American Dream
During the Jazz Age, the 1920's, the American Dream was formed by the upper class society. It was a dream of money, wealth, prosperity, the need to get rich quick, and the happiness that should come as a result of a booming economy. The American Dream was based purely upon materialistic things. The novel The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, illustrates the infatuation one man had toward his "American Dream", his aspiration to fulfill it, the limitations America set on his dreams, and the disappointment of loosing his dream. The true American dream is one of a self-made man becoming as successful in life as one can from hard work. Jay Gatsby was a man who fought hard to earn his place in the world. He dreamt of converting himself from a poor farm boy into a wealthy man of high esteem. "He starts with bootlegging, but in the end he seems to be engaged in the theft or embezzlement of securities" (de Koster). Gatsby was a mysterious man who was looking for love and wealth. The Great Gatsby shows the misconception of the American Dream as being a life of prosperity, parties, happiness, and an all-together idealistic world. Many people in the 1920's tried desperately to buy their happiness, but continuously failed. T
hey bought themselves the finest automobiles, homes, furniture, clothing, and jewelry. "Beautiful shirts...it makes me sad because I've never seen such beautiful shirts before" (Fitzgerald, 98). The Great Gatsby shows how materialistic people were in the 1920's. The American Dream became so focused on money that any way of making it was thought to be acceptable, even if it was unethical like the bootlegging of liquor. "Jay Gatsby... acquires a fortune, or at least what appears to be one, by the age of thirty, by means that are far from clear but that are certainly dishonest" (de Koster). Money can have many effects on life, however it cannot buy happiness. The characters in The Great Gatsby felt money could buy them everything they wanted and needed. The American Dream should not be centered on money or material objects but they all thought it did. Money and materialism truly limited the American Dream of the characters in the book and the people of the 1920's. They were so focused on money and the making of it that they were unable to enjoy the fruits of life. The American Dream became tainted with wealth, corrupting the dreamer and leaving him with a feeling of inadequacy and emptiness. The Great Gatsby portrays the corrupted American Dream for money, we
Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 862
Approximate Pages = 3 (250 words per page double spaced)
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