Examples Of Dishonesty In The Great Gatsby

Those who desire wealth often build an invalid image of themselves that masks their true identity. In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, a prosperous man, Jay Gatsby, moves to the West Egg community to live in a new, wealthy home in New York during the 1920s. Gatsby fantasizes about a past relationship, involving a woman named Daisy Buchannan, trying to earn her love. While Gatsby is in desperate measures trying to create a connection with Daisy, he finds himself in some trouble due to his obsessive acts. Gatsby uses his wealth and dishonesty as a manipulative tool just to achieve his dream of winning Daisy. Gatsby is not a great man because he is constantly dishonest and obsesses about the past.
Gatsby is not a great man because his

Gatsby is constantly trying to revive his past relationship with Daisy, which ends up taking him away from reality. Gatsby’s obsession with living in the past and daydreaming about Daisy shows when he is talking to Tom and mentions that, “Your wife doesn’t love you … she’s never loved you. She loves me” (Fitzgerald 130). Gatsby needs Daisy to tell Tom that she never loved him so they can make up for the past time they lost together. Later, finding out the true reason “Gatsby bought that [mansion is] so that Daisy would be just across the bay” (Fitzgerald 78). Gatsby makes an impulsive decision to buy an elegant mansion in hopes that he and Daisy would meet some time again. In his favor, Gatsby and Daisy meet again, but that only makes Gatsby’s obsession with Daisy skyrocket. While Nick and Gatsby are talking about the Daisy situation, Nick explains that Gatsby should no longer live in the past because it is taking away from his present time. Gatsby is too consumed in his fantasies about Daisy to the point where he thinks they are truly real. Though Gatsby's past has been good with Daisy, he needs to be able to live in the moment and not be caught up with past