The Great Gatsby, a novel by Scott Fitzgerald, is about the American Dream, and the downfall of those who attempt to reach its illusionary goals. The attempt to capture the American Dream is the point of many novels. This dream is different for different people; but in The Great Gatsby, for Jay Gatsby, the dream is that through wealth and power, one can acquire happiness. To get this happiness Jay must reach into the past and relive an old dream; and, in order to do this, he must have wealth and power. .

             The American Dream had always been based on the idea that each person no matter who he or she is can become successful in life by his or her hard work. The dream also tells the idea of a self-sufficient man becoming successful. The Great Gatsby is about what happened to the American Dream in the 1920s, a time period when the dream had been corrupted by the avaricious pursuit of wealth. The pursuit of the American dream is priority for Gatsby, however; accomplishing his goals and achievements were spoiled with wealth, therefore his dream became hollow. .

             Jay Gatsby, the central figure of the story, is one character that longs for the past. Surprisingly, he devotes most of his adult life trying to recapture it and, finally, dies in his search for it. Part of the American dream is being youthful and rich with a high-class social status. Gatsby tries to capture this by going back to his past. In the past, Gatsby had a love affair with the affluent Daisy. Knowing he could not marry her because of the difference in their social status, he leaves her to amass wealth to reach her economic standards. Once he acquires wealth, he moves near to Daisy, "Gatsby bought that house so that Daisy would be just across the bay," and throws extravagant parties, hoping by chance she might show up at one of them. He, himself, does not attend his parties but watches them from a distance. He eventually begins to ask around casually if anyone knows her.