In relation to the archetypal American Dream, compare and contrast the main characters in The Great Gatsby and Gone with the Wind: to what extent can Jay Gatsby and Rhett Butler be considered heroes?
In relation to the archetypal 'American Dream', compare and contrast the main characters in 'The Great Gatsby' and 'Gone with the Wind': to what extent can Jay Gatsby and Rhett Butler be considered heroes? Neither Jay Gatsby nor Rhett Butler can be considered stereotypical heroes, them not being fairytale princes or purveyors or moral justice; yet they are protagonists in their own stories. Why do people believe they fulfil the model of a hero? Both Gatsby and Butler are the creations of authors with a great deal of satirical distaste for the situations they describe. Is this a clue to the type of character both Jay Gatsby and Rhett Butler are? They both seem to aspire to the 'American Dream' but are missing love from their lives. Could it be their pursuit of true love that persuades readers and characters to consider them as heroes? I believe that it is integral to both the stories to consider the main character's heroism, as our trust in the characters depends on this. I also want to account for the author's own visions for their characters - whether they wanted them to be wholesome, strong hero types or purveyors of moral guidance to the other characters. There is a chance that they did not wish them to be heroes at all, but created them as some vision of an antihero to contrast against people's hopes. However, I think it more likely both authors wanted to make their hero
How far do you consider Gatsby to be the epitome of the American Dream and its failure
How far do you consider Gatsby to be the epitome of the American Dream and its failure The Great Gatsby is a book written by F. Scott Fitzgerald. It is set in the nineteen twenties in the unique narrative style which is that he is writing about a fictional character called Nick Carraway writing a book about a man called Jay Gatsby who he feels was a man " who represented everything for which I have an unaffected scorn. Gatsby is a very rich yet contradictory character, He is portrayed throughout the novel as being heroic person because during the war her received a medal from "every allied country" the medal symbolizes some of the best and most noble traits of human nature such as valour, honor and bravery but in an extreme case of dramatic irony such a heroic man he cannot raise the courage to engage Daisy. Another side of Gatsby's contradictory nature is the idealistic way he chases Daisy as well as the fulfillment of his dream yet he is extremely reckless in the way he confronts Tom and lets Tom release the figurative ghosts that are Gatsby's past life especially his criminal activities. Maybe Fitzgerald designed Nick's view of Gatsby in such a way that he is mocking him and the American dream. Many critics don't view Gatsby in this way; they see him as a criminal who obtained wealth through crime and contacts more commonly associated with the gangster era in the 1960's.
the great gatsby
Corruption Conquers Faith: An Analysis on F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby By Sunil Mirpuri IB English AII Ms. S. Bartel August 31st, 2006 Word Count: 1,874 Outline Thesis: Fitzgerald, in his novel The Great Gatsby, portrays the corruption in the 20th century through his characters as well as the eyes of Dr. T.J. Eckleburg which lead the reader to believe that God, although He is referred to throughout the novel, is absent from the distorted society they live in. Body I. * Tom and Daisy embody certain morals and values which completely disregard God and religion. Tom Buchanon, for example, is racist, classist, and unfaithful. * "'Civilization's going to pieces,' broke out Tom violently. 'I've gotten to be a terrible pessimist about things. Have you read 'The Rise of the Coloured Empires' by this man Goddard?'"(p. 17). * "Tom's got some woman in New York." * Tom Buchanon, as well as Daisy, belongs to a "secret society" where only people of old, wealthy descent are admitted. * It is very odd to think that God is present in a society filled with corruption and immoral values where the wicked live prosperously. Body II * The Great Gatsby, as he is referred to in the book, is probably the most controversial character when analyzing God's influence in the 20th century society. * Gatsby had to perform several immoral and corrupt duties in order to reach
Great Gatsby Journals
Irony: "The minister glanced several times at his watch, so I took him aside and asked him to wait for half an hour. But it wasn't any use. Nobody came." p. 174 Situational irony is used by F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, by revealing how the shallowness of society leads to the ignorance of reality. In this quote, Gatsby's father and Nick are waiting for everyone to come to the funeral, when they see no cars coming, they tell the minister to wait, but as time passes, Nick finally realizes that nobody would show. In the context of this quote, Gatsby's father was very anxious to know and see all the people who would show up to Gatsby's funeral because he "thought" his son was much respected because he "seemed to be" successful based on all of his materialistic items in Gatsby's house. Similarly, Nick thought others would come because he knew that so many people showed to his parties on the regular. But, this was not the case, nobody showed to Gatsby's funeral. In the cemetery, the people who were of no meaning in Gatsby's life (the nobodies) showed up, this represents the carelessness of society. In turn, this quote exposes the characteristics of humanity and how society affected each individual. Gatsby's entire life was based on working his self up to a high level of social status so Daisy would fall back in love with him but he could not take this role in her life.
