The Great Gatsby and the Dangers of the American Dream F. Scott Fitzgerald The Great Gatsby has struck me emotionally as well as physically. It contains both physical and emotional pain. All of Fitzgerald's characters had a Dream, however, one of the character's dream stood out , the main character, Jay Gatsby. Jay Gatsby was the only character throughout the whole novel that I found to be an emotional and yet at the same time a physical pain. Continuing with the emotional pain, Jay Gatsby exaggerates it. His American Dream is to go after a lost love, a love that he thought would love him and stay with him until death will break them apart, but it didn't end like that. This dream, his love, left him, and ran off with another, her husband. This left Jay Gatsby alone, tormented, miserable, and devastated. His American Dream left him, destroyed him and ruined his life, his whole entire life As a nurse, I also found in Jay Gatsby an injury, a physical pain that tormented him day and night. The pain that a nurse can look at and try to cure and heal, but yet is somewhat impossible. It is the pain of Denial. However, Jay Gatsby was not the only one that had an American Dream and got hurt, there were others, others that died because they thought that their American Dream was real. Take for instance, a young lady named Myrtle. She was a wife and at the same time a lover of another. She was the lover of Tom, who was Daisy's husband, and Daisy was Jay Gatsby's love. A good connection there, right? Myrtle loved Tom, with all her heart. He was her American Dream, and yet she didn't find love near him, but death among his wife, who killed her accidentally. A tragic for a young lady like Myrtle. Among other things, I find Gatsby to be rather vague. My eyes could never quite focus upon him, his outlines are dim. Everything about Gatsby was more or less like a mystery, something that you had to figure out yourself. Fitzgerald writes "Gatsby had come a long way to this blue lawn and his dream must have seemed so close that he could hardly fail to grasp it. He did not know that it was already behind him, somewhere back in that vast obscurity beyond the city, where the dark fields of the republic rolled on under the night". At first Gatsby did not know that his dream, his American Dream was away, past him, far away from everything he ever owned in life. This American Dream cost him his life. He died with honor and with pride. But yet, Daisy and Tom lived on with remorse, regrets and guilts and hallucinations, because of the death that Daisy caused Myrtle, and Tom for lying to Myrtle husband about the car that killed Myrtle. These lies and guilt were Tom and Daisy's American dreams after what they caused. They played with fire, they get burned. That's the way it will always be. The American Dream is dangerous. Gatsby took a risk, and lost his dream. Daisy took a risk and lost half her strength and Tom his pride of being a strong man. They put all of their heart and might to follow their dreams, and yet at the end, it all went to loss. Everything they ever hoped for, everything they ever wished for, went down the drain, down to loss and shame. As a nurse, I consider the American Dream to be a dangerous dream, a dangerous dream, because you never know what can happen, what can occur to you on the end. My American Dream is to heal and cure patients, who are in need and make a good job out of it, but somehow sometimes it backfires on me, and what I'm left with is guilt, like Daisy herself. I cannot cure Gatsby of his American Dream, but I did found an injury, the injury of Denial, like I mentioned before. Daisy denied him, and he denied himself. He didn't want to give up; he went from poor to rich to get his dream. He even changed his name, for his dream. I wouldnt deny myself that far. I would be proud of who I am, but Gatsby wasn't. He went all the way for her, and the one who ended up losing was him. The only cure that I find in Gatsby is his death. He died with honor and pride, he died for Daisy. He protected her, he knew that his time was over, he sensed it. And it happened. He was murdered, from Myrtle's husband because he thought it was him who killed Myrtle. And yet, Gatsby lay peacefully in his grave, while Daisy lived on with pain and guilt. This is the cure of Gatsby's injury, the cure that I found, as a nurse of injured patients. This is the emotional cure. The physical cure, will be his slow death, in his pool, the one that hurt, after you are stabbed or shot. The one that last memories come to your mind, memories that make your eyes close and rest peacefully forever. Gatsby's last memories were Daisy's, I'm sure of it. Overall, I found in Jay Gatsby an emotion that I never thought in my 26 years of living, I will ever find. The truth of The Danger of the American Dream. This is reality. The American Dream is dangerous, because it can cause you guilt, shame, regrets, remorse and death. Don't end up like Gatsby did, but instead do things with pride and honor. But always be careful, of the dreams you follow. You might never know what can happen to you or to the ones you love.
