Before reading The Great Gatsby, I expected Gatsby to be an idealistic, perfect, dream man. To many people throughout the book, he was. He exudes mystery, extravagance, and love for Daisy. After reading The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald the reader can better understand the bias from the narrator, the problems within Daisy and Tom’s relationship, and who Gatsby really is. Nick Carraway, the narrator, is Gatsby’s next-door neighbor who never truly feels like he’s on the inside while with Gatsby.
The Friendship of George George is a hard working man who relies on mental acuity to get the job. He has a natural leader feel to him because he commands all of the people around him. George is described as small man with dark undertones and strong and slender physical features. Despite his dark facial features, George is a man with a caring attitude and helps whoever needs him. George’s best friend is Lennie depends on him to know what to do and tell him what to do.
Throughout history, power has always been unequally distributed among people. From kings having a majority of power to slaves having none, the society of 1920s America mirrored the ways of the past. However, instead of kings and slaves, the differing classes would be the upper class and lower class. Viewing the different classes and the power each class holds is the foundation of the Marxist lens. A Marxist lens shows how rich people in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby are able to avoid the unwanted effects of their actions unlike their less wealthy counterparts, as contrasted by the actions of Daisy and Tom versus Myrtle.
Many individuals believe that The Great Gatsby is a romantic novel because the novel is about Gatsby’s determined quest for Daisy. The novel also contains many affairs. Arguably, Fitzgerald’s award-winning novel takes a deep look into the worst aspects of society. The Great Gatsby is about the classism, superficiality, and recklessness of the 1920’s. Classism is the main factor that prevented Daisy and Gatsby from being a couple.
A Marxist lens allows the reader to view how Fitzgerald presents settings that symbolize the social status of their residents, such as East Egg, West Egg, and Valley of Ashes. Starting with the East egg. The east egg is home to old money passed down from generation to generation. The residents reside in beautiful old colonial houses. “Across the courtesy bay the white palaces of fashionable East Egg glittered along the water” (Fitzgerald pg7)
F. Scott Fitzgerald, in his book The Great Gatsby, exposes the effect of classism on the ability to achieve the American Dream. In this book, Daisy loved Gatsby prior to Tom but didn’t want to commit to Gatsby on account of him being in the lower middle class. Gatsby decides to become a bootlegger in order to advance in the social class and to win over his dream girl, Daisy. Gatsby and Daisy have a little rendezvous but it does not go beyond that because Daisy knows that Gatsby may not be able to provide her a stable life. In the end, Gatsby dies before he could have achieved his idea of the American Dream.
Tucker Evans Frantzen 11 Honors Block 3A 25 March 2024 A Marxist lens through the Great Gatsby The wealth of each citizen has an impact on their societal views and experiences. Does earning your money versus having it handed to you truly affect the person you become and the experiences you have? In F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, the reader notices that the generational money holders are cold, stagnant characters who hold a mysterious and far away persona almost untouchable.
The Great Gatsby critiques the wealthy by displaying their materialistic nature and being careless of themselves and others to demonstrate how wealth does not add to the quality of their character and leads to corruption. Materialism in The Great Gatsby is represented throughout the book, with each characters’ obsession with wealth, status, and possessions. "I'd like to get one of those police dogs; I don't suppose you got that kind?" The man peered doubtfully into the basket, plunged in his hand and drew one up, wriggling, by the back of the neck.
The importance of a good mindset can not be underestimated, its presence leaves a lingering positive impression on the future. In Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, the extremely wealthy and motivated protagonist, Jay Gatsby, proves different from the rest of his fellow neighbors in New York. Money seems the most desired asset to claim as characters constantly demonstrate their obsession with materialism. Many become blinded by the fixation on finance, social status, and drama. Jay Gatsby is truly great due to his morals beyond abundance, ability for hope, and determination.
Money, status, and luxury are often taken as symbols of a successful fulfillment of the American Dream, but are those really indicators of a fulfilling lifestyle? In the Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald demonstrates the shallow, superficial, and materialistic nature of the rich elitists of the era, and why those traits are a problem that should be taken seriously. One major example of the fake nature of the aristocracy can be seen in the relationship between Tom and Daisy Buchanan. Their house is described as “more elaborate than [Nick] expected, a cheerful red-and-white Georgian Colonial mansion, overlooking the bay” (Fitzgerald 6).
The Great Gatsby and Nick Carraway’s Sexuality Within the novel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Nick Carraway’s sexuality is referenced in a few instances although it is not specifically mentioned. The subject of homosexuality was forbidden and filled with uncertainty in the era of the 1920s but by reading it, Fitzgerald’s hidden references are quite evident to today’s reader. The language, diction and style used are curated to describe the characters of Gatsby and Nick and this ultimately allows us to gather that Nick Carraway is gay/bisexual.
and gypsies. And this materialism of the age reflects on the personality of the characters. Daisy`s love for Gatsby for instance does not have the same tragedy that pushed him above his destiny. To her, Gatsby is no dream at all, just a memory. Thus, her alleged love is not the expression of regrets and hopes, but another misjudgment of her superficiality.
The early 1900s was an era when homosexuality was denounced socially, as it was unlawful for majority of the world including the United States of America. Authors were cautious when discussing themes of homosexuality that did not conform with public opinion. Scott Fitzgerald’s wit and cleverness, were instrumental in showcasing the underlying theme of homosexuality without certifying it. In The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, protagonist Nick Carraway consistently possesses characteristics of a homosexual, through his adoration of Jay Gatsby, homosexual encounters and his apathy towards females.
Christopher Ruzicka Mr. Emanuelson American Literature: B 22, February 2024 Gatsby, The Victim of the Materialism Coherent with the American Dream The Great Gatsby written by F. Scott Fitzgerald is told during the 1920s, set in rapidly developing New York, through the eyes of Nick, the main character and observer. Nick tells the story retrospective from the future focusing on his experiences with Jamez Gatz, a wealthy self made man, who eventually emerges as an inspiration for Nick and a figurehead mistaking financial worth for personal value. James Gatz, called Gatsby by the characters in the book, seems to be the embodiment of self-made success. Who, in his flaws, reveals a tragic truth: that men waste their entire lives chasing a dream that
The divide between society has been apparent for many, many years. It was prominent in the 1920s and even though slightly less apparent, it is still part of our world today. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s story, The Great Gatsby, the settings created by Fitzgerald are symbolic of the Marxist theory through his use of differing social classes and their living conditions. These distinctions are clearly shown to the reader through the story’s East and West Eggs and the Valley of Ashes, which lies trapped in soot, dirt, and grime between the two Eggs and New York City. During the 1920s, industrialization, prohibition, old money, new money, and lavish parties aided in constructing major gaps between The Great Gatsby’s characters like Gatsby, Daisy, Myrtle.
