ipl-logo

Comparing The Great Gatsby 'And The Hate U Give'

904 Words4 Pages

Neither Jay Gatsby from “The Great Gatsby” written by F. Scott Fitzgerald nor Starr Carter from “The Hate U Give” written by Angie Thomas achieved the full meaning of the American Dream due to personal unfulfillment and uncontrollable situations, leading to the argument that meeting the standards of the American Dream is truly unattainable. Although characters such as Gatsby and Starr may seem happy or like they have it all in the beginning or end of their stories, it does not mean they live a dream life or that they are living the American Dream. To begin, a near perfect example of this would be at the end of The Great Gatsby, where Nick reflects on the life of Gatsby after his death. “He had come a long way to this blue lawn, and his dream …show more content…

To start, Starr knows that the events occurring in her life are also daily issues for so many other people, not only in her community, but in America as a whole. She says countless times that these issues prevent black people specifically from success within America and that issues such as police brutality and injustice will exist for as long as black people do not have a voice. She even says this, “It is easier to be quiet than to fight for your rights.” (Thomas 119), meaning that no matter what you have or what you do, you will be silenced, fought, or even in danger for speaking up about the injustice happening within your life. She believes that the silence and injustice set black people back so much from white people. She would even argue that if the American dream is attainable, it would be so much harder for black people to reach. In addition, Starr also uses her friend Khalil, who was shot and killed by a police officer at a traffic stop, to make a crucial point. “It’s more than just Khalil. It’s about black people, minorities, poor people, everybody at the bottom.” (Thomas 168). Starr strongly believes that black people or other people struggling with injustice, racism, and more, are placed at the bottom and given a disadvantage when trying to survive in America. This applies to so many situations within America, such as the racism so many people experience today. Starr cannot control these things. Nobody can do this without a snare. Racism, injustice, and brutality are all things society has deemed normal for years and years, and it stops so many people from meeting their definition of the American

Show More
Related
704 Words | 3 Pages

He had seen firsthand how African Americans experienced brutality growing up. He had seen this when Jess Alexander Helms a police officer brutalized a black woman, and dragged her to the jail house. He had explained it as “the way a caveman would club and drag his sexual prey”. This shows how little rights African Americans had in these days because he was unable to do anything. All of this happened while other African American individuals walked away hurriedly.

Read More
967 Words | 4 Pages

Which links to “the hate you give little infants f’s everyone” as Maverick, Starr’s father says in the book. In this story, Starr’s best friend Khalil was shot and killed while unarmed in front of her. Throughout the story, Starr learns to stand up for her best friend

Read More
1422 Words | 6 Pages

The American Dream is something which almost every American is familiar with, but it also is unattainable for the vast majority of Americans, something which F. Scott Fitzgerald demonstrates with his acclaimed novel, The Great Gatsby. The Great Gatsby covers the story of Nick, an all around average man who is thrust into the lives of both the ultra wealthy and the aspiring-to-be wealthy when he moves to New York. He meets his nextdoor neighbor, Gatsby, who owns an extravagant mansion which Nick finds out to be purchased with money of questionable background, and owned by an ever increasingly strange and dubious man. Over the course of the novel, different characters all chase their own goals - some want love, some want power, almost everyone

Read More
1385 Words | 6 Pages

In the book, there are significant racial tensions and racial divisions in society. Young Black women like Lauren, the primary character, must find their way in a society where they face prejudice and marginalization. In the story, racism is shown as a persistent menace in a society where one's character or aptitudes are more often evaluated than the color of one's skin. Unfortunately, this is a problem that persists in modern culture. The work emphasizes the consequences of institutionalized racism, which persists today.

Read More
669 Words | 3 Pages

The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald and “Paradox and Dream” by John Steinbeck are perfect examples to prove that the American dream is unattainable. This is shown in many different ways throughout both. The Great Gatsby shows it in more of a made up way. “Paradox and Dream” shows it in a more realistic way. No matter how the unattainability is portrayed, it is all meant to have the same meaning.

Read More
1442 Words | 6 Pages

Thomas does so through Starr’s white boyfriend, Chris, and her best friend, Hailey. Even more so, Thomas emphasizes the racial injustice in the aftermath of Khalil’s shooting and the trauma it had brought to those close to Khalil. For example, in Maverick’s life, such violence has become normal and an everyday lifestyle after previously living in Williamson. Similarly, for Starr after the shooting, she was emotionally and psychologically damaged. She experienced depression, panic attacks, and PTSD symptoms.

