In the character of Gatsby. Fitzgerald holds the idea of the american dream up to ridicule. with reference to appropriately sele - Essay Example

Download file to see previous pages... He based his life on the ever thoughts of money; how much he earned and how much possessions he made. He thought that money brings with it many other advantages. The only purpose behind his lust for wealth was to win back his lost old love. Why he pursued money was because his love had left him for money. Daisy, his love considered him unworthy in the past because he was a lower class person. He was sure that if he remained poor, she was never to allow him to make a reunion. He was poor and thought all the days and nights about Daisy that she was waiting for him to come and take her. He thought that Daisy “was tired of waiting around for me” (Fitzgerald, p131). Gatsby believed he could win her provided he reaches for what most of the people considered as “American Dream”. Money was his ideal. He had complete faith in wealth. His worthless life existed on the foundations of falsehood. Gatsby ridiculed the “American Dream”. He was able to get to his desire and aspiration when he became a wealth man. He employed in a number of jobs the whole of his life and this was but to show to Daisy what he could give her. He wants to win back his love by making yet another entry to Daisy’s life. When he meets her, he reminds her the past and assures her that he did not forget her. Her sweet memories always accompanied him. He reveals before the already married Daisy that he still loved her: “Look at this”, said Gatsby quickly. “Here’s a lot of clippings about you” (Fitzgerald, p93). Gatsby was the perfect personification of “American Dream” held up to ridicule. Wealth determined all his actions and he always thought with the mindset of a businessman, more suitable, a shopkeeper. He believed in wealth to the extent that he was sure he could bring his past back. He had a firm trust in his money to the extents that he thought Daisy would happily leave her husband in the pursuit of money he had. He was not influenced by the general perception that people change with respect to the passage of time. He once stressed his view when said rhetorically: “Can’t repeat the past. Why of course you can!” (Fitzgerald, p111). When he loses his love to a wealthy man, he decided at once to get to the status of the richest man of the world. Poor by birth, he gathers around him vast amounts of wealth and high social status. He ridicules the “American Dream” by desiring to become the wealthiest man of the world and ultimately the ruler of the whole world. He wants to be God. Nick speaks of him as an extravagant and flamboyant person. Gatsby is no doubt the real symbol of ridiculous excess and waste of Rich American Socialites. He believes that his royal mansion can be the key of his success. His “American Dream” turning into ridicule has been described by Nick when he refers to his mansion: “The one on my right was a colossal affair by any standard-it was a factual imitation of some hotel de Ville in Normandy, with a tower on one side, spanking new under a thin beard of raw ivy, and a marble swimming pool, and more than a forty acres of lawn and garden” (Fitzgerald, p5). When Mayor Wolfsheim had seen the opportunity to achieve the “American Dream” by making enormous money at once after having fixed the World Series, Gatsby ensures his “American Dream” by appreciating Wolfsheim’ ...Download file to see next pagesRead More