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The Great Gatsby: Criticism Of 1920's America

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Hypothesis: The great Gatsby is a means of criticism of 1920’s America

Introduction:

The Great Gatsby, a masterpiece written by Scott Fitzgerald, have accurately portrayed the aspects of the American dream and the corrupting nature of it, through its character settings and the storyline of Gatsby’s downfall. Thanks to his insights towards “the roaring twenties”, Fitzgerald was able to expose the hallowing effects of unquenchable obsession to obtain a materialistic life. "The American Dream is that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement.", as defined in James Truslow Adams Epic of America, 1931. Clinging to these ideas, the America …show more content…

Lovisa’s understanding of the jazz age’s historical context led her to conclude that the book’s central conflict are between the wealth aristocracy and the self-made population, portrayed through Tom Buchannan and Jay Gatsby, both used by Fitzgerald emphasize the social repercussion of the post-war material excess. As Lovisa quote: “the depression and war years would prove a fruitful period for the American Dream as the country struggled to retain a sense of identity and economic, social and political turmoil” and the definition of the American dream “dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement”. Gatsby, merely a farmer’s son from north Dakoda, seized this opportunity and struggled to the top, through his own idealist visions. Lovisa argues that the process of his relentless pursuit of wealth and happiness is how Fitzgerald present the duality of the American dream and the fundamental nature of it; “the corrupted aspirations of fame and fortune in stark contrast with the romantic ideals that are still present in the mindset of many people.” Lovisa emphasized the idealism of Gatsby’s dream, about …show more content…

As Tom’s mistress, she believes that his wealth will be able to bring her enjoyment and satisfaction. “I’m going to make a list of all the little ash-trays where you touch a spring, and a wreath with a black silk bow for mother’s grave that’ll last all summer.”, the absurd and vulgar desire occurred when her husband struggles to make ends meet at the garage, shows her careless attitude towards her family, therefore no desire so any development in the spiritual world. “copies of Town Tattle which lay on the table together with a copy of Simon Called Peter, and some of the small scandal, magazines of Broadway” showed the mindlessness of the woman of the age, reinforced this argument. Readers are likely to take her as an empty soul, pursuing joy like catching wind in the material world. Lovisa take her as a stronger instance of criticism and more related struggle to the general population. I believe without Nick, the unreliable narrator, glamourize the process and the motive, but in the end, both are led to destruction by Fitzgerald, to criticize the consumer society of his age. The car accident that killed Myrtle and Gatsby symbolizes materialism, the wealth of America brought by the automobile industry, suggests

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