The 1920s were a very upbeat, celebratory time for the American people. There were wild parties, bootleggers sneaking alcohol around due to Prohibition, and an elevated sense of materialism. People were enjoying the finer things in life, seemingly going through everyday life without a care in the world. This period of time can be referred to as the Roaring Twenties, as well as the Jazz Age. In The Great Gatsby, author F. Scott Fitzgerald displayed both positive and negative aspects of the Jazz Age through several characters, symbols, and events.
The Jazz Age, as said before, was a very upbeat time in American history, where there was an abundance of wealth, good feeling, and rebellion among the new generation. Fitzgerald himself says that the
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There are a handful positive aspects of the Jazz Age that are displayed by The Great Gatsby. One positive aspect displayed in the novel is the wealth and overall good feeling of the American people. The economy was booming, business was flourishing, and the rich people, which made up a large amount of the population, were happy. It was somewhat easy to achieve wealth during these times. Several characters, including Nick Carraway and Jay Gatsby, in The Great Gatsby represent the wealth of the Jazz Age. Nick, although he is not as wealthy as someone like Tom Buchanan or Gatsby, still wishes to be wealthy, works to be wealthy, and lives somewhat of a rich lifestyle. Gatsby, although he got his wealth from illegal actions, is a very rich man in the story and a major figure of the new culture that developed during the Jazz Age; the new money group. The people in this group were rich because they worked hard and made their own fortunes, unlike the old money group who were rich because they inherited wealth. This new group, along with the entirely new culture, the jazz music and the wild parties, helped set a new precedent: you have to work hard if you want to be