Gatsby And Daisy example essay topic

Unfulfilled Dreams Everyone has dreams of being successful in life. When the word American comes to mind one often thinks of the land of opportunity. This dream was apparent with the first settlers, and it is apparent in today's society. In F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby (1925), he illustrates the challenges and tragedies associated with the American dream. By examining Jay Gatsby, Tom Buchanan, and Myrtle Wilson through the narrator Nick Carraway, I understand the complex nature of the American dream. Jay Gatsby represents the cost complex of them all.

Gatsby overcame many obstacles in order to accomplish is dream. Born to shiftless and unsuccessful farmers (104), determined to make something of himself he legally changes his name from James Gate to Jay Gatsby. In his youth he worked along the shores of Lake Superior, as a fisherman. There he meets Don Cody a self made millionaire. Cody made Gatsby his personal assistant and together they made several voyages. When Cody dies Gatsby inherits $25,000 however, he is unable to claim it, due to legal issues and Cody's wife Ella.

Gatsby and Daisy meet when he was in the army. Although the love they had for each other is strong, they did not marry due to his financial status. He goes overseas and she later marries Tom Buchanan. Throughout the years he never stops dreaming about Daisy, he knows wealth and status means everything to her. Gatsby leaves college because he finds his job as a janitor degrading. Gatsby's dream is to win the heart of Daisy Buchanan.

Gatsby is a handsome, youthful man, who lives in West Egg. West Egg represents "new money", those who recently became rich but, lack an established social position. His mansion sits on "more than forty acres of lawn and garden"; he drives a yellow car of enormous length. This location was intentionally chosen in order to be closer to Daisy who lives in East Egg. He reinvents himself as a millionaire, only to win her heart.

Gatsby is well known for his elaborate parties; where there is an abundance of food, live Jazz musicians and unlimited liquor. Gatsby never attends his parties. He is merely and absorber; watching instead of taking part. They are thrown with one purpose, to attract Daisy. Those who attend his parties never really know who he was.

Their sole purpose was for attending is the abundance of liquor; which was prohibited during this era (1920's). This is significant evidence that Gatsby is involved in bootlegging, one of the many rumors about the mysterious host. Nicks first sees Gatsby reaching towards the mysterious green light, which he later realizes is the light at the end of Daisy's dock. He calls himself an Oxford man, and speaks with a visible fake English accent. Gatsby befriends his neighbor Nick with the sole purpose of using him in order to get closer to daisy.

With Nick and Jordan's help, the two are reunited on a rainy afternoon in Nick's house. Blindly in love, Gatsby acts like a foolish little boy, knocking down Nick's clock. The long awaited reunion is later moved to Gatsby's mansion. There he displays his wealth to Daisy. When he exhibits his imported shirts "suddenly with a strained sound Daisy bent her head into the shirts and began to cry stormily" (98).

Daisy's tears are not because the shirts were beautiful; her tears signify her obsession for wealth and money, which is all she cares about. In understanding the complex nature of the American Dream, Tom is the most egotistical of them all. His family has enormous wealth. Tom represents "old money" and the inter generation transfer of wealth; which he offensively exploits.

He lives in East Egg where the old aristocrats live. Tom is also a hypocrite, and his constant use of racist comments towards other ethnic groups and those less fortunate than himself indicate to me the reader that he feels he is superior. His wife Daisy describes him as "a brute of a man, a great big hulking physical specimen of a " (16). He uses his size to dominate others.

This behavior is clearly exhibited in his attitude towards Daisy, and his mistress Myrtle. One night while drinking Myrtle felt she had a right to mention Daisy's name; this notion was quickly dismissed when "making a short deft movement Tom Buchanan broke her nose with his open hand" (41). His racism and hatred towards those he considers inferior to him is also clear. At a dinner party at his home, where Nick, Jordan Baker a professional golfer, and his wife were in attendance he dominates the conversation. By speaking about a book called "The Rise of the colored Empires", which encourages white supremacist ideas.

This racism is also evident when he finds our Gatsby's occupation he says "I picked him for a bootlegger the first time I saw him and I wasn't far wrong" (141). Despite his extra marital affairs with Myrtle, when he learns about the romance between Gatsby and his wife, Tom feels threatened. He openly insults Gatsby, and seems disturbed that his wife is involved with a man of a lower class. This behavior shows he is a hypocrite; he himself is involved with someone of an inferior class, Myrtle. He refuses to lose Daisy to another man. When the truth about Daisy and Gatsby past is exposed he says "Daisy loved me when she married me and she loves me now".

He also suggests that Daisy is crazy by saying "The trouble is that sometimes she gets foolish ideas in her head and doesn't know what she's doing". During this time it was unacceptable for woman to have extra marital affairs. Tom uses Gatsby's criminal occupation as a bootlegger to discredit him. Learning the true source of Gatsby wealth, Daisy refuses to surrender her love for him. Knowing Daisy's loves money and social status, Tom allows her to ride home in Gatsby's car.

Myrtle represents the person most fascinated by the American Dream. Myrtle is a vital woman in her mid thirties with noticeable features; especially her full breast and hips. She lives in the "valley of ashes", which is the road from West Egg to New York City; with her husbands George Wilson's a mechanic on top his garage. Like Tom, Myrtle shows no respect for her partner. She ignores her husband, and rudely orders him around "get some chairs, why don't you, so somebody can sit down" (30).

Her disgust for him is also apparent when she openly admits "I married him because I thought he was a gentleman" (39). This admission indicates she does not love her husband and yearns for someone else. She feels she deserves better by saying "he wasn't fit to lick my shoe". This justifies her relationship with Tom, who is from a higher social class. Her fascination with wealth is exhibited by having an affair with Tom. When he invites her to New York spends money unnecessarily.

She indulges in a lifestyle is could not live in the "valley of ashes". Myrtle allows three taxis to pass by before she found one to her liking, and invites her sister along together engage in gossip about the elite. Myrtle's frequent trips raise George's suspicions of myrtle's affair; he makes plans for them to move west. Determined to defy her husband, Myrtle tries to run away, but is killed by a yellow car.

Though the car belonged to Gatsby, Daisy is the driver. Convinced that Daisy loves him, he takes the blame. Gatsby's of Daisy are too high and his expectations. His hopes and dreams are shattered, when Daisy and her husband suddenly disappears after the accident.

Tom and Daisy they were careless people, they smashed up things and retreated back to their money, and let other people clean up the mess they had made (187-188). Heartbroken by his wife's murder, George hunts down the owner of the yellow car. Assuming the owner is myrtle's lover he shoots Gatsby, before committing the worse sin of all, suicide. The love he had for Myrtle was real. Both men are ruined by their love for women involved with Tom Buchanan. Nick organize Gatsby's funeral, but finds very few people who cares.

I believe the American Dream seems corrupted by the search for wealth and material possessions..