paper no-106

Name: Dhruvita Dhameliya

Roll no : 03

Semester : 2

Year: 2021 to 2023

Subject: The Twentieth century literature 1900 to the second world war

Topic: The great Gatsby - Jazz age and American dream

E-mail ID:

dhameliyadhruvita24@gmail.com

Submitted to: S. B. Gardi Department of English Maharaja Krishnakumarsinhji Bhavnagar University

Introduction of Writer:-

F. Scott Fitzgerald was a short story writer and novelist considered one of the pre-eminent authors in the history of American literature due almost entirely to the enormous posthumous success of his third book, The Great Gatsby. Perhaps the quintessential American novel, as well as a definitive social history of the Jazz Age, The Great Gatsby has become required reading for virtually every American high school student and has had a transportive effect on generation after generation of readers. 

Famous works:-

1)'This Side of Paradise' (1920)

2)'The Beautiful and Damned' (1922)

3)'The Great Gatsby' (1925)

4)'Tender Is the Night' (1934)

The Great Gatsby:-

The Great Gatsby is a 1925 novel by American writer F. Scott Fitzgerald. Set in the Jazz Age on Long Island, near New York City, the novel depicts first-person narrator Nick Carraway's interactions with mysterious millionaire Jay Gatsby and Gatsby's obsession to reunite with his former lover, Daisy Buchanan. The novel tells the tragic story of Jay Gatsby, a self-made millionaire, and his pursuit of Daisy Buchanan, a wealthy young woman whom he loved in his youth. The story is all about the American dream and Jazz age, both the themes discussed by Fitzgerald in this novel.

The Great Gatsby is a story told by Nick Carraway, who was once Gatsby's neighbor, and he tells the story sometime after 1922, when the incidents that fill the book take place. As the story opens, Nick has just moved from the Midwest to West Egg, Long Island, seeking his fortune as a bond salesman. Shortly after his arrival, Nick travels across the Sound to the more fashionable East Egg to visit his cousin Daisy Buchanan and her husband, Tom, a hulking, imposing man whom Nick had known in college. There he meets professional golfer Jordan Baker. The Buchanans and Jordan Baker live privileged lives, contrasting sharply in sensibility and luxury with Nick's more modest and grounded lifestyle. When Nick returns home that evening, he notices his neighbor, Gatsby, mysteriously standing in the dark and stretching his arms toward the water, and a solitary green light across the Sound.

"I wish I had done everything on earth with you". f.scott Fitzgerald

In this novel we find many themes like,

1)The Decline of the American Dream 

2)The Hollowness of the Upper Class

3)Love and Marriage

4)Class conflict

5)The Roaring Twenties

1)The Decline of the American Dream:-

The American Dream is one of the major themes in The Great Gatsby. The life of Jay Gatsby himself is an embodiment of the American Dream, as he's a poor farm boy who changes his name and reinvents himself to become wealthy and successful, at least financially. His story is a 1920s jazz age take on the classic rags to riches story, transitioning from a simple life where money is scarce to the riches and extravagance that become possible once one has money.

America in The Great Gatsby is presented mostly through the scope of class: the rich, the poor, and everyone in between are identified by how much money they have. There’s Wilson, the working-class man who has to work constantly to stay afloat, the

Buchanans, who have an unimaginable amount of money, and Nick, who’s

upper-middle-class existence allows him many luxuries, but not everything he wants. Then

There's Gatsby. Even when Gatsby gets to the top, he’s looked down upon by those with old

money.

In Gatsby, the American Dream seems corrupted. Where as it used to stand for independence and the ability to make something of one's self with hard work, in Gatsby, the

American Dream seems more about materialism and selfish pursuit of pleasure. Not to

mention, no amount of hard work can change where Gatsby came from, and the old money

folks maintain their sense of superiority because of that simple fact. The indication is that merit

and hard work aren't enough. The idea of the American Dream proves to be disappointing and

false in Fitzgerald’s classic novel.

Questions About Women and Femininity.

The Great Gatsby thoroughly portrays the behavioral and cognitive shifts within the 1920’s culture and represents the differences between both the original American dream, and the corrupted American Dream.The achievement of the American dream in the novel is highlighted by Fitzgerald’s belief that one must go through the world of men in order to be successful. This is a preview

2)The Hollowness of the Upper Class:-

One of the major theme explored in The Great Gatsby is the sociology of wealth, specifically, how the newly minted millionaires of the 1920s differ from and relate to the old aristocracy of the country’s richest families. In the novel, West Egg and its denizens represent the newly rich, while East Egg and its denizens, especially Daisy and Tom, represent the old aristocracy. Fitzgerald portrays the newly rich as being vulgar, gaudy, ostentatious, and lacking in social graces and taste. For example, Gatsby, lives in a monstrously ornate mansion, wears a pink suit, drives a Rolls-Royce, and does not pick up on subtle social signals, such as the insincerity of the Sloanes’ invitation to lunch. In contrast, the old aristocracy possesses grace, taste, subtlety, and elegance, epitomized by the Buchanans’ tasteful home and the flowing white dresses of Daisy and Jordan Baker which show thari richness.

