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American Dream In The Great Gatsby

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Throughout the novel, The Great Gatsby by Fitzgerald, love, and the American dream go hand in hand. Love is described to be the intense feeling of affection for another person, and often causes people to go out their way to achieve high ranked goals, thus the American dream. The novel differentiates between the two communities, East and West Egg. East Egg is the place of those who are born into wealth or have inherited it from generations. However, those living in West Egg work hard and persevere in order to become successful and wealthy. The main character, Jay Gatsby, lives in West Egg, working for his success in achieving the American dream with a view of getting back with Daisy, his former love. Every weekend, Gatsby prepares several extravagant …show more content…

As a child, Gatsby grew up without much money or status. After losing Daisy to Tom, her wealthy and high ranked husband; he knew that he had to do something to win her over. After several years of working,Gatsby buys the mansion that he wanted to impress Daisy with. He became extremely wealthy living in West Egg and bought a fabulous house, “... —it was a factual imitation of some Hôtel de Ville in Normandy, with a tower on one side, spanking new under a thin beard of raw ivy, and a marble swimming pool and more than forty acres of lawn and garden. It was Gatsby’s mansion” (ebook 7). As evident, Gatsby’s mansion is the result of his experience losing Daisy. The appearance of the mansion determines the depths that Gatsby went to achieve the American dream as a means of winning over the love of his life. Gatsby does not attempt to lure Daisy in with the appearance of his house, but also by organizing parties every weekend, “Gatsby bought that house so that Daisy would be just across the bay…I think he half expected her to wander into one of his parties…”(85 ebook). Ultimately, he hopes that being across from Daisy would increase the chances of her noticing him, his wealth, his extravagant lifestyle and …show more content…

Fitzgerald emphasizes, “‘If it wasn’t for the mist we could see your home across the bay,’ said Gatsby. ‘You always have a green light that burns all night at the end of your dock’”(Ebook 99). During the separation, the green light on her end of the dock was clear and visible. However after reconnecting, the green light is no longer seen due to the mist. One can infer that the green light Gatsby used to see indicated the distance between them. This symbolizes the distance that no longer exists between Daisy and Gatsby. Taken into account, Gatsby officially reaches the American dream as a way to get Daisy

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