...Can Money Affect Your Happiness? “It is good to have money and the things that money can buy, but it's good too, to check up once in a while and make sure you haven't lost the things money can't buy” a quote by George Horace Lorimer. This quote is trying to say that money can gain material items like clothes, a car, and a house. These are great because they are items that are wanted and maybe need to survive. However, make sure you still keep the stuff that money cannot buy, such as love and happiness. Fitzgerald is saying that money cannot buy all that is wanted. He shows this throughout the novel, The Great Gatsby. He explains this by saying money can provide material items, but cannot provide immaterial items. He also states that money cannot make you happy all the time. The...
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...In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, wealth is seen as the most important thing and without it one is not important. Wealth is shown in many extravagant ways and many in the novel are shown as either the new rich or old rich. Money is considered happiness to most in the novel but to some even all the money in the world is not enough to gain true happiness. Although Gatsby’s parties were seen as fun and extravagant, they were a facade, because all the money in the world couldn’t buy his happiness. Jay Gatsby’s parties are extremely fanciful and flashy and attract many people young and old. The parties are depicted as fabulous and extraordinary when Nick states: There was music from my neighbor’s house through the summer nights....
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...fantasizing about what they could be or have a right to be, that they're all asleep at the switch. Consequently we are living in the Age of Human Error” (Florence King). This quote brings to light the fact that the American Dream is nigh impossible to achieve. This is simply because people are so caught up in dreaming about what other people have obtained rather than taking the necessary steps to live the dream themselves. American author F. Scott Fitzgerald has an unparalleled impact on the idea of the American Dream. Fitzgerald’s novels This Side of Paradise and The Great Gatsby have consistent themes that feature small aspects of the American Dream that conflicts him. Both the main male characters, Armory Blaine and Jay Gatsby showcase men in 1920s America who have come into wealth, yet their money and shiny trinkets do not bring them happiness, even though that is what both characters legitimately yearned for. Together, Gatsby and Blaine expose a perception of the American Dream that F. Scott Fitzgerald investigated thoroughly throughout his life. The idea that when a society is consumed by materialism and the promises it could bring the real American Dream is lost in the shuffle. Fitzgerald was born on September 24, 1869 in St. Paul, Minnesota. The author was named after his second cousin Scott Francis Key, who wrote the lyrics to the “Star-Spangled Banner”. As a young boy he went to two Catholic schools the most prestigious of the two being the Newman school where he graduated high...
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...In the novel, The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, one of the major themes was money and social class, and how it affected each of the characters. Jay Gatsby believes in the need for wealth and materialism in order to obtain love from Daisy, but is crushed by a world of unattainable dreams. With the use of money-related diction to illustrate that wealth is pursued for the sole purpose to impress others and to bring happiness, Fitzgerald demonstrates that during the 1920’s, money was most important to people in order to gain social class, but resulted in the complete opposite. Daisy is a good example of how money has influenced her and even changed her throughout the novel. She met Gatsby and fell in love with him despite how he had no money or social class. Once he went off to war, she promised to wait for him, but once she met Tom, she couldn’t resist his wealth, and...
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...The American Dream is the aspiration to obtain wealth, status and power based on the desire of self-betterment through self-reliance and accomplishment. F Scott Fitzgerald’s, The Great Gatsby, is an effective critique on the corruption that surrounds the American Dream. It is also a commentary on the warped view of Western hedonism and idealized lifestyles. The dream is portrayed strongly through the characters, depicting undignified ways to obtain wealth, the amoral social interactions and the illusion of affection and false fellowship. Thus exposing the unscrupulousness, self-absorption and disillusionment that lie at the wake of the American Dream. Fitzgerald critiques on the ideal of ‘self-made’ men (financially) and how through sheer desperation, men stray from conformity and followed a deviated path in order to reach wealth. The American Dream is the belief that regardless of one’s socio-economic background, an individual could still reach financial triumph through hard work, education and drive-which has been the belief of the American society. According to American sociologist Robert K. Merton, American society has generated common desires and pressures for material possession-which is how success was measured- those who fail to succeed by conformity or valid means, resort to devious acts to do so. Fitzgerald comments on this aspect of his society through the portrayal of Gatsby in the novel; who employed unorthodox ways of obtaining wealth in order to gain his incommunicable...
