By definition utopia is the perfect society, and the society we live in has many existing imperfections. Imperfections that may not change overnight but imperfections that can be recognized through literature. Literature can bring a sense of realizations in our life and although we may not being able to directly relate to the plots and experiences the character goes through, we are still able to put ourselves in their shoes when we read. We can bring the character’s viewpoint, culture, or knowledge into today’s society. Writers are able to convey personal messages through their own pieces of literature and address readers about issues. In Margaret Atwood’s essay, she speaks about how authors hold such power in provoking and changing readers …show more content…
Scott Fitzgerald was one of the first novels I read that helped me realize how much of an impact literature has on individuals, as well as the imperfections of society. I read the book several times before I was able to fully grasp the deeper meaning. Explicitly, the author’s message was to convey the importance of having high hopes and big dreams, which at first I found inspiring because the main character Jay Gatsby, is living the American Dream - something many people aspire to live for. After reading the book a couple of more times, and paying more attention to the symbols, I realized that a major theme in the book is selfishness. At first I found Gatsby’s character encouraging, but I did not realize that his actions was exclusively advantageous to himself and he completely disregard the feelings of others. Only reading the novel once, I was embedded with the idea of having high hopes and big dream which caused me to find Gatsby’s character inspiring. The symbols in literature helped gain a better realization that if I were in his position, his actions and mine would not have many differences.
In the book, Little Bee by Chris Cleave, readers were able to read about one story from the perspective of two different people. The author’s purpose to write the book in two different perspectives is so the readers can sympathize with the characters. “Sad words are just another beauty. A sad story means this storyteller is alive” (Cleave 9). This quote was said by the
The character of Gatsby and Fitzgerald’s commentary on the logical fallacies of the American Dream are closely intertwined, which is why Fitzgerald goes to such great lengths to separate the two. By distinguishing Gatsby from the flaws he possesses allows the reader to care for Gatsby, and the impact of his death all the more powerful when it finally occurs. By making Gatsby a victim of the American Dream rather than just the embodiment of it, Fitzgerald is able to convince his audience of the iniquity of the American Dream by making them mourn the life of the poor son-of-a-bitch
In F. Scott Fitzgerald's novel The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby’s conflicts between passion and responsibility demonstrate that chasing empty dreams can only lead to suffering. Gatsby’s motivation to achieve his dream of prosperity is interrupted when his fantasy becomes motivated by love. His eternal struggle for something more mirrors cultural views that more is always better. By ultimately suffering an immense tragedy, Jay Gatsby transforms into a romantic and tragic hero paying the capital price for his actions. Gatsby envokes a deeper Conclusion sentence
Throughout F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald uses an ensemble of characters to portray different aspects of the 1920s. The characters’ occupations and lifestyles represent the corruption, carefreeness, and prosperity of the Roaring Twenties. Perhaps most striking of this ensemble is the pompous bigot Tom Buchanan and the novel’s namesake Jay Gatsby. Set in the fictional towns of West Egg and East Egg on Long Island, New York, in the summer of 1922, the novel revolves around the protagonist Nick Carraway when he moves to West Egg. Upon arriving, he reconnects with his cousin Daisy Buchanan, and her husband Tom. He also encounters his mysterious neighbor Jay Gatsby, and eventually learns that Gatsby is an admirer of Daisy who tries at all costs to win over from her husband. Both of Daisy’s love interests are dimensional characters whose personalities are seemingly opposite; while Tom and Gatsby are contrastive, Daisy is one of the few common interests of the two men.
For most people, a certain colour may represent something meaningful to them. While in the Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, many of the colours used in the novel are meant to represent something. The novel’s setting is in East and West Egg, two places in New York. Our narrator, Nick Carraway, lives in the West Egg. Along with living in West Egg is a friend of Nick’s, Jay Gatsby; a character that is in love with Daisy Buchanan. Unfortunately, Daisy is married to Tom. As the plot unravels, the reader notices the connection between certain colours and their importance to the novel. The use of colours within The Great Gatsby symbolizes actual themes, as grey symbolizes corruption, blue symbolizes reality, and green symbolizes jealousy and envy.
