The 1920s was a decade when a lot of crime was taking place in America. Many people felt the need to get involved in organized crime because of restrictions going on at the time, like prohibition. People usually committed crimes in order to achieve a goal for themselves. There were many cases of specific people and even characters who were famous for their involvement in organized crime during the 1920s. One of these characters was Jay Gatsby from The Great Gatsby. The author, F. Scott Fitzgerald, may have even based this character after one of the most well-known organized criminals of the time. Jay Gatsby becomes involved in crime to try and win over the love of his life, who he had left five years back. In The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald portrays the negative aspects of the 1920s, specifically organized crime, to prove that Jay Gatsby’s dream was not even possible because he sought it through immoral means.
Some people felt the need to become involved in organized crime because of the laws that were being put into play at this time. According to Bob Batchelor in Gatsby: The Cultural History of the Great American Novel, the Eighteenth Amendment was passed in January 1919. This law made it illegal to manufacture, transport, import, or sell alcohol in the United States. Also known as Prohibition, this caused many people to become involved in organized crimes. Batchelor goes on to say that the people involved in these crimes like making or selling alcohol were called bootleggers, Jay Gatsby being an example of one (Batchelor 157). Just because there was a law against alcohol, it did not stop people from drinking it.
Despite the amendment that tried to ban alcohol in the United States, people still found ways...
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...m again. The reader comes to find out that his American dream is not possible because he never realized the difference between his and Daisy’s money. Daisy has moved on and does not want to be involved with someone who has earned their money illegally. Hard work pays off, and one can achieve their goals if done in the right way, as in the case of Nick Carraway.
Works Cited
Batchelor, Bob. Gatsby: The Cultural History of the Great American Novel. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2014. Print.
Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby. New York: Collier Books, 1991. Print.
Lehan, Richard. The Great Gatsby: Limits of Wonder. Boston: Twane Publishers, 1990. Print.
Pauly, Thomas H. Readings on The Great Gatsby. San Diego: Greenhaven Press, Inc., 1998. Print.
Wyly, Michael J. Understanding The Great Gatsby. San Diego: Lucent Books, Inc., 2002. Print.
Sandbrook is incorrect to remark that from the moment the Volstead Act came into effect, America’s National gangsters saw it as a business opportunity. This is because the early years of Prohibition were years where enforcement was particularly strict, which made the distribution of alcohol very risky. Yet regardless, by far criminals who had the most to gain were gangsters such as Al Capone, who made $100 million a year from speakeasies and casinos alone. Violence played a large role in organised crimes during the years of Prohibition, with an increase in burglary, theft and battery assaults by a total of 22%. There were also wars between gangsters over each other’s territory, and the most famous act of violence during the years of Prohibition came from Capone’s army of 700 gangsters, who committed over 300 murders in Chicago. Willoughby points out that although organised crime existed in the years before and after Prohibition, it was “albeit on a smaller scale.” This is convincing as the affluence that the twenties created, along with demands for alcohol provided alternative opportunities for organised crime. Arguably, Clements acknowledges that even after the repeal of Prohibition, the wealth that corrupted illegal organisations accumulated made them turn to other areas where they could make a vast amount of profit, such as prostitution, gambling and drugs. Certainly,
New Essays on The Great Gatsby. Ed. Matthew J. Bruccoli.
Fitzgerald, F. Scott, and Matthew J. Bruccoli. The Great Gatsby. New York, NY: Scribner, 1996. Print.
Batchelor, Bob. Gatsby: The Cultural History of the Great American Novel. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2014. Print.
F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby is an absurd story, whether considered as romance, melodrama, or plain record of New York high life. The occasional insights into character stand out as very green oases on an arid desert of waste paper. Throughout the first half of the book the author shadows his leading character in mystery, but when in the latter part he unfolds his life story it is difficult to find the brains, the cleverness, and the glamour that one might expect of a main character.
Most of the organized crime related activities began due to the addition of the eighteenth amendment, which was the ban of alcohol. The amendment started in the beginning of nineteen twenty making the manufacturing and distribution of alcohol illegal, . aAll in hopes of stopping violence and have no more drunks. What they didn’t know is that it would do the exact opposite … and then some. The economic world was plumeting, and people were loosing their jobs. Many people saw this as another opportunity to start more crime. With theo
SparkNotes Editors. “SparkNote on The Great Gatsby.” SparkNotes.com. SparkNotes LLC. 2002. Web. 9 Apr. 2014.
Fitzgerald, F. Scott, and Matthew J. Bruccoli. The Great Gatsby. New York, NY: Scribner, 1996. Print
Prohibition in the United States was a measure designed to reduce drinking by eliminating the businesses that manufactured, distributed, and sold alcoholic beverages. The Eighteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution took away license to do business from the brewers, distillers, vintners, and the wholesale and retail sellers of alcoholic beverages. The leaders of the prohibition movement were alarmed at the drinking behavior of Americans, and they were concerned that there was a culture of drink among some sectors of the population that, with continuing immigration from Europe, was spreading (“Why Prohibition” 2). Between 1860 and 1880 America's urban population grew from 6 million to more than 14 million people. The mass of this huge increase found itself toiling in factories and sweatshops and living in horrible social conditions; getting drunk was there only highlight in life.
Trilling, Lionel. "F. Scott Fitzgerald." Critical Essays on Scott Fitzgerald's "Great Gatsby." Ed. Scott Donaldson. Boston: Hall, 1984. 13-20.
Although after reading “The great Gatsby” one may get a feeling of hopelessness, it one of those novels that leaves you inspired even long after reading it. It’s a masterpiece not only because of the thrillingly brilliant plot or memorable characters but also because of the life lessons that it teacher to the reader. It is not just a typical ...
Hermanson, Casie E. "An overview of The Great Gatsby." Literature Resource Center. Detroit: Gale, 2011. Literature Resource Center. Web. 24 Feb. 2011.
There are many ways in which prohibition of alcohol consumption in the United States of
The 1920’s was a time of prosperity, woman’s rights, and bootleggers. F. Scott Fitzgerald truly depicts the reality of this era with The Great Gatsby. Jay Gatsby, an enormously wealthy man, is famous for his extravagant parties and striking residence. However, this is all that is known about Gatsby. Even his closest friends continue to wonder what kind of man Gatsby actually is. The mysteriousness of Gatsby is demonstrated by conceivable gossip, his random departures, and the missing parts of his past.
Hickey, Angela D. "Critical Examination: The Great Gatsby." Rpt. in Masterplots: Revised Second Edition. Vol. 5, Frank Magill, ed. California and New Jersey: Salem Press, 1996. 2651-2