The Great Gatsby Materialism

No matter the time nor place, the concept of the American Dream has become an indisputable constant in the lives of all Americans. The pursuit of this idealized lifestyle spans both decades and locations and has permeated all aspects of society. It has extended from the personal inquiry and permeated diametric factions such as politics and art. Throughout F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, the illustration of the widespread saturation of these ideals in 1920s America occurs in every character. Fitzgerald contrasts the parties thrown by the Buchanans, Gatsby, and Myrtle Wilson with their damaged personal lives as a device to highlight the insubstantial and inherently corrupt nature of the American Dream. The Buchanans appear

Each party thrown reflects this internal emptiness he feels because of his few legitimate relationships with others. Most attendees consume that which he has to give without pausing to consider the man behind the providing hand. During one of his parties, Nick and Jordan accidentally wander into Gatsby’s library only to encounter a peculiar partygoer. Concerning the books on the shelves, he exclaims, “Absolutely real– have pages and everything. I thought they’d be a nice durable cardboard,” (45). This revelation mimics the public’s perception of Gatsby: superficially ornate yet hollow inside. This assumed emptiness allows for people to simultaneously project their judgments and dreams upon Gatsby which essentially morphs him into more of an idea than a man. Just as the books were seen as a fabrication of cardboard, Gatsby lacked a similar substance, which Nick noted, “He had little to say. So my first impression, that he was a person of some undefined consequence, had gradually faded,” (64). The illustrious Gatsby, the man who lives the American Dream, could not attain fulfillment because of a restlessness with his

From her affair with a married man and the attempts to raise herself up to another societal level, she exemplifies the ageless middle class struggle of trying to elevate oneself from a current status. Myrtle’s desires to surpass her daily life manifests itself in the drastic transformation which occurs once she arrives in New York with Tom and Nick, “With the influence of the dress her personality had also undergone a change. The intense vitality that had been so remarkable in the garage was converted into impressive hauteur,” (30). Myrtle assumes an air of sophistication as a way to gain respect and an appearance of an affluent member of society. In her pursuit of the American Dream, she must denounce her former life, “I married him because I thought he was a gentleman… he wasn’t fit to lick my shoe,” (34). Myrtle ignores the work her husband does so that, in their own way, they might achieve the American Dream. Nevertheless, Myrtle’s materialism and hunger for conspicuous success shatter the foundation of her relationship with her husband.

Looking beyond the glamour of the 1920s, Fitzgerald is able to impress upon the audience the futility and deep seated decay within the American Dream through both the parties and personal lives of the Buchanans, Gatsby, and Myrtle Wilson. Every character in this novel must climb some sort