F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby is a platform for the hidden reality of America in the 1920s. The 1920’s were a time of extravagant changes, due to America’s eagerness to return to how it once was. As the decade progressed, the economy boomed and America launched the age of consumerism, as millions flock to the cities seeking stock market fortunes. There is no longer a vision of building a life and falling in love, it’s all about becoming rich. The major cities grew rapidly with the building of skyscrapers, showing off the advancements of American society. Countless American’s wanted to enjoy themselves as much as they possibly could by participating in extravagant parties and drinking excessively. The Great Gatsby explores many …show more content…
The Great Gatsby displays social status as a theme to distinguish settings and to portray the mentalities of people belonging to different social classes. The characters are distinguished by their wealth and where they live. Throughout the 1920s and onwards, class was essentially separated into three categories; old money, new money and no money. ‘Old money’ families have fortunes dating back for centuries. Over time they have built up promising and worthwhile social connections. They are often ‘two-faced’, in that they hide their superiority and fortune behind civility. ‘Old money’ lives in East Egg, a place for the elite and those who are inherently wealthy. Then there is ‘new money’. To fit into the class of ‘new money’ their fortune needs to have been made during the 1920s boom, therefore they have no superior social connections. ‘New money’ lives in West Egg. West is commonly associated with the Wild West, which in turn is relevant to the wild behaviour the West Egg residents display with their excessive drinking and uncontrollable parties. Evidently, they tend to overcompensate for the lack of social superiority with extravagant displays of wealth. Typically, the ‘no money’ class get forgotten, due to their lack of significance and ‘importance to the wealth’. They inhabit ‘The Valley of Ashes’ and are often seen as “the victims of the …show more content…
Throughout society, people are judged equally on their material wealth, occupations/aspirations, manners/behaviours, race/ethnicity, religion and education levels. It is a requirement that every individual must overcome these filters in order to make it to the American Dream. These judgements additionally create the great divide between social classes. Despite the social segregation no one has much free will, everyone is trapped by social expectations and implications. The Great Gatsby displays the hollowness of the upper class. The fact that both Gatsby and Wilsons aim to improve their positions in society, only to end up dead, suggests the hollowness and difficulty to achieve the American dream and an even higher social standing. Fitzgerald creates four categories that people fall into “there are only the pursued, the pursuing, the busy, and the tired.” This is to emphasise the displeasing and hollow lives of the wealthy. Fitzgerald’s use of “pursuing” and “tired” implies an empty, continuous pursuit which is portrayed through Tom, who appears dissatisfied despite his beautiful and well-off wife. As an outcome of his discontentment, Tom pursues Myrtle as a temporary target of fondness. The use of “busy” insinuates the bareness of the lives of the wealthy. They travel from place to place, attending social events. These categories
In ‘The Great Gatsby’ Fitzgerald criticises the increase of consumerism in the 1920s and the abandonment of the original American Dream , highlighting that the increased focus on wealth and the social class associated with it has negative effects on relationships and the poorest sections of society. The concept of wealth being used as a measure of success and worth is also explored by Plath in ‘The Bell Jar’. Similarly, she draws attention to the superficial nature of this material American Dream which has extended into the 1960s, but highlights that gender determines people’s worth in society as well as class. Fitzgerald uses setting to criticise society’s loss of morality and the growth of consumerism after the Great War. The rise of the stock market in the 1920s enabled business to prosper in America.
