The Price Of Wealth In 'The Great Gatsby'

Jordyn Love

Mrs Easly

English 3

15 March 2023

The price of wealth How far would you go to get the love of your lifes attention? Some may go more all out than others. In the novel “The Great Gatsby”, Jay Gatsby is seen as a man belonging to upper class or “new money” wealth. However, this wasn’t always the case. Gatsby grew up in a poor family of farmers in North Dakota. Although, his way to success wasn’t necessarily a proper route, he goes to many extents to obtain his wealth to acquire the heart of Daisy Buchanan by flaunting his luxuries with his nice house and hosting huge parties hoping one day she’ll wander in. Those said extents being extreme due to the illegal measures of bootlegging he was partaking in, resulting in where he

Money is what drives hard work. Not only was the roaring 20s happening during the same time that Gatsby’s parties were taking place, but the great depression was also occurring. Nonetheless, the economy during this time period was dwindling. Gatsby’s parents unfortunately were impacted during this loss and were described as helpless people struggling to barely get by. “His parents were shiftless and unsuccessful farm people — his imagination had never really accepted them as his parents at all.” (Fitzgerald 48). Gatsby saw his parents and recognized he needed to make himself out to be something better, whether that be who he really is or

While we admired he brought more and the soft rich heap mounted higher — shirts with stripes and scrolls and plaids in coral and apple-green and lavender and faint orange, and monograms of Indian blue. ” (Fitzgerald 50). Having said that, this demonstrates how people with cocky tendencies are inclined to show off their nice belongings. That said, Jay Gatsby likes to show off for everyone to see, especially for Daisy. His hopeful outcome to all this, is one day Daisy will see his wealth and fall for him. In order to get her attention, he deemed it necessary to go big or go home and throw the most extravagant, popular, and luxurious parties. “Anyhow, he gives large parties,” said Jordan, changing the subject with an urbane distaste for the concrete. “And I like large parties. They’re so intimate. At small parties there isn’t any privacy.” (Fitzgerald 29). Since everything he’s earned is so nice, he wants everyone to appreciate it, compelling him to let people keep leeching off of him and his prosperity just so it’s known that he’s got money in an attempt to make a move on Daisy and win her