The American Dream is a major theme discussed throughout F. Scott Fitzgerald’s, The Great Gatsby. The concept of the dream is the ambition and ability that applies to any one and everyone as their chance to accomplish their goals in life. The novel gets its title from the main character Jay Gatsby, who actually is not as great as he seems. He is wealthy, successful, and surrounded by friends. All of these material and social aspects though, were not just handed to him. Gatsby worked hard to become wealthy, going from rags to riches, which was not easy to accomplish in the 1920s. Every Saturday night he throws extravagant parties that many people attend, half of which he does not even know. He has the company of a few close friends, but his true desire to be happy, and for him to accomplish his own American dream, is to have the love of his life embracing his success with him. Gatsby’s neighbor, close friend, and also narrator of the story Nick Carraway, just happens to be the cousin of the love of his life, Daisy. Gatsby goes through great lengths to impress Daisy, and Nick admires him. His hopefulness and ambition show Nick that everyone can be as successful and happy as they strive to be.
“They were able to have a very successful life and business and family. They were surely what I would call the American Dream story,” stated Kevin McCarrick. This quote is an example of the world relating to the story of The Great Gatsby. People in the United States are here to do just those things. Aspirations are numerous and large, but there is endless opportunity in the world. The novel teaches everyone that when things are not going according to plan, there is always hope and happiness. The pursuit of happiness is the American dream and Fitzgerald portrays it in many ways using many different characters throughout the duration of his novel.
I disagree that Fitzgerald's purpose is to portray "The pursuit of happiness [as] the American dream." In my opinion, Fitzgerald attempts to convey the corruption of the American Dream, by rendering the upper class of the 1920's as the moral decay of society. To support this notion, I believe that the author delineates Gatsby's extravagant parties, in order to characterize the wealthy as wasteful and pretentious. Furthermore, Fitzgerald uses Daisy as a symbol to exemplify the distortion of the American Dream; she is wealthy and has a nice family and home, yet she still desires more. While I do not agree with these caricatures of the upper class and of the American Dream, I do believe that it is Fitzgerald's intended purpose to denounce the American Dream as corrupt.
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