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Examples Of Moral Decay In The Great Gatsby

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Authors often use moral decay to express that when an individual’s sole focus is how they are perceived in society, they lose all awareness of the distance between right and wrong. This notion is embodied in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, where characters from relatively different social classes all strive to achieve one thing: a wealthy status and to feel accepted. The Great Gatsby took place in the Roaring ‘20s, an era in which old and new wealth alike acted careless due to having so much money. Wealthy people lost sight of morals in their attempts to further enhance wealth and status, and refused to acknowledge the consequences of their actions. Fitzgerald portrays Daisy Buchanan as the golden girl, but her cruel actions show how …show more content…

To begin, main character Daisy Buchanan may appear as though she is full of purity and innocence, but her careless actions prove the complete opposite. She could have had a great future with the one man who Authors often use moral decay to express that when an individual’s sole focus is how they are perceived in society, they lose all awareness of the distance between right and wrong. This notion is embodied in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, where characters from relatively different social classes all strive to achieve one thing: a wealthy status and to feel accepted. The Great Gatsby took place in the Roaring ‘20s, an era in which old and new wealth alike acted careless due to having so much money. Wealthy people lost sight of morals in their attempts to further enhance wealth and status, and refused to acknowledge the consequences of their actions. Fitzgerald portrays Daisy Buchanan as the golden girl, but her cruel actions show how careless she really is. Tom Buchanan is a representation of the loss of human decency and morality that comes with wealth and power. Lastly, Myrtle Wilson shamelessly ruins her relationship with husband George Wilson after being exposed to the exciting world of wealth. Throughout the novel, Scott Fitzgerald uses seemingly selfish characters to suggest the loss of all morals when it comes to pursuing their desired place in

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Rhetorical precis: The Great Gatsby Ch. 1 Scott F. Fitzgerald, an American author, in chapter one of his novel “The Great Gatsby” (published in 1925), claims that the rich Americans are using prestigiousness, wealth, and power to allude their unsightly truth. By using the Buchanans as an example, a wealthy, powerful, and socially solid old family, Fitzgerald reveals dishonesty of Daisy and Jordan, worst of all, a racist, dishonest, and adulterer Tom Buchanan. Fitzgerald's purpose is to discourage the practice of formulating a conclusion based on the superficial appearance in order to make his readers reconsider their views of America. He builds an intimate relationship with his audience of readers who are interested in his novels.

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The Moral Decay of the Materialistic Although F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby debuted in 1925– before the Great Depression– it serves as a prophetic exemplification of the the material excess of the 1920s that drowned out signs of the coming Great Depression. The book’s plot follows the bootlegger Jay Gatsby as he pursues his old love Daisy Buchanan through flaunting his new extravagant lifestyle, mainly by throwing ostentatious parties. Yet, in the end, Daisy chooses her unfaithful husband Tom over Gatsby. Through Fitzgerald’s use of wealthy, materialistic characters, he comments on the effect of the material excess of the roaring twenties: moral corruption.

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In the early stages of the 20th Century, much of the United States began to see the country’s culture and history start to take form and adapt to the rest of the world. A large part of this transformation rooted from themes of dishonesty, immorality, and infidelity that came from the upper class. Known for hosting lavish parties, illegal activity and frequent affairs, many began to see how skewed this morality had come to be. While this had become the norm of the upper class at the time, it is attributed to having shaped part of the nation’s culture and formed what the time period is known for today. In the book, The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald demonstrates how the morals of the upper class are skewed and the overall effect of this immorality to the country through Tom Buchanan’s hypocrisy and affairs as well as through

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This insane obsession constantly portrayed throughout history and continuously cementing values in American culture is greatly impacted by the death of Jay Gatsby. “They were careless people, Tom and Daisy—they smashed up things. . . and then retreated back into their money. . . and let other people clean up the mess they had made. ,” (Fitzgerald 179), the moral decay displayed by their actions leads to an inevitable

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F. Scott Fitzgerald, through "The Great Gatsby," critiques the corruption and moral vacuity of the 1920s, exposing the hollowness beneath the era's richness. In contrast, "The Last Tycoon" offers a more reflective look at the American Dream's corruption within the growing film industry. Suggesting a broader disillusionment with the American pursuit of wealth and success across different sectors of society. Corruption and moral vacuity are central themes in both The Great Gatsby and The Last Tycoon. In The Great Gatsby Fitzgerald portrays the excessive lifestyle of the 1920s through the extravagant parties, luxurious mansions, and wealthy possessions of the characters, particularly Gatsby, engage in reckless behavior, disregard for consequences, and moral vagueness.

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The Roaring Lack of Morality in the 20s Morals were not thought of as a strict moral code during the roaring twenties, and many people found them rather irrelevant. Those whom threw parties, cheated, and lied, were those who were happiest during these times. The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, paints a picture of the 1920s by expressing many themes: the need for wealth, the want for love, and the act of betrayal in marriage through the Modern Era.