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...In The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald gives a sense of entitlement to the American Dream, with hope being the inspiration for materialism, and it only takes time to define whether someone is living the American Dream or not. It is comprehended simply by the book’s cover that the story ahead will entail a loss or great sadness, as seen through the light blue anomaly directly under the teary eyes, as if supposed to be a tear and not just a stain on a photograph. The American Dream is quite a known part of the United States, so much that even people not from or in the US know what the dream is, which is a main reason many people to immigrate to the United States, a place of hope and opportunity. Although the American Dream is defined by the...
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...describes the desire for one to achieve a sense of fulfillment and happiness through hard work and determination. Each person has their own version of The American Dream and their attitude of achieving it can vastly vary. In the novel, “The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the author displays The American Dream through a corrupt love and the idea of becoming wealthy and having the ability to acquire anything. Jay Gatsby does not truly love Daisy, rather he sees her as an object he must acquire in order to achieve his personal vision of the American Dream. First of all, Gatsby wants success and views Daisy as the means to achieving it. Second, Daisy is treated and viewed as a possession that Jay Gatsby has to attain under any circumstances to fulfill his American Dream. Lastly, Gatsby is trying to set up an image and reputation for...
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...We all have dreams. Everyone can say that there has been a time in their life where they have yearned to acquire or achieve something. Dreams can be about everything or anything; however, depending on the dream, it can sometimes be devastating to one’s morals and personality. A lot of times it is the body’s vivid and frequent imagination of dreams that lures oneself to their desires. Once a person’s desire has been fulfilled they may attempt to recreate and relive them over and over again. This obsession can have severe consequences by affecting the reality of one’s life. In American Gangster and The Great Gatsby the protagonists have underestimated the power of imagined desires. Frank, a leader of a Harlem gang in American Gangster, quickly...
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...The roaring twenties, F. Scott Fitzgerald’s, The Great Gatsby, represent the past historical modernization of a male subjugated social system. The Great Gatsby is a love story, mystery, and a social commentary towards the American Life. This story explores the journey for happiness and wealth through the American Dream, and shows how idealism, dysfunctional relationship, and corrupt occur during the Jazz Age. The Great Gatsby, however, is not the story about a woman’s journey for happiness and improperly shows the representation of females during 1920. F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel The Great Gatsby shows the historically male dominated social system through women being portrayed as shallow beings, which are dominated by men, and seen as erroneous...
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...Gatsby In the book The Great Gatsby by some guy, the American Dream is depicted as something that can be either achieved or neglected by several characters of different age and personality. Through the novel readers can learn how hard it is to obtain this dream because at any given moment, individuals can be faced with obstacles and barriers. Despite the great amount of wealth that he inherited, Jay Gatsby never truly achieves his American Dream because his love for Daisy is never rekindled after he returns from war since Daisy is never able to fully let go of Tom and his money. First and foremost, Daisy’s love for Gatsby is never rekindled after he comes back from war. Jay Gatsby says that he embraced the war and it gave him a new life...
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...people manipulated by money and status. Upon his first visit to the Buchanan's lavish summer home, it is evident to Nick that he is an outsider among their kind. He discovers that Daisy, who no doubt married for money, is miserable in her marriage to Tom who flaunts his affairs like a new sports car. But throughout all of her suffering, Daisy is unwilling to leave her luxurious lifestyle behind for true happiness as her lust for money consumes her. The story doesn't truly begin until Jay Gatsby (Robert Redford) appears, Nick's mysterious nouveau riche neighbor known for throwing extravagant parties for the rich and famous. After being invited to one of his gatherings, Nick befriends Gatsby becoming fascinated by his mysterious past and lavish lifestyle. Soon he discovers that Gatsby had a young love connection with Daisy and has been pining over her for years planning to rekindle their once unbreakable love, while Daisy is completely clueless of what type of man Gatsby has became. Nick assists Gatsby in planning a reunion for the two young lovers, and once they met again it was obvious that their love had not been broken. Conflicts arise as Tom becomes more and more aware of Daisy and Gatsby's affair as the strange and eventful summer drags on. The plot grows intense on a hot summer afternoon when Daisy, Tom, Gatsby, Nick and Jordan (Daisy's friend played by Lois Chiles) rent a hotel room and Gatsby brings the affair into the open. Tempers flare as Tom and Gatsby fight for the woman...
