The American Dream in The Great Gatsby

The American dream is a term used to refry to the core elements of what Americans view as core values in life such as wealth, a good job and a life with value. The dream is basically about what many, if not all Americans live to achieve all their lives.

John Fitzgerald s the great gabby kills the American dream it is the story of a man whose life is a tale of false starts and endless pursuits for the American not m. The book explores the American Dream in its entirety, all the natty gritty details of the American Dream which include but are not exclusive to real acquaintance, romantic love, wealth, trust and the existence and applicability of such things in determining the social class of a person.

The novel basically explores Gatsby life and his dreams about an unattained dream for success. All the protagonists in the story have goals and the storyline is riddled with tales of the struggle to attain the goals. Where the other characters are not detailed in what they want, Gatsby has clear goals and aspirations, he want to become rich and win Daisy s love. The dreams are botched n e Daisy and the unachievable nature of his dreams. He then results into breaking the law in order to achieve the dream and try to win Daisy back. The basis for this is that the dreams are not only too achieved, but the determination takes all forms.

The American Dream is intertwined with all other aspects of life. Gatsby tries to get Daisy back by achieving wealth. They first met when Gatsby was a poor guy with no social class; he had low self-esteem and thought that Daisy would tire to wait around for him. He views his social class as the main hindrance to their love. His ideas on money are that it is the only way to achieve his American Dream. In his mind, to win back love and achieve the Dream. He finally manages to achieve the wealth segment in the American Dream but that does not bring back Daisy. He tries all ways to win her back, even making ridiculous purchases like a big house to try and show her that he has climbed the social ladder.

In Act I, the plot starts as Nick Caraway visits the Middle West. Daisy is present of at the party and she tries to matchmaker him with Jordan Baker, her friend form child hood. Tom has theories on civilization that border on the insane. His words and actions around Nick suggest that he and Daisy are having issues. She also talks in words that suggest that she and Tom are not happy together anymore. She is rich now, but her idea of the American Dream is somehow distorted. Tom is cheating on her with other women. He is also mistreating her and she is nostalgic for her past.

In the same act, Gatsby appears on his luxurious lawn, he is looking past the sea at a light in Daisy s compound. He goes into the party and while there he realizes that Nick and he have more in common than he had previously thought. The ensuing commotion results in a car crash and a businessman appears and tells Gatsby that he has bad news about his business. He tries to tell Gatsby that his ventures in Detroit and Philadelphia are sinking and that all debts must be settled as soon as possible. He ignores the warning because he has what he considers being greater, he needs Nick to organize a meeting with Daisy. It is clear that even after five years Gatsby met Daisy and he instill infatuated.

Nick comes through for Gatsby and the meeting takes place. When Nick and Jordan are playing a game of naming, several things come up. The story of how Daisy and Gatsby met and fell in love. The story is a fairy tale, the two broke up when Gatsby was fighting in the Second War. She married Tom because he had what she viewed as the important parts of the American Dream, money and social status. Gatsby appears but to him waiting for Daisy is something he had not expected. He is impatient and cannot believe he has to wait for what seems like an eternity. When Daisy appears the two revisit their past and Gatsby falls into the trap of trying to win her back. They stand anon the front lawn and he shows her his house and starts going wild with dreams about what a wonderful couple the two could still make.

In Act II Gatsby s past details come into light during a party he is holding in his huge mansion. Tom. Daisy s husband meets the Gatsby he has heard so much about. He dances with Daisy and then levees her, but Nick reminds him that if he wants to win her back, he must avoid repeating the mistakes of the past. Gatsby tries to make Daisy see the viability of their future and why Tom is not the right guy for her. Meanwhile, details of Gatsby s past and business connections start flowing in the party and Tom gets frantic, looking for his wife and the host. He invites him to a party. When they are heading to the town, Daisy goes with Gatsby and it irks Tom, is his American Dream coming down so fast?

Nostalgia sets in again when she tries to ignore the sound of a wedding party. She remembers her nuptials. She elects to side with Gatsby in his argument with Tom and for the second part in the night, her mangos to irk him without even getting to him… Gatsby s car is then found to be the car that killed Myrtle and the search for the driver starts. Gatsby is moving and no one knows where he is gouging. He is accused of leaving the scene of accident and not admitting liability for his actions. Gatsby s father comes to the house and the awe on his face is evident. He tells Nick that he is proud of his son and the success he has managed to achieve. The minister appears and carries out the sad story, Daisy has her answer.

Myrtle s husband is convinced that Gatsby had to have driven the car that killed his wife. He travels to Gatsby s house, finds him in the swimming pool and shoots him in the head. The death affects Nick who stages a mock funeral for Gatsby. He breaks it off with Jordan and moves back home. His reasons are that he feels that all the entanglements in Gatsby s life are to blame for what happened to him. He distastes the moral decay and in his mind, Gatsby s s life was good until he let Daisy infiltrate it and he started to focus on success as a way to win love. It is in Nick s mind that we see the analysis of the murder of the American Dream. He sees the version of the dream as distorted and misunderstood. He also sees it as a signature for selfish ambition and greed for money.gatsby s ability to make stuff of his dreams is what makes him great in this context.

Gatsby dies with his version of the American Dream, he has lived a life of ambition and success but the one time he tries to get the one thing that still eludes him. Daisy represents something that the Great Gatsby lost through a silly decision. In his mind, all that is left for him to complete his version of the American Dream is to get back Daisy. He lost her when he went to the war and despite her families reservations to their relationship; they still managed to enjoy something that was beautiful and strong. When he lost her to Tom, he restructured his dream into what Tom offered her that he didn t have.

Daisy is also disillusioned by the American Dream, she got married to Tom because he had money and status and she believed he loved her. This is however changing at 5 years of marriage because he mistreats her and has another woman, who happens to also be marries. She sees Gatsby s success as a bad decision on her part. She refused to give him the benefit of doubt to climb the social ladder alone. She is not sure whether it is time to change or maintain status quo, should she hit it off with Gatsby? His insistence that they can still enjoy a future together is tempting and she does not know whether to view it as a resurrection of her American Dream or the beginning of a part of her life she would rather forget.

Tom has a different version of the American Dream, to him having a beautiful wife and keeping a concubine are his ultimate dreams for love. Money is not a problem for him but Myrtle s death kills it. He knows that Daisy has been privy to information about the trysts and he doesn t know whether to confront the or pull her away. He ends up mistreating her as a way to compensate his ego.

Nick makes no secret of what he views as the ultimate American Dream. To him, the dream is to be successful and have an active social life. He views his dream through all the other characters. Gatsby s death is representation of the way over-ambition can kill a man. He sees the murder of Gatsby as his own undoing; several things in Gatsby s life are erroneous and are to blame for his problems.

Gatsby is the clearest representation of the way living the American Dream can be retrogressive. He has managed to build a business empire by all means legal and illegal and yet he is willing to forego all this just to gain love. In the same breathe, he is trying to use his success and extravagance to attract the one thing he still does not have, love. The Great Gatsby is a clear demonstration of how the American Dream has the potency to kill the dreamer if its intensity goes unchecked.