The Great Gatsby
The Great Gatsby 'Gatsby, who represented everything for which I have an unaffected scorn' This is the phrase which Nick Carraway uses at the beginning of The Great Gatsby to describe his next door neighbour. In this essay I will be looking at the relationship between Carraway and Gatsby, significant events that affect their relationship, and how Nick Carraway's opinion of Gatsby changes throughout the book. Mr Gatsby is a very mysterious character. Though he is Nick Carraway's neighbour, Nick knows noting about him and does not meet him until chapter 3, when they have been neighbours for some time. Indeed many events in the book only reinforce the mystery surrounding Gatsby. Though hundreds of people come to his lavish parties, almost none of them have met him, and know nothing about him. Thus many rumours circulate about him: 'Somebody told me he killed a man once.' 'Its more that he was a German spy before the war.' Thus before Carraway has even met Gatsby, Gatsby seems surrounded by an aura of illusion. Gatsby is a relative newcomer to the island of West Egg, the island for the incredibly rich. Over on East Egg, live Carraway's cousin Daisy and her husband Tom. Sporting girl Jordan Baker also lives with them When Carraway finally meets Gatsby, his reaction is negative. 'I was looking at an elegant young roughneck.' After meeting Gatsby, Carraway is told by Jordan
Was Gatsby Great
How Great is Gatsby? The title of the novel, 'The Great Gatsby' by F. Scott Fitzgerald, is ironic as the heading's character is neither 'great' nor named Gatsby. He is a criminal who has altered his harsh surname of Gatz to the melodic Gatsby and the life he has created for himself is an illusion. The book's name is the first feature that appeals to the reader. Before even opening the book the person expects Gatsby to be great. The caption, 'The Great Gatsby', itself suggests a theatrical billing given to an artist. It could also symbolise the act of Gatsby's life in the novel. Fitzgerald presents Gatsby as living a luxurious life, with plenty of friends, no worries and an honest man. Yet by the end of the novel his whole illusion unravels and the reader discovers that he has many problems, he is dishonest and has no true friends. One of the ways in which Gatsby is 'great' is the fact that he is extremely wealthy and owns many material items such as a yellow station wagon and a "Rolls-Royce". Fitzgerald uses descriptive words such as "hulking patent cabinets', "massed suits" and "shirts pilled up like bricks in stacks a dozen high" to emphasise Gatsby's luxurious lifestyle. Furthermore, to encapsulate his wealth Fitzgerald portrays Gatsby in royal, rich colours like "Indian blue" and "apple green and lavender." Materialism is important to Gatsby as he sees it as the only
The Corruption of The American Dream.
