The Corruption of Gatsby 's American Dream The American Dream: the ideal that every US citizen should have an equal opportunity to achieve success and prosperity through hard work, determination, and initiative. This is a dream that can be achieved by all, although not everyone will have the determination to overcome adversity. Facing adversity leads some to take shortcuts and the easy way out, corrupting the perception of what the American Dream is all about. In F. Scott Fitzgerald 's The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby is a man who once aspired to become the epitome of the American Dream. Soon after facing adversity he lets his dream spoil and wither away. Beginning in his childhood, Gatsby creates a dream that then seems almost attainable through
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After failing to collect the inheritance left to him by Dan Cody, Gatsby devotes himself to becoming a man of wealth. Gatsby refuses to let this bump in the road stop him; he is "not deterred by delay or failure" (Roulston). While Nick and Gatsby are at lunch in New York, Gatsby introduces Nick to Meyer Wolfsheim, a significant figure in organized crime. Nick sits down and is immediately wary of this man when he says to him, "I understand you 're looking for a business gonnegtion" (Fitzgerald 70). Wolfsheim has mistaken Nick for one of his and Gatsby 's business "acquaintances". The confusion is obvious as Gatsby states, "Oh no, this isn 't the man" (Fitzgerald 71). Clearly, Gatsby has engaged in some kind of illegal activity with "the man that fixed the 1919 World Series" (Fitzgerald 73). It is soon revealed and obvious that Gatsby "acquired his wealth through organized crime like distributing illegal alcohol, trading in stolen securities, bribing police officers, and is introduced to a new element of society" (Tunc). Gatsby is tempted by wealth and he will do anything humanly possible to attain it. Tom Buchanan, Daisy 's husband and subtle enemy, eventually calls him out on his means of income. He prods, "I picked him for a bootlegger the first time I saw him, and I wasn 't far wrong" (Fitzgerald 133). Gatsby, unfazed and unsurprised, questions, "What about it?" (Fitzgerald 134). It is suddenly obvious that Gatsby is involved in organized crime and no longer has honest means of acquiring the wealth he desperately longs for. He 's taking the easy way out instead of making money through hard work and dedication. He will stop at nothing to acquire the wealth, even if it means morally corrupting his American
After failing to collect the inheritance left to him by Dan Cody, Gatsby devotes himself to becoming a man of wealth. Gatsby refuses to let this bump in the road stop him; he is "not deterred by delay or failure" (Roulston). While Nick and Gatsby are at lunch in New York, Gatsby introduces Nick to Meyer Wolfsheim, a significant figure in organized crime. Nick sits down and is immediately wary of this man when he says to him, "I understand you 're looking for a business gonnegtion" (Fitzgerald 70). Wolfsheim has mistaken Nick for one of his and Gatsby 's business "acquaintances". The confusion is obvious as Gatsby states, "Oh no, this isn 't the man" (Fitzgerald 71). Clearly, Gatsby has engaged in some kind of illegal activity with "the man that fixed the 1919 World Series" (Fitzgerald 73). It is soon revealed and obvious that Gatsby "acquired his wealth through organized crime like distributing illegal alcohol, trading in stolen securities, bribing police officers, and is introduced to a new element of society" (Tunc). Gatsby is tempted by wealth and he will do anything humanly possible to attain it. Tom Buchanan, Daisy 's husband and subtle enemy, eventually calls him out on his means of income. He prods, "I picked him for a bootlegger the first time I saw him, and I wasn 't far wrong" (Fitzgerald 133). Gatsby, unfazed and unsurprised, questions, "What about it?" (Fitzgerald 134). It is suddenly obvious that Gatsby is involved in organized crime and no longer has honest means of acquiring the wealth he desperately longs for. He 's taking the easy way out instead of making money through hard work and dedication. He will stop at nothing to acquire the wealth, even if it means morally corrupting his American