The Great Gatsby Research Paper

"The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald is a novel that explores the concept of the American Dream and how it can be both a powerful motivator and a destructive force. The American Dream, as it is often understood, is the idea that anyone can achieve success, wealth, and happiness through hard work and determination. In "The

Great Gatsby," Fitzgerald presents a critique of this ideal, suggesting that the pursuit of the American Dream can lead to disillusionment, moral decay, and tragedy.

The novel is set in the 1920s, a time of economic prosperity and cultural upheaval in the

United States. The story follows the character of Jay Gatsby, a wealthy and mysterious man who is known for throwing extravagant parties at his mansion on Long

However, his pursuit of the American Dream has also led him to compromise his morals and engage in illegal activities such as bootlegging and gambling. Fitzgerald uses Gatsby's story to critique the values that underpin the American Dream.

He suggests that the pursuit of wealth and status can be empty and unsatisfying, and that it can lead to moral decay and corruption. In the novel, the characters who are most successful in achieving the American Dream, such as Gatsby and his friend Meyer

Wolfsheim, are also the most morally bankrupt. “Anything can happen now that we’ve slid over this bridge, I thought; ‘anything at all....Even Gatsby could happen, without any particular wonder. (Fitzgerald 4).” As Nick and Gatsby drive into New York City for lunch.

Gatsby’s ability to achieve seems limitless to Nick, with America and New York in particular offering the infinite possibility of dreams.

One of the key themes of the novel is the idea that the American Dream is

“[H]e stretched out his arms toward the dark water. . . . I . . . distinguished nothing except a single green light, minute and far away. . . . When I looked once more for Gatsby he had vanished. . . .(Fitzgerald 1).” Nick observes Gatsby standing alone on his dock before he formally meets them. Gatsby is stretching his arms toward the green light at the end of Daisy’s dock. For Gatsby, this light represents Daisy, his lost love; in the wider context of the book and its arguments about the American Dream, the green light can also be seen as symbolizing money, success, and the past. The inaccessibility of the green light is an important element of its symbolism. Despite Gatsby's wealth and status, he is never able to win back Daisy's love, and he dies alone and unfulfilled. The novel suggests that the American Dream is a mirage, a false promise that can never be realized. Fitzgerald also uses the character of Nick Carraway, the novel's narrator, to critique the

American Dream. Nick comes from a wealthy family in the Midwest and moves to New

York to pursue a career in finance. However, he becomes disillusioned with the corruption and moral decay that he sees around him. He ultimately rejects the American

Dream and decides to return to the