Gatsby is unrealistic. He believes he can relive the past and rekindle the flame he and Daisy once had. He is lost in his dream and accepts that anything can be repeated, "Can't repeat the past…Why of course you can!" (116, Fitzgerald). For Gatsby, failure to realize this resurrection of love is utterly appalling. His whole career, his conception of himself and his life is totally shattered. Gatsby's death when it comes is almost insignificant, for with the collapse of his dream, he is spiritually dead.
I am a Canadian of Irish and Italian descent. I have been exposed to both authentic Italian and Irish cultures and desire to visit both places one day. I am a female and come from a large family. Prior to entering the nursing program, I attended St. Michael’s Catholic elementary school and JL Crowe high school in Trail. My upbringing has immensely impacted the person that I have become today. Growing up in a large family taught me how to share and be patient. I learned most of my core skills as a young child; caring, communicating, problem-solving, conflict resolution, manners, respect, trustworthiness, dedication, confidence, work ethic and
Both men experienced a deep yearning to achieve more than they already had: the woman of their dreams and the wealth that would enable them to live with ease. This parallel created between the two men reveals a deeper connection than just a simple resemblance. Fitzgerald was able to fit himself (as Gatsby) into a novel that describes his inner struggle with his ambition. Nick Carraway, seen as the narrator, stands for Fitzgerald’s conscience, the careful and reserved observer that quietly judges Gatsby’s actions as well as the behaviors of the characters around him. Both Nick and Gatsby describe two sides of Fitzgerald’s personality. Nick is the quiet, reflective mid-Western man who is mesmerized by the glitter and glam that the East seems to uphold. Gatsby, on the other hand, represents Fitzgerald’s ambition in the way that he will stop at nothing to achieve his dreams and fulfill the image that he made for himself earlier on in life. Throughout the novel, the readers can tell that Gatsby’s hopeful ambition eventually causes his downfall. In this sense, his death signifies the death of one of Fitzgerald’s personalities. Gatsby symbolizes the epitome of the American dream: a self-made man who’s life was always climbing higher and higher. Gatsby’s death is the death of that dream; it was Fitzgerald’s realization that the American Dream had been
We learn that Gatsby had a humble beginning and worked his way up to his current social status. While Nick disapproves of Gatsby’s dishonesty and extravagance, he says that he “turned out alright in the end” (Fitzgerald 4). Gatsby was willing to do whatever it took to transform his dreams into reality, to be worthy enough for Daisy, even dabbling in illegal activity to make his fortune. While Nick seems to admire his passion and determination, this is not the “American Dream.” Although Gatsby was indeed a self-made man, he, too, had a skewed idea of what the “American Dream” was truly about. Gatsby’s life reeked of self-indulgence and his actions were far from pure and virtuous, which are the main principle of this “Dream”. Gatsby, along with Tom and Daisy, represent the Americans corrupted by wealth, prosperity and success. It is because of their mindset, that the “American Dream” was tarnished in the first
...e emotional cure. The physical cure, will be his slow death, in his pool, the one that hurt, after you are stabbed or shot. The one that last memories come to your mind, memories that make your eyes close and rest peacefully forever. Gatsby's last memories were Daisy's, I'm sure of it.