Eduardo Moura English Ms. Solowey 3/5/03 The Corruption of The American Dream In a time when the economy was through the roof and people were partying all over the place; the contemporary scene, the extravagance of Gatsby's parties, the shallowness and carelessness of the guests, and the hint of Gatsby's involvement in crime all identify the American setting in the era of the roaring nineteen twenties. The great Gatsby is a comment on the decadence in modern American society. The concern in The Great Gatsby is the corruption of moral values and the decline of spiritual life, a condition that is ultimately related to the corruption of the American dream. In this time period America was a country of great ambition, despair, and disappointment. The Great Gatsby is a clear reflection of this era, illustrating the burning passion a man has toward his "American Dream", the disappointment of loosing this dream and the despair of his loss. Jay Gatsby is one who believes he can buy his happiness, which is exhibited through his house, his clothes, and through, his beloved, Daisy. Gatsby owns a rather large portion of finances due to some mysterious source of wealth, and he uses this mystery source to buy
Death of the American Dream
Death of the American Dream In Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, all the characters are, in one way or another, attempting to achieve a state of happiness in their lives. The main characters are divided into two groups: the rich upper class and the poorer lower class, which struggles to attain a higher position. Though the major players seek only to change their lives for the better, the idealism and spiritualism of the American Dream is eventually crushed beneath the harsh reality of life, leaving their lives without any meaning or purpose. Tom and Daisy Buchanan, the rich socialite couple, seem to have everything they could possibly desire; however, though their lives are full of material possessions, they are unsatisfied and seek to change their circumstances. Tom, the arrogant ex-football player, drifts on "forever seeking a little wistfully for the dramatic turbulence of some irrecoverable football game"(Fitzgerald pg. 10) and reads "deep books with long words in them"(pg. 17) in order to have something to talk about. Though he appears happily married to Daisy, Tom has an affair with Myrtle Wilson and keeps an apartment with her in New York. Tom's basic nature of unrest prevents him from being satisfied with the life he
In "The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald the American Dream is shown by the downfall of those who attempt to achieve it. Through this the American Dream is exposed as being flawed and no more than an illusion produced by idealism and materialism
In "The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald the American Dream is shown by the downfall of those who attempt to achieve it. Through this the American Dream is exposed as being flawed and no more than an illusion produced by idealism and materialism. Throughout "The Great Gatsby" the reader is made aware of the flaws of the American Dream by the different themes showing the values and attitudes of American society. The dream is shown to have failed by conflict difference and the importance of material possessions by society. The failure of the dream is continued by the realism that people have become morally corrupt and that has left us with a wrestles society who lead superficial lives. Jay Gatsby is definitely the best example of both the successes and the failures of the American Dream in "The Great Gatsby". The most obvious example is from the first references to Gatsby in the description of Gatsby's Mansion by Nick Carraway. Its elaborate design shows clearly the materialistic wealth that Gatsby possesses as a result of the dream: "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 forty acres of lawn and garden" For a one person this initially seems to be an extravagant waste, and is a show put on to impress people. This is reinforced when we
What makes Gatsby great?
The title of The Great Gatsby - a masterpiece written by F. Scott Fitzgerald has presented the readers with the main irony of the novel: he was James Gatz, not Jay Gatsby, nor was he great. Through Nick Carraway's narrative, James Gatz, or later on Jay Gatsby represents everything that is pathetic and deceitful, yet surprisingly genuine. During the novel, Gatsby's "greatness" is portrayed through several of his qualities, such as his purely unconditional love for Daisy Buchanan and his interminable will. Although to Nick, Gatsby represents the truth and light in the darkness dominating over the grandiose New York society in the 1920's, the sole purpose for all of his greatness - Daisy and his desire to fit in to the established upper class represents has corrupted his greatness. Despite the purely romantic nature of his dream, Gatsby has committed criminals activities in order to attain it. As a result, even though Gatsby is "great" for his dream, his "romantic readiness", and his "extraordinary gift for hope", it is also reasonable to say he was a mere criminal who has done despicable things. One of main reasons for Nick to perceive Gatsby as "great" despite his obvious flaws was the existence and nature of Gatsby's dream. Indeed, ever since his youth, his American dream has been pure with motivation and ambition being the main forces behind. During a time of moral decay
