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Insanity In The Great Gatsby

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The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald transports one into the wealth and excitement of the 1920’s, yet reveals the dark pieces of humanity as well. In efforts to comprehend the shallow, reckless characters of this story, three traits appear to be the bases of their flawed morals: prejudice, resentment, and - what proves to often be most genuine and deadly - apathy. The type of people in this period that Fitzgerald tries to personify attain a mindset that lives on its own small, personal island. Meaning, there is only enough room for themselves. Likewise, this mindset is evident in many Americans during the time of change in the 20’s, as the voiceless people called for attention.
The Roaring 20’s marked a time of economic prosperity, that …show more content…
During the Great Migration, the tyrannical Jim Crow laws drove “around 1.5 million African Americans” out of the South, and economic opportunity attracted them to urban areas of the North (Williams Great Migration). There, these Americans created a new culture that was not shunned as it was in the South but celebrated. The Harlem Renaissance threatened many racists’ mental “islands” in the roaring twenties, as writers like Langston Hughes and composers like Duke Ellington helped to turn the United States’s culture into one that is not strictly …show more content…
Making up 13.12% of the US population and 36% of New York City’s, immigrants play an important role in the stability of the 1920’s yet are resented as intruders or unequals by nativist Americans (United States Bureau). Throughout the novel, Nick refers to his maid as simply “my Finn” representing the lack of personal dignity lower class immigrants, including Finnish people, received (Fitzgerald 83). This minor character is displayed with little dignity, as Nick retrieves her “among soggy whitewashed alleys” when he wants her assistance (Fitzgerald 84). This is a prime example of how the class differences of the period did not have to be formed by prejudice to be immoral. The simple lack of human respect and concern is enough to create

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 Winston Patterson 5/17/10 9:35 PM Comment: Broad
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a
conflict.
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Gatsby,
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Gatsby
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up
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