What Is The Relationship Between The American Dream And The Great Gatsby

F. Scott Fitzgerald was a nerd with weird hair. In 1924, F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote The Great Gatsby while he was in France. In 1925 the book was published, but it did not become the picture of the ‘Roaring Twenties’ until ten to twenty years after his passing (Fitzgerald, 1995). The Great Gatsby is a reflection on the American Dream and how it differs for each individual. It showcases the good and the bad and reveals what some people will do to achieve it. The American Dream is essentially the hope many Americans have that their hard work will take them somewhere; that as long as they are dedicated and persevere one day they will make it (Novel Reflections, 2007). The American Dream is different for every individual in pursuit of it. For some they think it’s being rich and never working a day in their life, for others it’s being financially stable and happy with their family. In The Great Gatsby you have insight into what each characters version of the American Dream was; for Tom, Daisy and Jordan their version of the dream bigger, better, richer, and more, and the American Dream for Gatsby was to get …show more content…
None of the main characters besides Nick Carraway seem to have a moral compass or any real ties to religion. The only character that seems to believe in God is the mechanic George Wilson. Although he believes that the billboard outside his house is God watching him (Fitzgerald, 1995, p.). The absence of a moral compass or consciousness in this book makes it easier for the reader to understand why the characters do the things they do. If Tom were a religious man he wouldn’t have cheated on Daisy and had a mistress. If Daisy were religious she would have spent less time being a fool and more time with her daughter. If Gatsby were religious then he wouldn’t have been a bootlegger or went after Daisy knowing that she was married. If religion had any part in this story it would have been dull and