Wealth And Power In The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald

Is it possible to live life without the temptations of money and power? Even so, can money indeed buy happiness? The need for wealth and power is evident in Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby as well as in modern-day instances. In the novel, Jay Gatsby devotes half his life to becoming a wealthy man to impress his love interest. Many people, just like Jay Gatsby, believe there is a direct connection between money and contentment. Due to this belief, numerous individuals' actions are motivated by the desire for wealth and the manipulation of power that cannot provide true happiness.

Although money cannot technically buy an abstract concept, many believe that money can indeed buy and grant happiness. For instance, if someone suffers from poverty

However, even with his enormous wealth, Gatsby is not content without Daisy present in his life. For Gatsby, the true happiness in his life is not his wealth and power but rather the person he loves most. Similarly, in a photo titled “Chasing Money to the Grave,” a man is shown chasing money his entire life, and at the end of it, appears unsatisfied and in distress. The man comes to realize he wasted his life yearning for money. He is now at the end of his life with what he cared for most but has no use for it. At the moment, there is pleasure in chasing money, yet in the end, one will discern that wealth never provided true

Because of this perception, individuals can view themselves above those in the lower classes, which can cause the manipulation of power. In a case titled “Probation for Affluenza,” A teenager gets arrested for killing individuals while drunk driving. With the defendant’s family being prosperous, the public believed that he got a delicate trial for his horrific crime because the judge was paid by his parents: “The judge's decision gives the impression that Ethan got a light sentence because his family is rich” (The Associated Press). As established in this case, the family’s wealth allowed them to possess a greater power over this judge, who, like many people, will make corrupt decisions if money is involved. In Fitzgerald’s the Great Gatsby, it is understandable that power divides society into contrasting classes. Nick describes two locations that both carry immense wealth yet still disconnect themselves from one another, “I lived at West Egg, the – well, the least fashionable of the two, though this is a most superficial tag to express the bizarre and not a little sinister contrast between them” (Fitzgerald 7). Despite possessing a similar value of money, these two groups still differentiate themselves due to their selfish yearning for power over the other