Read More
888 Words | 4 Pages

Then later in the book, Hailey (Starr’s best friend) makes a racist comment toward Starr during a game of basketball; in response, Starr says “I look at her. “You made a fried chicken comment to the only black girl in the room.” (Thomas 112). You can see Starr’s development as a character as she sticks up for herself, which Starr would not have done to begin

Read More
714 Words | 3 Pages

Starr experiences racism, and cultural appropriation. In both of these books the author writes about a person dealing social injustices that will be relevant to everyone at some point. Scout encounters social injustices at school and even unknowingly becomes apart of the problem as well. She gets her first impression of school before she gets to school when her brother tells her they cant hang out at school like they did at home because she was a girl and in a different garde.

Read More
682 Words | 3 Pages

At Williamson, she avoids anything tied to her blackness, while at home she tries to wipe all traces of Williamson and whiteness away: “…anytime he [Starrs dad] finds out a black person is with a white person, suddenly something’s wrong with them.” (p. 46) At home, Starr instead feels judged for being with a white boy, particularly by her dad, who is incredibly proud of being black. Starr views her own relationship as a betrayal towards her blackness, so she hides it. This conflicting set of expectations between Williamson and her home means, that Starr has nowhere where she can truly be

Read More
1245 Words | 5 Pages

In the early years when America first became a country, this idea of the American Dream was first introduced; the American Dream is the idea that since all Americans have freedom, they all have the ability to succeed and have a good life because they worked for it. As Americans started to create a life for themselves through this idea of the American dream, people would try to take short cuts so they would not have to work as hard to achieve success. In the Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, characters like Jay Gatsby, Jordan Baker, and Daisy all achieved the American Dream but did not work for it in a true way which leads to their downfall. He said: “I think he hardly knew what he was saying, for when I asked him what business he was in

Read More
686 Words | 3 Pages

Here they are grilling Starr who just witnessed the atrocious death of her childhood friend, automatically perceiving these young, vibrant individuals as criminals. There is a huge stereotyping issue today, which I believe is the basis for countless atrocities we have witnessed; I am glad Thomas is speaking out about this. As a Caucasian male, it provides much-needed perspective, something I think more individuals could use in these times. These stereotypes are continuing the cycle of

Read More
794 Words | 4 Pages

Starr had dearly wished she had recorded when Malik got pulled over but didn't get the chance to She couldn't save him by doing that but she was able to save her dad and that was ok and she then said on page 311 “what's the point of having a voice if your gonna be silent in in the moments you shouldn't be” This finally convinced Starr to go on the tv interview and speak out about all this and spread the word about Malik and how warped this whole situation was and how the cops where handling it and everyone was asking the wrong questions. After Starr went on the record everyone finally started hearing her and people started listening and fighting back by making peaceful protests even though some turned not peaceful.

Read More
630 Words | 3 Pages

The author has symbolically, yet vividly described to the readers the socio economic conditions of the black community. In spite of being intelligent and wise, they were never good enough to enjoy an equal status in society. This is seen when the author wrote about the audience 's reaction when the protagonist says the words social equality during his speech," Sounds of displeasure filled the room. They shouted hostile phrases at me"(Ellis). The African-Americans were looked down upon and had to shed their own blood, kill their own fellow-men, face humiliation, and had to be ready to accept whatever was tossed to them.

Read More
562 Words | 3 Pages

For example, open Black support of harsh punishment and law enforcement may seem hypocritical because in reality these policies and practices contribute to mass incarceration of Blacks. Alexander clarifies that Black support is more complex than it appears and can be attributed to a combination of complicity and wanting better safety for their communities and families (Alexander, 2012, p.210). Alexander also offers a unique perspective throughout the entire book by explaining how the systems of slavery and oppression have affected White individuals and not merely in the form of privilege or the dismissal of White people as simply as racist individuals. I resonated with one particular section discussing the "White victims of racial caste" (Alexander, 2012, p.204); the author 's anecdote of a white woman falling in love with a Black man and due to miscegenation laws could not have children. I could relate to this story on a deeply personal level in that my own parents experienced extreme and countless hurdles due to their interracial relationship and having biracial

Read More
657 Words | 3 Pages

Starr and her family are constantly navigating the racism they face in their community, from microaggressions to more overt acts of violence. The novel illustrates how racism not only affects the way that black individuals are treated by society, but also the way they view themselves and their place in the world. Through Starr's experiences, the novel highlights the importance of representation and the need for black voices to be heard in the media and in society as a whole. This is in line with the BLM movement, which seeks to bring attention to the systemic racism that black people face and also to provide a platform for black voices to be

Read More

More about Comparing The Great Gatsby 'And The Hate U Give'

Open Document