Wealth In The Great Gatsby

The classic American Dream is seemingly realistic vision of prosperity and happiness that in truth that is unattainable. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald is a novel that follows Jay Gatsby, a mysterious man who lives in Long Island’s West Egg and throws extravagant parties every night, on his quest to gain the love and attention of Daisy Buchanan, a wealthy, married woman who lives in East Egg of Long Island, and comes from old money. Nick Carraway is the narrator of the novel who assists Gatsby and Daisy’s relationship. Gatsby believes he can prove his love to Daisy and get her attention through exhibiting and using his wealth, and his covetous state eventually leads him to his death. Although “The American Dream” is not an easily defined

For example, when Gatsby and Daisy are having their meeting at Nick’s house, and Nick goes outside to leave the two of them alone, Nick reveals, “Americans, while occasionally willing to be serfs, have always been obstinate about being peasants” (Fitzgerald 88). Americans are willing to do anything for money, a title, and ownership of land. Serfs are agricultural workers who are bound to work on a lord’s estate, and peasants are poor farmers. Peasants are more free than serfs, but peasants are not bonded to land and therefore do not own land like serfs do. Clearly, Americans are willing to sometimes be serfs, because although the work is grueling and laborious, the rest of the world would still see them as property owners. Similarly, Nick admits that, “There was nothing to look at from under the tree except Gatsby’s enormous house” (88). This quotation illustrates that from the outside, Gatsby’s house was “enormous”, beautiful, and got plenty of attention, but in reality, what is inside the house is not as perfect as it might seem. Gatsby is lonely without true friendships, and many party-goers use him for his large house and money, without even knowing who he is. Thus, people did see Gatsby as wealthy, and for many that is what they want to achieve through the American Dream. But, once Gatsby acquired his wealth, he lost personal connection because no

For example, when Gatsby gets shot by Wilson, Nick imagines how Gatsby was feeling at the moment of his death, and reflects on Gatsby’s life and goals throughout it, and says that Gatsby, “paid a high price for living too long with a single dream” (161). This quotation indicates that Gatsby was so focused on something specific -- getting Daisy to love him -- that he went to such great extents, causing him to get killed. Gatsby’s failed “single dream” acts as a symbol of the American Dream in general, as Gatsby did everything in his power to achieve it, and worked hard (obtained his wealth, bought a house near her, and threw parties in hopes of meeting her again) to get Daisy, and many Americans are willing to do anything to achieve what they think of as the American Dream. Gatsby’s failed dream clarifies that no matter what someone’s “American Dream” is, there will be limitations and difficulties while working towards it. Furthermore, when Nick sees Gatsby for the first time at the end of chapter one, he sees him reaching towards the water next to his house, to a green light, that was in front of Daisy’s house. Nick describes the light as , “minute and far way, that might have been at the end of a dock” (21). Using the green light as a symbol for Daisy, and therefore the American Dream, this quotation shows that the dream is so far from reach. Yet, Gatsby, like the majority of