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Xzavion Hamilton - 4/29/2023 - 7th Period The Inevitable Demise (INTRO) The Great Gatsby, Scott Fitzgerald's renowned American novel, touches upon versatile topics such as; justice, power, greed, treachery, and the American ideal. The focus of this study analyzes how the characters' negligence of the present, and how it has led to their demise. The reasoning behind this is that our main antagonist/protagonist (depending on your point of view), Jay Gatsby - formally known as Jay Gatz - has fallen deeply in love with his former lusty partner Daisy Buchanan and has gone to unhinged lengths to "get the girl," even

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In the novel The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald characterizes the 1920s as an era of decayed social and moral values. One of the major themes explored in this novel is the Hollowness of the Upper Class. The entire book revolves around money including power and little love. Coincidentally the three main characters of the novel belong to the upper class and throughout the novel Fitzgerald shows how this characters have become corrupted and have lost their morality due to excess money and success and this has led them to change their perspective towards other people and they have been portrayed as short-sighted to what is important in life. First of all, we have the main character of this novel, Gatsby who won’t stop at nothing to become rich overnight in illegal dealings with mobsters such as Wolfsheim in order to conquer Daisy’s heart.”

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676 Words | 3 Pages

In the novel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald the theme of moral decay is best displayed through lying, adultery, and manipulation. Throughout this piece of literature the characters morality is in constant question. The first introductions of the characters they give the impression to have morals with little fault. However throughout the novel the characters morality or ethics begin to decay and the true nature of the characters begin to arise. Fitzgerald uses lying, adultery, and manipulation to portray the decay of morality in the characters of the novel.

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The Demise of The Great Gatsby (INTRO) The Great Gatsby, Scott Fitzgerald's renowned American novel, touches upon versatile topics such as; justice, power, greed, treachery, and the American ideal. The focus of this study analyzes how the characters' negligence of the present, and how it has led to their demise. The reasoning behind this is that our main antagonist/protagonist (depending on your point of view), Jay Gatsby - formally known as Jay Gatz - has fallen deeply in love with his former lusty partner Daisy Buchanan and has gone to unhinged lengths to "get the girl," even mandating her to break up with her husband unexpectedly. Many critics and readers believe that Gatsby has only done this for true

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556 Words | 3 Pages

Throughout literature, texts have highlighted the multitude of social classes that are prevalent among society. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby (1925) demonstrates the difficulty and challenges associated with changing class, and the burden one’s background imposes on societal acceptance. Set during the 1920s, the novel highlights America’s value of material success, demonstrating the dismal reality of the American Dream through Gatsby’s unfulfilling pursuit of his lover, Daisy. Gatsby, a self-made millionaire, throws extravagant parties in an attempt to win Daisy’s love and gain social acceptance among the elite. However, during the conclusion of the novel, it becomes apparent that Gatsby will never be accepted into the social class he desires, due to his upbringing.

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1848 Words | 8 Pages

Since Tom was from old money and Daisy had knowledge that he could support her expensive and shallow lifestyle that she has been catered to her entire life. Another character that represents the corruption throughout the novella is Tom Buchanan. He flourishes in a lifestyle of absurd wealth empty of all morals. After the murder of Myrtle Wilson, Tom reconnects with Nick approximately two years later and admits that he told George that Gatsby has killed Myrtle. He claims he did this so that he could

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1909 Words | 8 Pages

An important theme in The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is the corruption of morals because of wealth. It doesn’t matter if one comes from old or new money, wealth will corrupt the morality of even the humblest. The first example of wealth corrupting morals is in the indifference to infidelity between the married Tom Buchanan and Myrtle Wilson. The next example of wealth corrupting morals is seen in Jordan Baker’s actions to keep her luxurious lifestyle. Third, Jim Gatsby’s pursuit of wealth lead to the corruption of his morals.

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1659 Words | 7 Pages

Characters throughout The Great Gatsby present themselves with mysterious and questionable morals. Affairs, dishonest morals, criminal professions, weak boundaries and hypocritical views are all examples of immorality portrayed in The Great Gatsby. In F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, lies and mischief fill the lives of many and significantly damage numerous relationships. First, Jay Gatsby's whole life is consumed into a massive lie. His personality traits set him apart from others and the attention he accumulates motivates him to falsely portray his life.

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The Great Gatsby Greed can ruin a person’s life. F. Scott Fitzgerald shows this in his classic novel, The Great Gatsby, a sad love story about the rich title character, Jay Gatsby, and his obsession to win back the love of the now married Daisy Buchanan, his former girlfriend. The extravagant lifestyles of Gatsby and the wealthy socialites who attend his parties lead to lost dreams and wasted lives. These men and women are absorbed by material pursuits. In Jay Gatsby’s case, all the money in the world could not replace what he truly desires, Daisy.

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