The Great Gatsby American Dream Failure

In 1925, F. Scott Fitzgerald published his third book titled The Great Gatsby. As the greatest achievement of his writing career, this novel, set in the summer of 1922, gives a critical insight into the ‘Roaring Twenties,’ exploring the wealth of the upper class, the jazz music of the parties, and the underlying corruption that began to decay every aspect of life. The story primarily focuses on the young millionaire Jay Gatsby, who’s only known by the ostentatious parties that illuminate his house every weekend and the rumors that make him appear to be either famous or infamous. Rumors are laid to rest when the truth of Gatsby’s origins are revealed throughout the story. He is not a spy, nor a killer, but a self-made man trying to follow a dream that correlates with society 's ‘American Dream.’ Aspects of the ‘American Dream’ are expressed in the novel through Gatsby’s success, love, and hope. The ‘American Dream’ can first be seen in the success Gatsby has accumulated. An important feature of the ‘American Dream’ is …show more content…
Despite the struggles and the losses, Gatsby’s dream was preserved uncorrupted in his hope. Although, the same could not be said for Gatsby’s reality. The failures of a stolen fortune and the complications of Daisy’s marriage, he experiences a desperation that leads to the corruption of his entire life. Gatsby becomes a lie he’d invented to match the wealth gained from illegal means and his pure love turns into a careless affair. His bright, idealistic ‘American Dream’ declines into the moral decay that effects each character and setting of the novel. This corruption infects every part of Gatsby’s life like a disease, and it leaves him dead in the