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The Great Gatsby Research Paper

676 Words3 Pages

Through the novel “The Great Gatsby”, F. Scott Fitzgerald masterfully crafts setting and character embodying the extravagance and moral ambiguity of the Roaring Twenties. Fitzgerald confides in a deeper purpose to critique the American Dream and explore the complexities of human desires. The novel is set in New York through opulent mansions residing in East Egg representing ‘old money that was inherited’ whereas West Egg represents ‘new money that was illegally received’. The character, Jay Gatsby, personifies the unfulfilled aspirations of wealth, blinded by the obsession with love. Fitzgerald conveys the poignant message of the elusive and corrupted nature of the American Dream and the inability to face reality portrayed through setting and …show more content…

This is portrayed through the Gatsby’s parties and its sense of lavishness, the contrast between West and East Egg and lastly the desolation of the Valley of the Ashes, providing the portrait of the once sought American Dream to be nothing but folly and unattainable. In “The bar is in full swing and floating rounds of cocktails permeate the garden outside.” conjures the vivid image of excess symbolizing the American Dream through a hedonistic aspect. Fitzgerald also displays metaphor in “Casual moths fluttered around Gatsby’s flame” revealing the representation of the guests to be months amazed yet unaware of the allure and peril of the dream, underlining the façade for the emptiness of the character pursuit and the Dream as nothing but of folly and corruption. Fitzgerald also portrays “This is a valley of ashes, a fantastic farm where ashes grow like wheat into ridges and hills and grotesque gardens” symbolising the valley of decay and destruction from the unrelenting result of pursuing the American dream. By virtue of this, Fitzgerald critiques the American Dream, questioning the foundation of the Roaring Twenties society across setting and character, exploring the disillusionment accompanied by the dream’s …show more content…

Gatsby drafts from his own dreams, constructing a reality of hope but further reeling him from reality. He’s at the edge of time where Daisy holds him back through his delusional and blinded love towards her. His longing is encapsulated in the green light, luring him to the past. Fitzgerald portrays through the lens of Gatsby, “Can’t we repeat the past? Why of course you can”, revealing the irony of Gatsby’s declaration as his existence is only just a testament to an unrepeatable past. Through personification, Fitzgerald displays “He stretched out his arms toward the dark water. I could have sworn it was trembling” embodying the dark water as an unknown future, seeming to respond to Gatsby’s touch, revealing his blind sight towards reality as he’s stuck in the past. Fitzgerald portrays “her voice is full of money” through metaphor alluring Daisy as the voice of money, suggesting her essence is rooted in materialism. By virtue of this, Fitzgerald paints the characters ensnared by their own fantasies, blinded by the denial of reality, conveying the Fitzgerald’s purpose of conveying the inability to face

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