The Decay of a Dream in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great...

The Decay of a Dream in The Great Gatsby The central theme of The Great Gatsby is the decay of the American Dream. Through his incisive analysis and condemnation of 1920s high society, Fitzgerald (in the person of the novel ¹s narrator, Nick Carraway) argues that the American Dream no longer signifies the noble pursuit of progress; instead, it has become grossly materialistic and corrupt. Fitzgerald ¹s novel is structured as an allegory (a story that conceals another story): the terrible death of Jay Gatsby is, by extension, the death of the American Dream. For Fitzgerald, the true American Dream is characterized by a spirit of perseverance and hope; through these, one can succeed against all odds. This ideal is†¦show more content†¦Involuntarily I glanced seaward -- and distinguished nothing except a single green light, minute and far away, that might have been the end of the dock. Gatsbys dedication to an ethereal ideal elevates him above his shallow, vulgar contemporaries. His longing for Daisy is like that celebrated by the medieval ideal of courtly love, in which a knight worshipped his lady without any hope of being loved in return; his every action was only for her, and he strove to lead a noble life in the hopes of becoming worthy of her. Daisy is Gatsby ¹s ideal: we first see him reaching toward the green light that marks her house in East Egg; in the final days of his life, he waits unwearyingly outside Daisys house for hours despite the fact that she has already decided to abandon him. Though Gatsby exemplifies the purest elements of the old dream, he cannot help but fail in his pursuit of it, since the woman he loves is a corrupt product of modern society. For Fitzgerald, the American obsession with wealth, power, and privilege is the chief cause of the decay of dreaming. Gatsby earns his money through illegal practices; his ostentatious parties, garish mansion, and lavish clothing are all attempts to win the attention of the cruel and shallow Daisy, who cares only for money. He ceases to throw hisShow MoreRelated Destruction and Failure of a Generation in Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby1413 Words   |  6 PagesThe Great Gatsby and the Destruction of a Generation      Ã‚   The beauty and splendor of Gatsbys parties masks the decay and corruption that lay at the heart of the Roaring Twenties. The society of the Jazz Age, as observed by Fitzgerald, is morally bankrupt, and thus continually plagued by a crisis of character. Jay Gatsby, though he struggles to be a part of this world, remains unalterably an outsider. His life is a grand irony, in that it is a caricature of Twenties-style ostentation: his closetRead MoreThe Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald992 Words   |  4 PagesThe Jazz Age was a period of great economic, social, and political change happening in the 1920’s. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, however, sees in this a time of boundaryless death, and urban decimation. The Great Gatsby is modeled towards the death of the American dream during the 1920’s. Based on the happening of the 1920’s, this model is certainly reasonable. F. Scott Fitzgerald and The Great Gatsby use the motifs of materialism, carele ssness, and decay seen in the 1920’s in order toRead MoreThe Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald1318 Words   |  6 Pagesto write about the usage of symbols in F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby. There are many symbols used in the book The Great Gatsby such as the green light, the valley of ashes, and the eyes of Doctor T.J. Eckleburg. The green light represents Jay Gatsby’s hopes, as well as his dreams, for the future. Because many people strive to become rich in The Great Gatsby, the result is moral and social decay. The valley of ashes represents social and moral decay, and it also represents the predicamentRead MoreSymbolism And Symbolism Of The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald993 Words   |  4 Pagespiece of great literature authors use symbols to convey a feeling or thought. The novel, For example, Lord the Flies, William Golding memorably uses a conch shell to represent order and the destruction of order. Or in To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper L ee uses the physical and metaphoric sense of the mockingbird to convey the idea of innocence and the loss of innocence. In The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald employs the use of symbols to enhance a tragic tale of the corruption and decay of the AmericanRead More Failure and Destruction of a Romantic Ideal in Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby1639 Words   |  7 PagesThe Great Gatsby and the Destruction of a Romantic Ideal      Ã‚   In The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald tells the story of a romantic ideal and its ultimate destruction by the inexorable rot and decay of modern life. The story is related by Nick Carraway, who has taken a modest rental house next door to Jay Gatsbys mansion. Jay Gatsby is a young millionaire who achieves fabulous wealth for the sole purpose of recapturing the love of his former sweetheart, Daisy Fay Buchanan. Five years priorRead MoreThe Decay of American Dream in The Great Gatsby1289 Words   |  6 PagesThe Decay of American Dream in The Great Gatsby The American Dream is a worldwide known idiom and it emphasizes an ideal of a successful and happy lifestyle which is oftentimes symbolized by the phrase â€Å"from rags-to-riches†. It originated out of the ideal of equality, freedom and opportunity that is held to every American. In the last couple of decades the main idea of the American Dream has shifted to becoming a dream in which materialistic values are of a higher importance and status. TheRead More Symbols and Symbolism in The Great Gatsby Essay1207 Words   |  5 PagesSymbolism in The Great Gatsby       Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby has more relevance in today’s society than it did when it was written. With the recent societal trend that emphasizes lack of morals and material wealth over a meaningful existence, Fitzgerald’s message really hits home. Which is more important - money or love? Social status or being true to oneself? Fitzgerald uses metaphor and symbols to great effect in order to illustrate what can happen when the pursuit of happinessRead MoreThe Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald Essay1546 Words   |  7 Pageshad seen before. In The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald imbues a story with many themes and qualities from his own life, reflected in the parallels between his own history and that of Gatsby and Nick Carraway. With new, unbridled, booming economic growth, what started as the Great American Dream became a vulgar, empty, greedy pursuit of material goods. On top of this rise in national wealth, the addition of disillusioned Worl d War I veterans looking to grab the American Dream and use it to hoist themselvesRead MoreThe Decay Of The American Dream816 Words   |  4 PagesThe Decay of the American Dream The novel, â€Å"The Great Gatsby†, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, features the decay of the American dream during the 1920s. It is a critique of human actions and hypocrisy, with the main character being Jay Gatsby, a rich man who pines for his lost love Daisy. During the 1920s, America suffered the great stock market crash, which led to the nation’s despair. Fitzgerald mirrors this event through Gatsby’s great loss. At that time, America was full of distinct social classesRead MoreWhat Techniques Does Fitzgerald Use to Convey the Main Themes in the Great Gatsby1638 Words   |  7 PagesThe Great Gatsby â€Å"What techniques does Fitzgerald use to convey the central ideas of The Great Gatsby?† The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald is primarily a social commentary on the state of American society during the post-war period of unprecedented affluence and prosperity. Fitzgerald depicts 1920’s America as an age of decline in traditional social and moral values; primarily evidenced by the cynicism, greed and the relentless yet empty pursuit of prosperity and pleasure that various characters