumstances of birth or position" (Adams 214-215). The American dream plays a big role in The Great Gatsby. Jay Gatsby was born Jay Gatz to a poor family of farmers from the midwest. Jay rescued Don Cody’s ,a wealthy mogul, yacht from crashing and he took Jay on as his assistant. They sailed around the world and Don taught Gatsby how to be a gentleman. Gatsby then got involved with Meyer Wolfshiem and bootlegging. “ ‘Meyer Wolfshiem? No, he’s a gambler.’ Gatsby hesitated, then added coolly: ‘He’s the man who fixed the World’s Series back in 1919.’ ” (Fitzgerald 79). Gatsby now had the money wealth part of the American dream, all he needed was someone to love. From that point on his main goal in life was to impress Daisy and for her to fall back into love with him. “ ‘It was a strange coincidence,’ I said. ‘But it wasn’t a coincidence at all.’ ‘Why not?’ ‘Gatsby bought that house so that Daisy would be just across the bay’ ” (84-85). However the question comes to mind, is the American dream …show more content…
The price of goods was low, unemployment was low, WWI was over, there was a higher standard of living, and the biggest thing that attributed to this boom was the soaring stock prices. In the 1920s you could buy stocks cheap and become a millionaire by playing the market. This booming economy lead to excess wealth. This is seem in The Great Gatsby in the lavish parties thrown by Gatsby. “There was music from my neighbor’s house through the summer nights. In his blue gardens men and girls came and went like moths among the whisperings and the champagne and the stars” (43) The parties were funded by bootlegging. The inflex in money spent on alcohol definitely stimulated the 1920s economy. These huge parties however were just a ploy for Gatsby to see Daisy again. “I think he half expected her to wander into one of his parties, some night,’ went on Jordan, ‘but she never did. Then he began asking people casually if they knew her, and I was the first one he found”.