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The Great Gatsby

Daisy Buchanan

Conclusion

  • In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s, The Great Gatsby, one of the major themes that resonates throughout the novel is the theme of corruption.
  • This is evident through the decisions each of the characters make in accordance to the American Dream.
  • Their perception of happiness has been altered by a fictitious lifestyle they desire to obtain.
  • Daisy is one of the characters who is affected by Myrtle's actions, as well as the American Dream itself.
  • Even though Daisy is aware that her husband is having an affair with Myrtle, she chooses to ignore it, in order to maintain her current lifestyle.
  • She convinces herself that her life with Tom, a rich man, is ideal, although she is not truly happy.
  • However, this only lasts until she decides she cannot handle the situation, and kills Myrtle out of jealousy.
  • These occurrences demonstrate the way in which the American Dream has corrupted her.

The American Dream

Reference to William Shakespeare

  • Ultimately, each of the characters in F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby demonstrate the way people were affected by the American Dream in the 1920s.
  • Many people believed that there was only one way to truly be happy, and many also believed that if they did not live that specific lifestyle, they would be miserable.
  • The Great Gatsby reveals the lengths that people went to in order to obtain such a lifestyle.
  • Fitzgerald explains that even after the characters achieve their goals that society has forced upon them, they are not truly happy.
  • The American Dream is a national ethos of the United States that originally involved "the ideals of freedom, equality, and opportunity traditionally held to be available to every American."
  • However, during the 1920s, this concept was more commonly interpreted as "a life of personal happiness and material comfort as traditionally sought by individuals in the U.S."
  • This, to many, was seen as the ultimate goal, and a number of other fundamental values were ignored.
  • The fact that Daisy results in killing her husband's mistress is similar to an occurrence from William Shakespeare's Othello.
  • After Othello hears that his wife, Desdemona is cheating on him with another man, Othello reacts to the situation in a such a way that is almost identical to Daisy’s reaction.

Corruption of People

Works Cited

  • Fitzgerald demonstrates the behaviour of the average person during the 1920s, through his characters.
  • Coming up next is a quick video from the cinematic representation of this novel, to introduce some of the immorality that is present in the story.
  • "Corruption among Relationships (The Great Gatsby)." YouTube. YouTube, n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2015.
  • Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com, n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2015.
  • Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby. New York: Scribner, 2013. Print.
  • Shakespeare, William, and John Crowther. No Fear Shakespeare: Othello. New York: Spark, 2003. Print.

Myrtle Wilson

  • Myrtle possesses a variety of negative characteristics that reveal the true impact of the American Dream.
  • These characteristics include: materialistic, greedy, and selfish.
  • The only thing Myrtle cares about is money. She even cheats on her husband with a rich man, after discovering that George is poor.
  • She also expresses that she regrets ever marrying such a man, when she says, "The only crazy I was was when I married him” (Fitzgerald 37).
  • Even though her actions affect a number of other characters, her only concern is achieving the American Dream.

Jay Gatsby

  • Gatsby is one of the most important characters in the novel, hence the title, The Great Gatsby.
  • One of the reasons that justifies his significance involves the fact that he achieves the American Dream.
  • After being born into a poor family, he completely turns his own life around, and becomes a very wealthy, important man.
  • However, in order to fulfill this goal, he participates in a variety of illegal activities.
  • Even though Gatsby is extremely wealthy and popular, he is also a liar, and a cheater.
  • Through Gatsby, Fitzgerald demonstrates the corruption that the American Dream has caused, as even those who achieve it, lose more than they earn.

Corruption in The Great Gatsby

By: Sarah Smylie

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