Illusions In The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald

According to Antonio Gramsci, “The challenge of modernity is to live without illusions and without becoming disillusioned.” The author of The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald, suggests illusions heavily influenced society during the Jazz Age. The characters represented in the book are all affected by illusions, either self-inflicted or popularized by society, which lead to negative outcomes. Gatsby seems to be the closest to ever achieving his dreams and making these popular illusions a reality, however, he becomes so obsessed with them that he gives up everything, eventually losing his life in the process. For him, all of his illusions and dreams manifest in Daisy Buchanan, whom he wants despite Daisy’s marriage to Tom Buchanan. He hosts

This clearly explains how she hides her own issues by being around other people with more apparent issues. The man she ultimately chooses does not act like a good person, even cheating on her quite openly, yet she shows little disdain towards him, rather, it mellows down into indifference. Tom Buchanan tries to embody the idea of a ‘real’ man, an illusion he seems to have. From the beginning of the story, when first introduced, Nick describes him as a well-built man, saying, “It was a body capable of enormous leverage- a cruel body.” (Fitzgerald, 5). From this description, he seems to fully personify his desire to be this kind of man, yet this ambition proves hollow. Underneath this tough exterior lies a fragile ego. This is proven in the quote, “Something was making him nibble at the edge of stale ideas as if his sturdy physical egotism no longer nourished his peremptory heart.” (Fitzgerald, 16) His insecurity becomes further proven in the way he snaps at people for little to no