Great Gatsby Essay

The Great Gatsby has many themes, but the main theme is the withering of the "American dream." The American dream is essentially the opportunity for success and prosperity. Throughout The Great Gatsby, there are many examples of the withering of this dream. The main characters in the story live the American dream, yet they are not happy. These characters become so obsessed with their wealth and success that they lose sight of their morality, which ultimately leads to their demise.

In the book, Jay Gatsby embodies the quintessential American dream. He was raised in poverty, but he became rich and successful to impress Daisy. Although he was successful, he sacrificed his morality to attain his wealth. All that matters to Gatsby is having material possessions, so Daisy will love him. He gives up everything to attain his dream. He leaves his family and home in the moral West and gets involved in shady business. Gatsby dreams of being with Daisy because she represents everything he wants: glamour and wealth. Tom says in the book that Gatsby was bootlegging alcohol and Gatsby basically confirms it, which shows his lack of morality. Gatsby flaunts his wealth and uses his material possessions to win Daisy's affections. Gatsby's obsession with money and Daisy eventually leads to his death. After Gatsby dies, only three people attended his funeral. This just shows that even though Gatsby had money, he had no friends because he was greedy.

Tom Buchanan is another prime example of the withering of the American dream. Tom is the egotistical husband of Daisy. Tom believes he is superior to the people that live in West Egg because he has always had money. Tom does not believe in equality which contradicts the American dream. Tom is greedy and does not want anyone to be able to rise out of poverty or their social class. Tom also has the "perfect" family and the "perfect" lifestyle, yet he indulges in immorality because of his greed. Tom has an affair with Myrtle which leads to her murder and the murder of Gatsby. Tom takes no responsibility for his actions because when he got caught up in the materialism of the East, he lost his morality.

Daisy represents all the materialism and lack of morality of the 1920s. All of Daisy's actions are motivated by her pursuit of money. Gatsby falls in love with Daisy, but she won't marry him because he doesn't have money. She marries Tom because he has money and social standing. Even her affair with Gatsby is motivated by money. Gatsby impressed Daisy with his extravagant lifestyle, so she decided she wanted to be with. Daisy becomes so obsessed with living her perfect life that she kills Myrtle for interfering with her "American Dream." Daisy becomes so corrupt by money that she exemplifies the disintegration of the American dream.

The 1920s was a time of luxury and materialism, yet it was a time of moral decay. For the characters in the story, the money they had was never enough and in the pursuit for more money, they lose their morals, love, and in two situations they lose their lives. In the 1920s, morality was lost, and the American dream was corrupted.