The Great Gatsby Research Paper

The Pursuit of “Happiness” In 1776, the 13 American colonies faced one of the most difficult challenges throughout its history in separating from the British Empire. In the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson brilliantly summed up the principles that America was built on. He wrote, "They are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable rights, among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” These three properties would be the foundation of American ideology and brought about the concept of the “American Dream.” This belief became a symbol of hope in America as people throughout the country desired to obtain a better life. In The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald illustrates how the great “American Dream” has been

Everyone has great aspirations for what they want their lives to be like in the future. Jay Gatsby is no different in this regard. Gatsby’s ability to turn his dreams into reality is what makes him “great.” He begins his life as an impoverished farmer who fantasizes about achieving great amounts of wealth. However, when he meets Daisy, his vision transforms into the desire to spend the rest of his life with Daisy. Gatsby explains this to Nick when he states, “Well there I was, ‘way off my ambitions, getting deeper in love every minute, and all of a sudden I didn’t care” (Fitzgerald 150). The vast sums of money simply become a means to reach this new goal. His idealistic life of success is corrupted as he engages in illegal activities to amass his wealth. For example, Gatsby takes Nick Carroway, the narrator, to lunch with a shady gambler named Meyer Wolfsheim. Wolfsheim is portrayed as a vile person that wears human molars as cufflinks (Fitzgerald 69-72). From this information, it can be seen that Gatsby has no qualms about how he obtains his

Their blatant disregard for the lives of others turned Nick away from that lifestyle. Furthermore, he realizes that the “American Dream” of hope and success has simply become a substitute for materialism. Nick breaks up with Jordan Baker as he realizes that he can no longer live in the East. Because Nick is so appalled by the actions of those around him, he moves back to the Midwest to live a simpler life (Fitzgerald 176-180). Nick’s former acquaintance, Tom Buchanan, also moves away at the end of the book after his experiences. Throughout The Great Gatsby, Tom is the most blatant representation of how the “American Dream” has been disillusioned. Tom is a former star collegiate football player from an extremely wealthy family. He is large, muscular, and, on the outside, seems like the person everyone desires to be. His days in college were the highlight of his life, and it is stated that everything after has felt less meaningful. As Nick stated, he was “one of those men who reach such acute limited excellence at twenty-one that everything afterward savors of anticlimax” (Fitzgerald