Great Gatsby: Fitzgeralds Criticism Of The American Dream Essay

Great Gatsby Fitzgeralds Criticism of The American DreamThe American Dream, as it arose in the compound period and developed in thenineteenth century, was based on the assumption that each person, no matter whathis origins, could succeed in life on the sole basis of his or her own skill andeffort. The dream was embodied in the ideal of the self-made man, just as it wasembodied in Fitzgeralds own family by his grandfather, P. F. McQuillan.Fitzgeralds novel takes its place among other novels whose insights into thenature of the American dream have not affected the artistic form of the novelitself. The Great Gatsby serves as Fitzgeralds recapitulation of the American dream.The Great Gatsby embodies a criticism of America and the Americanexperience, more radical than any other author has attempted. The theme of thenovel is the destruction of the American dream during the 1920s, a period whenthe vulgar pursuit of material happiness has corrupted the old values that gavesubstance to the dream. The characters are Midwesterners who have come eastward inpursuit of this new dream of money, fame, success, glamour, and excitement. Tomand Daisy must have a huge house, a stable of polo ponies, and friends in Europe.Gatsby must have his frightful mansion before he can feel confident enough totry to win Daisy. Fitzgerald does not criticize the American dream itself butthe degeneracy of that dream. What was once for Ben Franklin or ThomasJefferson ...