What Is The American Dream In The Great Gatsby Essay?

by | Last updated on January 24, 2024

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In The Great Gatsby by Scott Fitzgerald the power and drive the American Dream creates is present through wealth, social class, and the realities of the characters. The American Dream is defined as

someone starting low on the economic, or social level, and working hard to achieve wealth and prosperity

.

How is the American Dream portrayed in The Great Gatsby essay?

During the story Gatsby represents the American dream,

he rises above his father and becomes the rich man he wanted to be

. … Throughout the book Gatsby represents the dream in which he was born poor and became rich. He also had to be a better man, he wanted to rise against his father ‘s marital status….

What is the American Dream in The Great Gatsby?

The American Dream is

the hope that anyone can earn success if they work hard enough

. Gatsby’s love for Daisy led him to achieve extravagant wealth. In the sense of rising up social rank and obtaining financial success, Gatsby achieved the American Dream.

Is The Great Gatsby a story about the American Dream?

The Great Gatsby is a tragic love story on the surface, but it’s most commonly understood as a

pessimistic critique of the American Dream

.

What is the American Dream essay?

Historian James Truslow Adams says “The American Dream is that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement.” The American Dream is

the idea in one person’s mind of what they desire their life will become

.

How does Gatsby corrupt the American Dream?

Gatsby exemplifies the American dream in his ideals, in this case the desire for success and self-substantiation; however, this dream become corrupted

because he is not able to distinguish the acquisition of wealth from the pursuit of his dream, embodied by Daisy

, and is tainted by the illicit foundations of his wealth …

How does Gatsby fail to achieve the American Dream?

Gatsby didn’t achieve the American dream

because he chased the praise of others

. … His material possession didn’t bring him happiness. The only thing Gatsby dreamed about is for Daisy to accept his love.

How does Daisy represent the American dream?

Scott Fitzgerald uses Daisy Buchanan to represent the American Dream

because she is wealthy, sought after, and unattainable

. Daisy represents the upper class women, and is a very frail character who is easily led into evil and physically and morally weak, which reflects on her character in the book.

How is the story an ironic twist of the American dream?

It is ironic that

Daisy was the one that killed her

, since Myrtle was having an affair with her husband, Tom. … Daisy thinks she has everything, wealth, love, and happiness which all tie into the American dream, but then she discovers that she has nothing and that she has been corrupted by this specific dream.

How did Gatsby get rich?

We are told that Gatsby came up from essentially nothing, and that the first time he met Daisy Buchanan, he was “a penniless young man.” His fortune, we are told, was the result of

a bootlegging business

– he “bought up a lot of side-street drug-stores here and in Chicago” and sold illegal alcohol over the counter.

How is The Great Gatsby a critique of the American Dream?

Though Gatsby is seen as a criminal and as such represents the ideal of a self-made man, from rags to riches. He is the force that corrodes the American dream, it is through him that

we see the harsh reality of the dream, its rise and its end

. It is with his death that we see the death of the American Dream.

What is the American dream in your own words?

What Is the American Dream? The American dream is the belief that

anyone, regardless of where they were born or what class they were born into, can attain their own version of success in a society in which upward mobility is possible for everyone

.

What is the American dream easy definition?

:

a happy way of living that

is thought of by many Americans as something that can be achieved by anyone in the U.S. especially by working hard and becoming successful With good jobs, a nice house, two children, and plenty of money, they believed they were living the American dream.

How do you start an American dream essay?

  1. To make a good start, you can highlight how important is the notion or explain your own personal interest in this topic.
  2. This introduction should not be be very long, 2-3 sentences are usually enough. …
  3. A detailed explanation of the American dream notion should go next.

What does money do to the American Dream?

Money can pave the way to the American dream:

owning a home, raising a family, having a successful career, retiring comfortably

. But, as Sabatier learned, it’s best seen as a means to an end: “Even though I truly believe that having money is freedom, money is really just a tool to make experiences in life possible.”

Is Gatsby a victim of the American Dream?

Making his money for show, he had no true friends, no true money and no true love. His life revolved around his own scheming, causing him to be

a victim of himself

. By the end of the novel, we see Gatsby as a victim, not a great example of the American Dream.

Rachel Ostrander
Author
Rachel Ostrander
Rachel is a career coach and HR consultant with over 5 years of experience working with job seekers and employers. She holds a degree in human resources management and has worked with leading companies such as Google and Amazon. Rachel is passionate about helping people find fulfilling careers and providing practical advice for navigating the job market.