Since its publication in 1925, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald has indisputably been one of the most influential and insightful pieces on the corruption and idealism of the American Dream. The American Dream, defined as ‘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 where upward mobility is possible for everyone,’ was a dominant ideal in American society, stemming from an opportunist pioneer mentality. In his book ‘The American Tradition in Literature’, Bradley Sculley praised The Great Gatsby for being ‘perhaps the most striking fictional analysis of the age of gang barons and the social conditions that produced them.’ Over the years, greed and selfishness changed the basic essence of the American Dream, forming firmly integrated social classes and the uncontainable thirst for money and status. The ‘Roaring Twenties’ was a time of ‘sustained increase in national wealth’ , which consequently led to an increase in materialism and a decrease in morality. Moreover, the
The American dream is a farce. Hopeful American children and quixotic foreigners believe that freedom will lead to prosperity, and that prosperity will bring happiness. This anticipation of joy will never come to fruition, and all these unfortunate people will feel that they were cheated out of happiness by some unlucky roll of dice, but really they have been chasing cars, because the American dream is not something one can truly capture, but only smoke trapped in the palm of a hand. In The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby’s lavish parties, characterized by music, dancing, and illegal alcohol, are a representation of the corruption of society’s values, and are filled with guests only concerned with material things as they step further and further away from the moral values that once dictated the lives of those before them. Author F. Scott Fitzgerald uses Gatsby’s parties to illustrate the “roaring” twenties as a time of gluttonous people who have abandoned moral values like wrecked ships in a storm of trivial desires as they chase the happiness that the American dream promises.
In “The Great Gatsby” by F. Scott Fitzgerald, social classes are tremendously influential to morality. The rich are divided up into groups that live in opposite “eggs” of Long Island, New York City. The West Egg is described as being the land of “New Money” and the East Egg is characterized as being the land of “Old Money”. Right in between both of these “Egg’s” lies an infamous area of dismay and hardship called “The Valley of Ashes” where almost peasant appearing individuals reside. These working class individuals are portrayed throughout the book as being hardworking and morally belittled by the upper class as if those that aren’t rich aren’t worthy of even being in the presence of those that are.
Throughout the novel The Great Gatsby, there is a constant theme present: social class. Fitzgerald makes a connection between the theme of social class, and the settings in the novel for example The Valley of Ashes which is described as a “desolate area of land” (p.21) and a “solemn dumping ground” (p.21) which is where the poor people live. The Valley of Ashes is situated between West Egg and New York, West Egg being the place where the aspiring classes are situated, which is the “less fashionable of the two” (p.8), this is where Gatsby lives. West Egg is the place of ‘new money’, Fitzgerald shows this by the idea of the main character Jay Gatsby, rumoured to be selling illegal alcohol (prohibition) which means he is quickly making vast amounts of money.” Who is this Gatsby anyhow? Some big bootlegger?”(p.86) Gatsby shows off the amount of wealth he has by his fabulous parties and oversized mansion. “There was music from my neighbour's house through those summer nights. In his enchanted gardens, men and girls came and went like moths, among the whispering and the champagne and the stars.”(p.33) Fitzgerald uses the word ‘enchanted’ to paint a visual picture of what the house and the scene looks like, a magical and enchanted castle, with elegant furniture. This is in comparison to East Egg where Tom and Daisy Buchanan live, in a house where “The windows were ajar and gleaming white against the fresh grass outside” (p.10). East Egg being the place of ‘old money’ which is made from the inheritance of their past generations, the people who live it East Egg are mainly well educated, historically wealthy and live quite elegantly, but they are also quite ‘snobbish’. Gatsby’s background does not fit into the social standards of East Egg...
During Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, it is apparent to be an absurd time for the wealthy. The shallowness of money, riches, and a place in a higher social class were probably the most important components in most lives at that period of time. This is expressed clearly by Fitzgerald, especially through his characters, which include Myrtle Wilson, Tom and Daisy Buchanan, and of course, Jay Gatsby. This novel was obviously written to criticize and condemn the ethics of the rich.
“The Great Gatsby”, by F. Scott Fitzgerald depicts the vast social difference between the old aristocrats, the new self-made rich and the poor. He vividly interprets the social stratification during the roaring twenties as each group has their own problems to deal with. Old Money, who have fortunes dating from the 19th century, have built up powerful and influential social connections, and tend to hide their wealth and superiority behind a veneer of civility. The New Money made their fortunes in the 1920s boom and therefore have no social connections and tend to overcompensate for this lack with lavish displays of wealth. As usual, the No Money gets overlooked by the struggle at the top, leaving them forgotten or ignored. Such is exemplified by Jay Gatsby, Myrtle Wilson and Tom Buchanan. Their ambitions distinctly represent their class in which Fitzgerald implies strongly about.
