The Great Gatsby(Symbolism) Essay, Research Paper

The Great Gatsby, written in 1925, is a work that focuses in on the corruption of AThe American Dream@ during the 20’s. AThe American Dream@ is the belief that hard work and dedication can provide success no matter where your roots started. In the novel Jay Gatsby is the embodiment of AThe American Dream@ that all of America had(Stallman 158).

In Gatsby=s dream there were two goals he was reaching for: Wealth, comfort, and security; the other was lost love, Daisy. At the start of the book Gatsby had already accomplished one of these. He was a wealthy man living in a luxurious mansion and basically no troubles. Later in the story we learn how it is that he got to the level he is at. As a child Gatsby spent his time working for his dreams. His father comments, AHe knew he had a big future in front of him. And ever since he made a success he was very generous with me.@ This shows just how early that AThe American Dream@ can be instilled in everyone. To add to Gatsby dedication also came his hard work. As a boy he had a schedule of his day with all the things that he needed to do in order to eventually reach his goal. In his time everyone had this AAmerican Dream@ but only those few who took the time to do the work were rewarded with the fulfillment of their dream(Fitzgerald 181).

The acquisition of his wealth and material possessions was only the first step in his two-part dream. The second goal was winning back his first love Daisy Fay from Tom Buchanan. Money was the only way he thought he could win her back. Now that he was on her level monetary wise, he moved in to try to gain back the love that they had felt for each other. Although this may sound as if he were trying to steal her away from Tom, Nick interprets this as the ultimate form of following ones dream and that it is Tom and Daisy=s world that is corrupted not Gatsby=s dream(Taylor 157). Although Gatsby works and believes, he fails to get the girl of his dreams in the end(Fraser 176). This failure dissolved Gatsby=s dream and he died lonely without even the dream to keep him company.

On the flip side, The Great Gatsby can also represent the corruption of AThe American Dream@. In a sense Fitzgerald portrayed America as having Alost its standards and its sense of the moral fitness of things@ (Taylor 156). The story is told about AThe American Dream@ at a corrupt time in America. Tom and Daisy=s world was the vessel of corruption in the story. They based their dream on illusions without looking at the reality of the situation(Bewley 235). They were living in a world made of money and failed to see the crumbling of their world around them.

Whether Fitzgerald intended to depict AThe American Dream@ or the corruption of the dream, there is no doubt that the characters were working for or already had the fulfillment of a dream.