Considered one of the greatest novels of the twentieth century, The Great Gatsby unfolds the tale of Jay Gatsby’s extravagant life through the eyes of Nick Carraway. Amidst the chaos and prosperity of the “Roaring Twenties,” Gatsby finds himself in pursuit of his long-lost love, Daisy Buchanan, who he had “fallen in love” with before he went off to fight in World War I. However, Gatsby was not pursuing Daisy for love, but rather because she represented his ideal lifestyle. His growing obsession with Daisy drove his illogical actions throughout the novel, which led to his eventual demise. Through rigorous detail and extreme circumstances, F. Scott Fitzgerald demonstrates how the pursuit of love and wealth can lead people astray. Although Gatsby’s …show more content…
Nick says Tom looked, “afraid they would dart down a side street and out of his life forever” (Fitzgerald 134), referring to Daisy and Gatsby riding in the car together. This event is the beginning of the downfall of not only Tom and Daisy, but Gatsby as well. In his pursuit of Daisy, Gatsby was not concerned with the fact that Daisy was already married. He was not blinded by love, but rather blinded in the pursuit of wealth. As Gatsby’s pursuit of wealth becomes greater through his infatuation with Daisy, his logical thinking becomes skewed. His “entire life revolved around making more out of himself, in terms of wealth” (Bunce 3), which corrupted his thoughts and led him down a path of many poor decisions. When Gatsby fell in love with Daisy before the war, his love corrupted his morals. Instead of being truthful about his poor background and current struggles, Gatsby decided to lie to Daisy. In lying to her, he hoped to not only seem more like her, but also impress her enough to wait for him throughout the war. Furthermore, most people would see that the person they are interested in already has a significant other and accept they are too