When America exploded into the modern age post-World War I, it did so with tumultuous change in every aspect of society. An economic boom guaranteed rapid industrialization, increasing the standard of living and providing many Americans with leisure time to waste. Subsequently, America became a highly materialistic country, hiding its growing political and social unrest under a dizzying facade of wealth and escapism. This serves as the backdrop for F. Scott Fitzgerald's Modernist novel, The Great Gatsby, where he uses characterization, reoccurring motifs, and cultural symbolism to critique the superficiality of a society full of misplaced values and people wrought with a desire to find purpose.
Money, social classes and geography have a prominent role in society. Fitzgerald uses the settings: The East Egg, The West Egg, The Valley of Ashes, and Manhattan to demonstrate the prominence of money and social status in the American culture in The Great Gatsby. Fitzgerald uses East Egg to represent high social status and old money. People in East Egg, such as Daisy and Tom, have a sense of entitlement because they were born into money. This sense of entitlement is demonstrated by complete disregard of people with lower social status like Myrtle and George.
In the 1920s, America underwent a period of economic prosperity and growth often referred to as the Roaring Twenties. In this era, the country saw a boom in technological advancements, culture, and modernization, illustrating a common feeling of happiness and progress. In reality, however, corruption and greed hide within the prospering cities, and the supposed American Dream becomes corrupted in empty pursuit of money and wealth. In F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, Gatsby, a man who throws extravagant parties in his attempts to win over his past lover, is caught up in corruption and his past. Because of his social standing and his illicit ties with bootlegging, he ultimately becomes unable to pursue his love, Daisy, as she pursues a member of the old rich rather than he.
The novel, The Great Gatsby is one of Western literature’s most well known fictional masterpieces. Taking place in the roaring twenties, The Great Gatsby highlights the sustained economic prosperity and artistic dynamism that was characteristic of the era. The economic boom of the 1920s also allowed for people, like the character Jay Gatsby, to rise up the socioeconomic ladder and easily integrate themselves into a more opulent society. Fitzgerald puts a spotlight on the consumerism that swept the United States by stressing detail when describing Gatsby's parties. Although many of those who lived in East Egg and West Egg flaunted their wealth, Fitzgerald shows us the imperfections to this way of life.
In conclusion, The Great Gatsby reveals the carelessness and shallowness of the characters in the upper class. Society is totally corrupted and the character’s lives revolve around the money and extravagant lifestyles. All of the characters are surrounded with expensive and unnecessary itms, which in turn, dulls their dream of actual success. Scott F. Fitzgerald provides a powerful and everlasting message of a corrupt, materialistic society and the effects that it has on the idea of the American dream.
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby is a sparkling time capsule of the attitudes and lifestyles of Nineteen Twenties America. Though the nineteen twenties are a decade well known for it’s lavish lifestyles and exuberant drinking parties, this was all just a coping mechanism to deal with the newfound horrors of war. An overwhelming disillusionment and unremorseful high class debauchery reigned supreme on the east coast, however, it was not only the rich who were affected by the brutal, bleak truth of war.
The Roaring Twenties is considered a time of mass corruption and excessive absurdity. F. Scott Fitzgerald uses his novel, The Great Gatsby, to criticize the American society and its values in this era. This criticism is best shown in the behaviour of the people who go to Gatsby's parties; they are careless, rude and only looking out for themselves. It is also shown in the corruption of the police, who are easily paid to look the other way. It is finally apparent in the corruption of friendship and love, the truth being that there is none. This society and its values are self-centered and materialistic, caring very little for consequences and others. Fitzgerald's message is delivered magnificently and causes one to be appalled by the behaviour of the people during this time in history.
In the novel The Great Gatsby, the 1920’s was a “throwaway culture, in which things (and people) are used and then abandoned” (Evans). This is true of the lives of the wealthy elite who ruled the East and West Eggs, causing the domination of materialistic thought. The substitution of money for integrity ultimately provided a way for corruption to take deep roots in the characters. The frivolous lives and relationships described by F. Scott Fitzgerald in The Great Gatsby depict the emptiness of the shallow 1920’s era.