The introduction of Prohibition in 1919, the result of campaigning before the war, was intended to restrict the consumption of alcohol, yet demand for alcohol increased at an astounding rate. A gap in the market was created for organised crime, made famous by gangsters such as Al Capone. These people were nicknamed “bootleggers” and often made large amounts of money through these unsavoury practices. Gatsby himself is accused of being a bootlegger by Tom Buchanan, “(he) sold grain alcohol over the counter” and indeed he has an absurd amount of money which could have been gained by these means as shown by the “gleaming, dazzling” parties he could hold on such a regular basis and the considerable amount of clothes he has imported, “he opened for us two hulking patent cabinets which held his massed suits and dressing-gowns”. The use of words such as “hulking” and “massed” help to convey the sheer size of his collection of clothes. Alcohol was not the only thing exploited for money. The stock market and speculation in shares was an increasing business; Nick even attempts to “go East and learn the bond business” which was often influenced by heavy borrowing and built itself up for the Wall Street Crash of 1929. Fitzgerald, despite the novel being set before the Depression, relates the poverty of certain individuals who are still chasing their dream, for example Wilson and his wife, and this perhaps foreshadows the coming time of high unemployment and widespread poverty and suffering, “He was a blond, spiritless man… When he saw us a damp gleam of hope sprang into his light blue eyes.” The use of the adjective “spiritless” helps to convey the aura of melancholy surrounding Wilson creating a sense of pathos in the reader for this obviously poor man and the verb “sprang” clearly shows his excitement at the possibility of help out of his piteous poverty.
Fitzgerald also comments on the social failure of the rich and how materialism has corrupted the American dream. The American Dream is basically the belief that anything is possible if you strive to achieve it. The characters in the novel confused this achievement with the possession of money; the Wilsons see the collection of money as a ticket out of their poverty, the rich, symbolised by the Buchanans, see money as an amusement in their meaningless lives. Fitzgerald comments on how the rich lead an aimless, empty life, “What will we do with ourselves this afternoon? cried Daisy, `’and the day after that, and the next thirty years?” and the irony is that the poor wish to attain this life. Even Gatsby, whose dream is the most pure, is corrupted by materialism. The corruption of the Dream is portrayed most strongly in his belief that Daisy will only love him if he has possessions and this money taints his love. The overt displays of his wealth which mark him out to be an achiever of the American Dream, a man who despite his poor background as James Gatz became wealthy, famous Jay Gatsby, and are an attempt to win Daisy back, become hollow.
Fitzgerald also comments on how the rich are moral failures with waste and destruction surrounding them, “they smashed up things and creatures… and let other people clean up the mess they had made”. Their “carelessness” as symbolised by the Buchanans inadvertently caused the deaths of three people who were of a lower class and despite this show no grief. The Buchanans depict the ruthless vindictiveness of the rich with their “old money” defeating “new money” symbolised by Gatsby. For example, Gatsby “had broken up like glass against Tom’s hard malice”. The use of a simile and the contrast between fragile glass and the “hard” malice of Tom help to emphasise the idea of the callousness of the rich.
However, despite the novel being a clear depiction of America during the 1920s, the novel is not just about social themes. It is also a love story, albeit a doomed one. It conveys the purity, innocence, naivety and hope of Gatsby in achieving his corrupted dream. He epitomises the purest characteristic of the American Dream: everlasting hope. Even when he had no chance of winning Daisy he never lost hope, “Can’t repeat the past? he cried incredulously. “Why of course you can!” His hope of achieving his aim in life, that same aim that made him different from the rest of the aimless rich, made him fail to see the reality that Daisy was never going to leave her husband.
In conclusion, the novel deals with many different themes; the waste and destruction that surround the insensitive rich, the society of America in the “Roaring Twenties” and also the failed love between two very different people. It touches on the themes of dreams and reality, love, carelessness and social situations of the era and especially the theme of the ever prevalent American Dream. Many critics have viewed Fitzgerald’s artistic achievement in terms of his ability to depict American society, its history and its people and ‘The Great Gatsby’ is seen as perhaps his crowning achievement.
