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The Idea of American Dream in “The Great Gatsby” Essay

“Hurry, hurry, hurry! Step up and see the Great Gatsby”

Introduction: So many things have been said about the American Dream; so many people have struggled against themselves to prove that it does not only exist but can also be achieved. So many people worked hard and devoted their lives to this dream. Do we really and profoundly feel what it means, or do we keep following the stereotypes that we have created in our very own minds. To make a long story short – What is an American Dream? One of the most brilliant examples revealing a particular point of view on the matter is the outstanding work of Scott Fitzgerald - “The Great Gatsby”. Fitzgerald shows how this dream is full of materialism, how materialism influencing the lives of people makes it hard for them so see the reality objectively. As the result of being so materialistic Fitzgerald’s characters start idealizing not only their way of life but their feelings, too. Their existance seems to be a theatre performance, where the actors are obviously overacting.

Fitzgerald shares his determination of the “American dream” mainly through the character of Jay Gatsby. Being a man who shows through his own actions that success is his prerogative, he truly believes in the “American dream of success”. He is a man that gets whatever he wants and gets it primarily by the means of money. As Fitzgerald shows Gatsby’s life we see how easily he can change anything with the help of money if he wants to. Therefore we can assume, that psychologically he is not ready to take things for what they are. We suppose that it is the reason for his idealization of love that later on lead to the collapse of his dream, the collapse of the American dream.Scott Fitzgerald shows the Gatsby’s encirclement and he shows the core of “the dream” through their desire to realize it. "Sure I did. I was going to wear it to- night, but it was too big in the bust and had to be altered. It



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