The Rise and Fall Of The American Dream:
The Great Gatsby
The Great Gatsby is possibly one of the greatest works of American literature within almost a century. F. Scott Fitzgerald captures the dazzling glitz and glamour of the roaring 1920s, along with the gritty corruption and insanity that happened behind the scenes. Between the lavish parties, glittery fashions, jazzy music, and even the outlawed alcohol, many people were determined to achieve the “American Dream,” or an individual person’s own version of what they believe to be living a happy and successful life. Lots of people each set their own goals, both short and long-term, to achieve their dream in pieces, but because of the madness throughout this era, [such as bootlegging, corrupted …show more content…
Going in order by the introduction in the novel, Daisy has a seemingly simple dream, which is to stay in her class of mass wealth and be loved and happy for the rest of her life. Daisy has been surrounded by money her whole life; she was born rich, raised rich, married rich, and indulges in her wealthy lifestyle every day. She views love, people, and prosperity as something money can buy, is often very materialistic, and has little to expect in her life.
In Chapter I, Daisy talks to Nick[the narrator of the novel] about the birth of her first child. Daisy describes the events that have happened:
“...Let me tell you what I said when she was born… Well, she was less than an hour old and Tom was God knows where. I woke up out of the ether with an utterly abandoned feeling and asked the nurse right away if it was a boy or a girl. She told me it was a girl, and so I turned my head away and wept. ‘All right,’ I said, ‘I’ glad glad it’s a girl. And I hope she’ll be a fool--- that’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool.’...” (Fitzgerald …show more content…
In the novel, Nick discovers that Daisy and Gatsby were once in a romantic relationship at one point, but couldn’t get married because Gatsby at the time was penniless. When he went off to war, Daisy married Tom Buchanan, a wealthy man from New Orleans. Later on, she meets Gatsby again and discovers his new-found wealth. During her first visit to Gatsby’s home, he showers her with items and possessions that he had bought with the money he earned, mainly shirts, and Daisy cries that “...it makes [her] sad because [she has] never seen such--- such beautiful shirts before” (Fitzgerald 98). This shows that Daisy is slowly regretting her hasty decision to marry Tom for his wealth and wants to be with Gatsby now. Although she loved Gatsby before, her spark of love burned out the moment she found out later that Gatsby had achieved his massive wealth through bootlegging, which was considered illegal during the 1920s. This fact, however, she uses to her advantage. When she drives in Gatsby’s car and kills Myrtle in the process, she retreats to her money and conspires to make Gatsby take the blame. What makes this betrayal bittersweet is that Gatsby was going to take the blame either way to protect Daisy. When Gatsby is murdered and his funeral takes place, she and her family move away from New York. Daisy nor the rest of the rich seem to take
The Great Gatsby
The Great Gatsby is possibly one of the greatest works of American literature within almost a century. F. Scott Fitzgerald captures the dazzling glitz and glamour of the roaring 1920s, along with the gritty corruption and insanity that happened behind the scenes. Between the lavish parties, glittery fashions, jazzy music, and even the outlawed alcohol, many people were determined to achieve the “American Dream,” or an individual person’s own version of what they believe to be living a happy and successful life. Lots of people each set their own goals, both short and long-term, to achieve their dream in pieces, but because of the madness throughout this era, [such as bootlegging, corrupted …show more content…
Going in order by the introduction in the novel, Daisy has a seemingly simple dream, which is to stay in her class of mass wealth and be loved and happy for the rest of her life. Daisy has been surrounded by money her whole life; she was born rich, raised rich, married rich, and indulges in her wealthy lifestyle every day. She views love, people, and prosperity as something money can buy, is often very materialistic, and has little to expect in her life.
In Chapter I, Daisy talks to Nick[the narrator of the novel] about the birth of her first child. Daisy describes the events that have happened:
“...Let me tell you what I said when she was born… Well, she was less than an hour old and Tom was God knows where. I woke up out of the ether with an utterly abandoned feeling and asked the nurse right away if it was a boy or a girl. She told me it was a girl, and so I turned my head away and wept. ‘All right,’ I said, ‘I’ glad glad it’s a girl. And I hope she’ll be a fool--- that’s the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool.’...” (Fitzgerald …show more content…
In the novel, Nick discovers that Daisy and Gatsby were once in a romantic relationship at one point, but couldn’t get married because Gatsby at the time was penniless. When he went off to war, Daisy married Tom Buchanan, a wealthy man from New Orleans. Later on, she meets Gatsby again and discovers his new-found wealth. During her first visit to Gatsby’s home, he showers her with items and possessions that he had bought with the money he earned, mainly shirts, and Daisy cries that “...it makes [her] sad because [she has] never seen such--- such beautiful shirts before” (Fitzgerald 98). This shows that Daisy is slowly regretting her hasty decision to marry Tom for his wealth and wants to be with Gatsby now. Although she loved Gatsby before, her spark of love burned out the moment she found out later that Gatsby had achieved his massive wealth through bootlegging, which was considered illegal during the 1920s. This fact, however, she uses to her advantage. When she drives in Gatsby’s car and kills Myrtle in the process, she retreats to her money and conspires to make Gatsby take the blame. What makes this betrayal bittersweet is that Gatsby was going to take the blame either way to protect Daisy. When Gatsby is murdered and his funeral takes place, she and her family move away from New York. Daisy nor the rest of the rich seem to take