Tom and Daisy Buchanan, the rich couple, seem to have everything they could possibly want. Though their lives are full of anything you could imagine, they are unhappy and seek to change, Tom drifts on "forever seeking a little wistfully for the dramatic turbulence of some irrecoverable football game"(pg. 10) and reads "deep books with long words in them"(pg. 17) just so he has something to talk about. Even though Tom is married to Daisy he has an affair with Myrtle Wilson and has apartment with her in New York.. Daisy is an empty character, someone with hardly any convictions or desires. Even before her relationships with Tom or, Gatsby are seen, Daisy does nothing but sit around all day and wonder what to do with herself and her friend Jordan. She knows that Tom is having an affair, yet she doesn't leave him even when she hears about Gatsby loving her. Daisy lets Gatsby know that she too is in love with him but cant bring herself to tell Tom goodbye except when Gatsby forces her too. Even then, once Tom begs her to stay, even then Daisy forever leaves Gatsby for her old life of comfort. Daisy and Tom are perfect examples of wealth and prosperity, and the American Dream. Yet their lives are empty, and without purpose.
“Not good enough” is the thought that comes to my mother’s head every time she lays her eyes on me. “Not good enough” is the phrase that will follow me for the rest of my life. Coming out was one of the hardest experiences I have ever had. I remember the day I came out to myself. I was on my way to work, driving with an Ed Sheeran song playing. I was having a conversation with myself and God. Every Sunday I went to church I would pray to be “normal”. I sat in church every Sunday morning begging God to make me normal, but clearly that did not work. Eventually, I realized that this is the life God wanted me to have and I must be okay with it. As I was driving I just started to break down, not because I finally realized I was gay but because I felt free. I was no longer being dragged down by this burden and for the first time in a long time I sensed what freedom was. As I started to tell my closest friends, to my surprise, all I received from them was love and support which made my journey easier. I felt like I was on top of the world will all the love I was receiving from my closest friend, however that would soon come to an
The American Dream is not something easily achieved, and according to Fitzgerald it is literally unattainable. There is always some obstacle or barrier in the way of success. Tom Buchanan in The Great Gatsby is not a very satisfied man; he seems to have a sense of ennui when it comes to his marriage and his life. So he lives the life he really wants part time with his mistress, Myrtle Wilson. However, this semi-fulfillment of his dreams is stopped, and what stops it is the fact that Myrtle is married, and her husband, George, has “discovered that Myrtle [has] some sort of life apart from him in another world” (The Great Gatsby 130). Tom is reaching for his own idea of success with Myrtle, but he cannot reach it due to her being married. What keeps one from attaining their dreams is not necessarily something as physical as a marriage; it can be someone’s attitude, like that of Judy Jones in Fitzgerald’s “Winter Dreams”. The young protagonist in this story, Dexter Green, is in love with the flighty flirt Judy Jones. His dream is to be with her; unfortunately, “She [is] entertained only by the gratification of her own ...
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby is a tragic tale of love distorted by obsession. Finding himself in the city of New York, Jay Gatsby is a loyal and devoted man who is willing to cross oceans and build mansions for his one true love. His belief in realistic ideals and his perseverance greatly influence all the decisions he makes and ultimately direct the course of his life. Gatsby has made a total commitment to a dream, and he does not realize that his dream is hollow. Although his intentions are true, he sometimes has a crude way of getting his point across. When he makes his ideals heard, his actions are wasted on a thoughtless and shallow society. Jay Gatsby effectively embodies a romantic idealism that is sustained and destroyed by the intensity of his own dream. It is also Gatsby’s ideals that blind him to reality.
Myrtle is, as Daisy, impressed with Tom's wealth and appearance, but, like Jay Gatsby, is stuck in a fantastic, idealized perception of her object of affection. Even when abused and trampled over by Tom, Myrtle continues to adore him, just as Gatsby continues to dote upon Daisy after being obviously rejected by her. As far as ethical considerations, Gatsby tends to prove himself a sincere and caring person, while Daisy and Tom just destroy the lives of two people and then leave town to escape the consequences of their actions.
“Moshe Dayan was an Israeli military warrior who became a crusader for peace. He was skilled in both battle and diplomacy. He played a key role in four wars, but also helped negotiate the historic Israeli-Egyptian peace treaty.”
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