Jordan Long
Jennings 3rd hour
AP English
Feb 19 2014
Literary Criticism “The Great Gatsby”
Jordan Woodward’s The Great Gatsby: The Corruption of the American Dream
through Materialism expresses that the American dream corresponds with attainment of
wealth, power, and expensive lifestyle. Within the past years American dreams have been
overall successful, which could express how Jay Gatsby became a very wealthy and self
established man. He achieved his goals and did it without money, but he obtains his
wealth later in life. Fitzgerald thoroughly expresses that money cannot buy happiness
and cannot buy your dreams, he expresses that you need to pursue your goals and
achievements. Gatsby dream may be “fallacious” but he defiantly buys expensive desires
to show he has had succession. In which Nick Carraway observes and realizes the
purpose for Gatsby’s image. Gatsby’s inspiration stems from everlasting love for Daisy,
so he presents himself as higher class so that Daisy will fall for him. Daisy is the one and
only thing that Gatsby strived for in his life, regardless of his idealism and persistence.
With Gatsby’s corrupt environment he fails to recognize that he is loosing sight of his
true dream, which is Daisy. Gatsby has never had his dream because he has always
become immersed within a world of corruption and materialism. Nick on the other hand
has had his dream morally based on his experiences in his lifetime. Thus Nick contains a
realistic dream unlike Gatsby chasing a married woman. Nicks persistence, and longing
to achieve his goals separates and segregates him from the way Gatsby represents
himself.
The overall essence of the document shows that the American dream cannot be
bought nor cheated. The true achievement of one’s dream is through hard work and
dedication. (Woodward) And based on the interpretation I believe this to be true, one
cannot simply achieve ones goal you must first put in the hard work and efforts such as
Gatsby to achieve that rags to riches American dream transformation. Evidence of this
rags to riches fairytale reality are within the document and within the book such as ones
freedom, one’s self-reliance, and one’s desire to achieve something greater. Your true
endeavors are the incommunicable things that you hope to achieve through society and
the place of your heart. This document and Gatsby prove too equable for expressing that
“Gatsby’s romantic view of life may partly be to blame for his inability to achieve his
dream. Although he has made his fortune through racketeering and conducting suspicious
business deals, his heart seems untouched by the moral evil that surrounds him.”
(Woodward pg2) This is expressing that Gatsby regardless of his triumphs and luxuries
has stayed true to his heart but cannot achieve to dream of begin with Daisy because of
his surrounding evils and contradicting pasts.
The American dream is destroyed through materialistic practices, in which
someone may focus too much on the materials and surroundings that they often become
silicified and reinstituted. Till they fail to see separation they will always be
unintentionally segregated from their hopes and dreams. The corruption of the American
dream isn’t because of constant failure or unobtainable hopes and dream the American
dream is lost due to the selfish lies and indistinctively revealed flaws of ones dream
through other failure to achieve their dream. Gatsby is the perfect example of this flaw.
(Woodward) The blind and negatively impacted corruption of wealth and power has
conceded his mind to believe that he may achieve anything and everything he is truly lost
when he believes he can still achieve Daisy even though she is still married and has been
married for five years.
Materialistic views of daisy may include how "He (Gatsby) found her (Daisy)
excitingly desirable. He went to her house There was a ripe mystery about it, a hint of
bedrooms upstairs more beautiful and cool then the other bedrooms It excited him too
that many men had already loved Daisy It increased her value in his eyes" (155-156).
This provides evidence that Gatsby thought of Daisy as materialistic because she presents
herself as arrogant and self-absorbed and considered her to be desirable and valuably
important to obtain within his life.
The American dream is impossible to associate with rapid succession, fame, and
glory. Because our lust for happiness and desire for unachievable requisition is always
present during our lives we simply just fail to see it. An interpretation of Gatsby is that he
just sustains luxuries and loses sight of what he is really true to, which is his image and
heart. Nick may not be as important of a character but his American dream is certainly
closer to the easily obtainable American dream, that doesn’t contain fame or fortune but
family and lust for succession. Fitzgerald’s novel may appear to be a sob story about true
love that can’t be obtained. But with further examination we can see the corruption and
profound social illusions created to try and promote the American dream of luxuries,
fame, fortune, success, and love.
Work Cited
Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby. New York: Scribner, 2004.
Print.
Woodward, Jordan The Great Gatsby: The Corruption of the American Dream
through Materialism