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...The Deceit of The American Dream in The Great Gatsby Many strive for success through strenuous amounts of hard work and dedication. However, once this success is achieved, they are still unhappy. In the 1920s, the majority of people had one dream to achieve particularly the American Dream. In essence, the American Dream is the idea of anyone being able to achieve success if they put in a lot dedication and hard work. The novel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald is a classic twentiethcentury story that revolves primarily around the theme of the American Dream. The characters of Tom and Daisy Buchanan, Jay Gatsby and Myrtle Wilson are prime examples of characters who represent this theme. The Great Gatsby gives a vivid peek into the lives of Americans who live the American Dream, and proves it to be rather a deceptive fallacy. This deceit results in the downfall of many characters within the novel as they try to obtain the unachievable goal of the American Dream. Tom and Daisy Buchanan represent what many lowerclass citizens in the U.S. strive to be: wealthy and highstatus socialites. This facade is what tricks many into thinking that the American Dream results in a greater and happier life. However, Tom and Daisy’s happiness only goes so far. Apart from being successful, this couple encounters many debacles both within and out of their marriage. Like many who live in East Egg, Tom came from a wealthy family and made sure he stayed that way...
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...The American Dream, fueled by ambition and hopes of success, can often be exposed as a nightmare in disguise. Set in the roaring twenties, F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby demonstrates such a point, criticizing the American Dream as well as the dishonest values of characters attempting to achieve this dream. When Nick Carraway moves to Long Island's West Egg, home to the newly rich, he is not expecting to get dragged into an atmosphere of depravity and deceit. Next door lives the elusive Jay Gatsby, a self-proclaimed Oxford man who throws extravagant parties at his mansion with the sole intention of reuniting with Daisy Buchanan, his lost love and true desire. The American Dream was traditionally the belief that anyone, regardless of background, has the opportunity to be happy and successful through hard work, yet as America evolved, the dream did too. The once virtuous ideal modernized into a plot for materialistic power. By the end of the novel, Fitzgerald is trying to project the idea that the American Dream is not only an unattainable ideal, but in addition, corrupts those who seek to obtain it. Firstly, Gatsby's unrealistic dream of Daisy is used to portray the unattainability of the American Dream. In Gatsby’s mind, Daisy is perfect in every aspect and the object of his greatest desire. He becomes so engrossed with the image of Daisy from his memories, that even she herself cannot fulfill his expectations: "There must have been moments even that afternoon when Daisy...
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...descent to them. That in which, he decided that societal beliefs will not categorize his children, as it has done to him when he was a child. That in which, he left behind his desires and wants for fame so his children would not be labelled by society. Similarly with Gatsby, he attained the life he wanted through leaving behind his former identity to pass as someone from an aristocratic background. However, in the end Gatsby died as the man he was seen, unless there were specific people he allows to know the truth of who he was. Yet given the truth was not revealed, Gatsby died the person he...
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...the 1920s was most likely filled with glitter and glam and lots of color. Like an artist, F. Scott Fitzgerald intertwines these colors into his novel The Great Gatsby not only to establish flow, but to emphasize the importance of the character’s desires, wealth, and avarice. Because Fitzgerald weaves colors into the setting, characters, and plot, the reader is able to comprehend why certain characters act the way they do and why some put up masks. Confidence and hope is found within the color green, a color in which correlates with the green light that is seen towards the end of chapter one. Fitzgerald’s paintbrush serves...
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