Wealth In The Great Gatsby

Jay Gatsby is a dedicated man who will go to extreme measures to achieve his desires. From a young age he despised his poor upbringings, and set high expectations to be rich. He learns early on how to disguise himself as something he’s not. Even when he’s older -and now has money- Gatsby’s feigned wealth gives off the appearance of higher status. This mask is mistaken by most people as content, only his friend Nick is able to see through it, affirming, “The truth was that Jay Gatsby of West Egg, Long Island, sprang from his Platonic conception of himself. He was a son of God…” (Fitzgerald 98). Gatsby views himself on the same level as God! ‘Platonic conception’ refers to the Greek philosopher Plato, who studied ‘real world vs ideal world’. …show more content…
People view Gatsby as divine-as what the ‘dream’ is, in actuality they are just seeing material-things and are ignorant to what lies behind his mask. Although always thirsty for wealth, Gatsby’s driving motivation to recreate himself into a man of higher status, was his dream of rekindling a past affair with Daisy. His intense dedication to her goes hand-and-hand with his intense optimism;regardless of obvious signs from reality, he continues to push his agenda to grasp something intangible. “Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us. It eludes us then, but that’s no matter- tomorrow we will run faster, stretch our arms farther… -- So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past,” (Fitzgerald 180). Gatsby wants to reach out to the ‘green light’ which represents Daisy. He glorifies her and is under the impression that, if he has Daisy then he will be ensured complete happiness. This is not an issue with only Gatsby or other characters in the novel, but all Americans entranced by the ‘dream’; people objectify their desires and believe if they get what they want, it will warrant