“Absence and lack of communication makes the heart idealize a person and subconsciously twist one’s perception of them into something greater than they really are.” (Peint, 2014). Some would argue that the highly acclaimed, widely known American novel The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is a tragic love story revolving around an idealistic, predominantly white high-class society and its “burdensome” dilemmas. Others would argue the novel to be a satirical composition on the lives of the 1% population basking in luxury, their only complication being the pursuit of love and true happiness. Personally I, having read, analyzed, and discussed the text in depth and seeking out my own opinion on the subject matter, have come to categorize The Great Gatsby as another version of the American dream and the pursuit of happiness. What I believe makes the
Benjamin Franklin once said “Money has never made man happy, nor will it. There is nothing in its nature to produce happiness." This is arguably one of the most cliché quotes of all time. If money cannot provide happiness, then what exactly can it do? The characters of Jay Gatsby and Tom Buchanan open a door to a world in which money was the sole motivation for their success and the only reason for their power. When the reader uses a Marxist critical lens during chapter four of F. Scott 's Fitzgerald 's The Great Gatsby, the social hierarchy reveals how Jay Gatsby and Tom Buchanan utilize the importance of money and social power to manipulate others in their lives.
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.
F. Scott Fitzgerald the author of "The Great Gatsby" reveals many principles about today's society and the "American dream." One of the biggest fears in today's world is the fear of not fitting into society. People of all age groups and backgrounds share this fear. Many individuals believe that to receive somebody's affection, they must assimilate into that person's society. In the story, Jay Gatsby pursues the American dream and his passions to be happy to only come to a tragedy and total loss. The author illustrates through the characters that the search of wealth, love, or fame or going after the past ideals may not lead to true happiness.
In the 1925 novel, The Great Gatsby, F. Scott Fitzgerald portrays the nature of man, and that, though characters may live complete opposite lives and be from different upbringings, even the most contrasting of people can have similarities. In the novel, the readers are introduced to two characters named Tom Buchanan and George Wilson. Tom Buchanan is introduced as an arrogant, wealthy east egg man who has never had to work for his money. George Wilson is introduced as a poor man, living in the Valley of Ashes, who owns an auto shop as a living. Although these men are in different social classes, if you were to strip these men of their wealth, they would have more similarities than differences. Fitzgerald shows through his writing that the nature of man is aggressive, contentious, and cowardly.
On one level The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald comments on the careless gaiety and moral decadence of the period in which it was set. It contains innumerable references to the contemporary scene. The wild extravagance of Gatsby's parties, the shallowness and aimlessness of the guests and the hint of Gatsby's involvement in crime all identify the period and the American setting. But as a piece of social commentary The Great Gatsby also describes the failure of the American dream, from the point of view that American political ideals conflict with the actual social conditions that exist. For whereas American democracy is based on the idea of equality among people, the truth is that social discrimination still exists and the divisions among the classes cannot be overcome. Myrtle's attempt to break into the group to which the Buchanans belong is doomed to fail. Taking advantage of her vivacity, her lively nature, she seeks to escape from her own class. She enters into an affair with Tom and takes on his way of living. But she only becomes vulgar and corrupt like the rich. She scorns people from her own class and loses all sense of morality. And for all her social ambition, Myrtle never succeeds in her attempt to find a place for herself in Tom's class. When it comes to a crisis, the rich stand together against all outsiders.
The picture is trying to prove F. Scott Fitzgerald discontent for the moral decay that occurred in the 1920s by the face with the appearance of wealth, the colorful, inviting, and bright city, and the variety of colors used throughout the picture.
Last but not least, O’Connor confirms that even a short story is a multi-layer compound that on the surface may deter even the most enthusiastic reader, but when handled with more care, it conveys universal truths by means of straightforward or violent situations. She herself wished her message to appeal to the readers who, if careful enough, “(…)will come to see it as something more than an account of a family murdered on the way to Florida.”
The 1920’s were a time of social and technological change. After World War II, the Victorian values were disregarded, there was an increase in alcohol consumption, and the Modernist Era was brought about. The Great Gatsby, written by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is a perfect presentation of the decaying morals of the Roaring Twenties. Fitzgerald uses the characters in the novel--specifically the Buchanans, Jordan Baker, and Gatsby’s partygoers--to represent the theme of the moral decay of society.
The Great Gatsby “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.
In The Great Gatsby written by F. Scott Fitzgerald money, power, and the fulfillment of dreams is what the story’s about. On the surface the story is about love but underneath it is about the decay of society’s morals and how the American dream is a fantasy, only money and power matter. Money, power, and dreams relate to each other by way of three of the characters in the book, Gatsby, Daisy, and Tom. Gatsby is the dreamer, Daisy cares about money, and Tom desires and needs power. People who have no money dream of money. People who have money want to be powerful. People who have power have money to back them up. Fitzgerald writes this book with disgust towards the collapse of the American society. Also the purposeless existences that many people lived, when they should have been fulfilling their potential. American people lacked all important factors to make life worthwhile.