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The Great Gatsby Research Paper

1063 Words5 Pages

Jeremy Chadwick
English III Honors Blended
Mr. Mennenoh
10 March 2023
The demise of the American Dream Many associate the idea of the American Dream with the belief that everyone, no matter what social class they were born into, has equal opportunities to gain prosperity through hard work and perseverance. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby follows this idea through the life and actions of Jay Gatsby, who is a thirty-year-old man in the 1920s. He has poor Midwestern roots and works hard to obtain a lavish lifestyle on the East Coast. Gatsby and his neighbor Nick Carraway both live in luxurious houses in a rich neighborhood near New York City, known as West Egg, since they have graduated from Ivy League schools to afford such prosperous …show more content…

When Nick Caraway describes Tom Buchanan of East Egg, he notes that Tom has always been rich because “his family [is] enormously wealthy” (Fitzgerald 6). Since Tom makes very little money on his own, the message he sends within The Great Gatsby argues that the wealthy elite should not have to work hard or persevere to earn their fortune. They receive everything they ever want. This claim defies the American Dream of working hard to earn prosperity since the wealthy elite receives money for simply being family. Furthermore, the gap between those who live in West Egg, who are the rich, and those who live in East Egg, who is the top elite, is so large that almost nothing can be done by those in West Egg to catch up. No matter how much the people of West Egg apply themselves to be better, no matter how much wealth they accumulate, the top elite of East Egg will always be further ahead of them. This fact counteracts the belief that working hard enough will eventually lead to a life filled with prosperity and contentment. Moreover, despite attempting to win back Daisy by working immensely hard to accumulate wealth, Gatsby is betrayed by Tom, who tells an acquaintance, Mr. Wilson, that Gatsby had killed the man’s wife. Mr. WIlson ultimately decides to take matters into his own hands by shooting Gatsby in …show more content…

Gatsby, despite all his success and fortune, grows dissatisfied with his belongings and practically throws them all away to chase the girl of his dreams, Daisy. The American Dream proclaims that after working enough and accumulating wealth, a cheerful and carefree life will ensue; however, this is not the case since Gatsby grows miserable and unsatisfied, ultimately denying such ideas in the American Dream. Along with Gatsby, Tom Buchanan also grows dissatisfied with his grand and luxurious lifestyle, as he is no longer happy in his relationship with Daisy. When Nick, Daisy, and Daisy’s friend Jordan all sit together, Jordan informs Nick that Tom is on the phone in another room, and whispers to Nick that “the rumor is, that [that is] Tom’s girl on the telephone” (Fitzgerald 116). Growing unhappy with his current relationship with Daisy, Tom pursues an affair with another woman, Myrtle, and practically does not even make an attempt of hiding it. If Tom is happy with all his wealth and luxuries in life as the American Dream claims, then he would have no reason to take part in an affair; however, he does partake, disproving the American Dream yet again. Not only does Tom not feel satisfied with his current relationship, but Daisy also feels a void within their unloving relationship. When Nick is invited over to the

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Even though they both loved Daisy, Gatsby had a made up dream of his life with Daisy while Tom was more realistic with their relationship. In the novel Nick and Tom are on their way to New York when Tom makes them get off early. He tells Nick, “We’re getting off, I want you to meet my girl.” (24). Tom was cheating on Daisy, and wasn't afraid to hid it.

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Regardless of his ability to do so, Gatsby is still trying to achieve his goal, including when he states to Nick, “I’m going to fix everything just the way it was before”, but it is not enough for him to reach his goal (Fitzgerald 110). Daisy suffers in a different way, as she is stuck between her love for Tom and her love for Gatsby. She naturally would like to remedy this situation, but it is impossible for her to change her feelings about Tom and Gatsby. Again, she cannot achieve her goals and dreams, so she is not living the American Dream. She expresses her crushing indecision between Tom and

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Within the novel, Tom chooses worldly desires over his relationship with his wife. Instead of being a loyal husband to daisy, Tom takes part in an affair with another woman. This claim is supported when Tom says to Nick “I want you to meet my girl.” ( Fitzgerald 24) Tom says in front of Gatsby, Jordan, Nick, and Daisy “ Once in a while I go off on a spree and make a fool of myself, but I always come back, and in my heart, I love her all the time.”

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747 Words | 3 Pages

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The Great Gatsby is a story about the American dream and the people that lived it and those who pursued it. The story consists of the very rich, Tom and Daisy Buchannan, who inherited their wealth and lived in east egg. In the west egg lived, Mr. Gatsby, who it was rumored to have made his money in bootlegging. Also in west egg there was our narrator, Nick Carraway, who moved from the Middle West to learn the bond business. This was very popular at the time, early 1920’s, when the American dream of becoming rich seemed more attainable then it ever had before.

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