​Dariana Zuzuarregui

Per.2
4/24/18
The Great Gatsby

F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel, ​The Great Gatsby ​(1925), ​asserts the meaning of
wealth, luxury, and corruption in the era of the 1920’s.​ Fitzgerald backs this claim by
pointing out the high class ,that are corrupt and have no morals, control West and East
Egg. Fitzgerald’s purpose is to describe the real meaning of American life in order to
emphasize the corrupt and luxurious times, the high class spent in the 1920’s.
According to the tone of this novel, Fitzgerald is writing to a general audience that wants
to read a classic novel.

One of the major conflicts of ​The Great Gatsby ​is obtaining the love of Daisy
Buchanan. Jay Gatsby ,later revealed to be James Gatz ,is very hopeful in the attempt
of gaining Daisy’s affection. He does whatever it takes to get rich in fact, he makes it his
life's goal to become a millionaire. Jay’s drive to gain wealth resorted to him gaining is
money from bootlegging. Since the novel takes place in the summer of 1922, it is the
era of the jazz age and the era of prohibition.The reason for Gatsby earning his wealth
is due to Prohibition; threw bootlegging and organized crime. Gatsby’s drives and
motivation can be symbolized in the green light at the end of the doc.Gatsby derives
hope from this beacon of light. In the novel the author shows this when he states
“Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before
us. It eluded us then, but that’s no matter — tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our
arms farther. . . . And then one fine morning - So we beat on, boats against the current,
borne back ceaselessly into the past.” In this it explains Gatsby’s drive and goals, Jay “
believed in the green light” to keep him going. The green light not only represents the
hope for Daisy’s love; it also represents the American dream. In the same quote it says,
“It eluded us then, but that's no matter - tomorrow we will run faster, stretch out our
arms farther.” This demonstrates the American dream and how it motivates many to get
what they desire and to reach for their dreams.

In the article “I'm an American Who Married into the British Aristocracy. Here's
My Advice for Meghan Markle” (2018) it states how the higher class rules over most
aspects of life. In the article , the author explains what she had to go through to get in to
the royal family. She also described how hard it was to get in to the family due to the
amount of work and memorizing it took. She describes how she is often treated like she
doesn’t belong to the real family. She states “But even after Markle has mastered the
etiquette and the history lessons, there will still be those who treat her as an outsider
because of where she comes from.” Proving she is often treated like an outsider
because of her origins. In the novel ​The Great Gatsby, ​ this can be shown by the
separation of the two towns; West Egg and East Egg. Both towns, East Egg and West
Egg, are separated by their social status and are of money. In West Egg is where the
“new money” is which is the people who just received the money not really of the high
class. While East Egg is the “old money” meaning they already came from money and
wealth. They describe themselves as the ones with high class and high social status. In
the book it declares “Their physical resemblance must be a source of perpetual
confusion to the gulls that fly overhead. To the wingless a more arresting phenomenon
is their dissimilarity in every particular except shape and size.” These sentences
represent that although they both looked the same in shape and size, they had
“dissimilarity” meaning they were different in their social status. The article and the
novel demonstrate there are clear differences in social status. If you try to be something
you are not , you will be seen as an “outsider”.

The Great Gatsby ​is a symbol of the life of Americans in the 1920’s,
representing the ravishing and luxurious parties they had as well as representing the
era of the 1920’s ; the jazz age. Not only does the novel represent the luxurious and fun
times that the high socialites of the 1920’s had, but it also represented the hopes and
aspirations of the people from this era. Around this time was the get-rich-quick era;
meaning many started to get wealthy fast. This was a push for people to start believing
the American dream more than before. Jay Gatsby represents this side of the life of the
American dream. He had hopes of becoming a millionaire and be considered of high
class. One of the reasons why he fell in love with Daisy is because of her lifestyle and
his yearning to be wealthy. As well as Jay representing the fun and luxurious parties he
hosted every week. Daisy shows the other side of the life of the 1920’s, demonstrating
how cynical, corrupt, and shallow she was. Showing how cynical most were around this
time as well as being corrupt. Daisy also showed the snobby ways of high socialites.
Fitzgerald showed us the ugly, luxurious, and hopeful side of this era. Bringing into
focus the era of the roaring 20’s as well as focusing on the American dream. Each
character defines the movement ;bringing into light the lifestyle of the 1920’s.