The Great Gatsby

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Recommended: Social classes in the Great Gatsby

In The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald reflects the American society in the 1920’s and the different social groups that coexisted. The Great Gatsby portrays the failure of the American Dream, where corruption, illegal trading, superficial relationships, and social classes take the main roles. The author demonstrates how the American dream has become a pursuit of wealth and materialism through the exploration of the upper class. In addition, the author uses characterization to reflect the upper class in the 1920’s as two separate groups: the “old” money, and the “new money”. These are shown through the main characters in the novel, such as Gatsby and Tom Buchanan. Fitzgerald shows clearly the “old money” through the main characters of the novel: Tom Buchanan and Daisy. These characters have inherited their money from their families, and as a result they don’t work. They rarely talk about family matters, and when consequences arise in life they run away. In addition, the relationship Tom Buchanan and Daisy have, portrays again, the “new money” and the values they hold. Both characters cheat on each other demonstrating a lack of satisfaction in their lives, and in general, showing their selfishness. Moreover, these characters never stop and think about their actions or worry about hurting other people, as it is clearly shown with the relationship Daisy has with Gatsby. When Gatsby dies, Daisy doesn’t even bother to send one single flower. Tom and Daisy are both weak individuals, who don’t know what work is, who don’t value many things, are judgmental, and overall, empty. Nick realizes this at the end of the novel where he states “they were careless people –Tom and Daisy- they smashed up things and creatures and then retreated back into the... ... middle of paper ... ...r races will have control of things” 7, showing how he considers himself superior to others. Through these two representations of the upper class in the “roaring twenties” Fitzgerald criticizes the values society has built upon, which is mainly materialism. Fitzgerald purposely creates two distinct classes to present his ideals, and most importantly, to capture the essence of the society we live in. In addition, by exploring this class, the readers can easily understand how the value systems have gone out of balance, and how in general, people’s lives are out of control. The message the readers seem to receive is that even if an individual attempts to advance through the social class ladder, he would “borne back ceaselessly into the past” 8, overstepping the boundaries. Works Cited Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby. London: Wordworth Editions, 2001. Print.

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