What the old aristocracy possesses in taste, however, it seems to lack in heart, as the East Eggers prove themselves careless, inconsiderate bullies who are so used to money’s ability to ease their minds that they never worry about hurting others. The Buchanans exemplify this stereotype when, at the end of the novel, they simply move to a new house far away rather than condescend to attend Gatsby’s funeral. Gatsby, on the other hand, whose recent wealth derives from criminal activity, has a sincere and loyal heart, remaining outside Daisy’s window until four in the morning. Simply to make sure that Tom does not hurt her. Ironically, Gatsby’s good qualities of loyalty and love lead to his death, as he takes the blame for killing Myrtle rather than letting Daisy be punished, and the Buchanans’ bad qualities fickleness and selfishness allow them to remove themselves from the tragedy not only physically but psychologically.

3)Love and marriage:-

Fitzgerald develops the theme of love and marriage by demonstrating the challenges that people encounter in finding their true love. According to Bani-Khair, The character of Gatsby is determined to get Daisy and the love is “almost futile, unreal, and more like an unattainable imaginary concept” because his attempts were rather incongruous from the start. The inference is that Fitzgerald wants readers to imagine people do not get want they want particularly when love is concerned. Rather, humans encounter rejection when they show their romantic interest. "Bani-Khair add Gatsby’s romantic dream is not only imaginary but also the ideal perspective of love that is usually unattainable". Furthermore, Fitzgerald develops the theme of love and marriage so that it is inseparable from wealth. Hodo says Daisy is portrayed as a beautiful, naive teenager who falls for Gatsby against her family’s wish and readers can deduce her romantic interest is because of his money. More so, Fitzgerald ensures Daisy’s love-life including her marriage to Tom years later is because of his wealth. Daisy is torn between staying in a marriage with Tom and a now-wealthy Gatsby who has been pursuing her. 

Love is caring for each other, supporting one another through tough times, always being by your partner’s side no matter what happens in life, good and bad. In this story the American dream of being wealthy gets in the way of true love. In most of these relationships love is missing, marriage had become a game, it was ok to go behind one another’s back to achieve their dark goal, abusiveness acceptable. For example, “Tom Buchanan broke Myrtle's nose with his open hand.” Take Jay Gatsby for example a man in love with a rich, young and beautiful woman named Daisy. He knew the only way for her to even notice him would be if he was rich. He lived in the illusion that money equals happiness and that followed him till the day he died. Nothing made him happy he always wanted more and more. Sure his love for money made him wealthy but whether he had nothing or all the money in the world he could still not buy true love.

4)Class conflict:-

Throughout the novel ,The main conflict exists between three distinct social classes:-

 

1)The old-money

2)The new-money 

3)The no-money

Tom and Daisy Buchanan descend from old-money and, therefore, felt as if they should inherit certain rights. They believe that their birth gives them power, similar to the idea of divine right.

 New-money is represented by the character Jay Gatsby. While the source of his money is originally unknown, it is obvious to other characters in the novel that Gatsby lacks certain social abilities that are bred into the characters from old-money.

 Finally, the no-money class is displayed through George and Myrtle Wilson, for they have worked all their lives and are unable to get enough money and success in life.

The Buchanans could be labeled with several unsavory characteristics:- careless, materialistic, slothful, and even childish, in Daisy’s case. Most importantly, the Buchanans lack the ability to face the consequences of their actions. Daisy tells Nick, 

“I hope she 'll be a fool — that 's the best thing a girl can be in this world, a beautiful little fool You see, I think everything 's terrible anyhow And I know. I 've been everywhere and seen everything and done everything", About the life she hopes for her daughter. Daisy doesn’t want her to have to make hard decisions. She wants her to live an easy life, in which she is oblivious to the real problems that surround her. Daisy has realized that the life she’s living doesn’t make her happy, but it’s easy for it to be familiar. In other words, he doesn’t care how he accomplishes it as long as he receives his happy ending with Daisy.

5)The Roaring Twenties:-

In the novel The Great Gatsby F. Scott Fitzgerald coined the term "Jazz Age" to describe the decade of decadence and prosperity that America enjoyed in the 1920s, which was also known as the Roaring Twenties. After World War I ended in 1918, the United States and much of the rest of the world experienced an enormous economic expansion. The surging economy turned the 1920s into a time of easy money, hard drinking despite the Prohibition amendment to the Constitution, and lavish parties. Though the 1920s were a time of great optimism, Fitzgerald portrays the much bleeker side of the revelry by focusing on its indulgence, hypocrisy, shallow recklessness, and its perilous—even fatal—consequences.

Conclusion:-

Although the main events of the novel end with Gatsby’s murder and George’s suicide, The Great Gatsby concludes with a chapter in which Nick reflects on the aftermath of Gatsby’s death. This final chapter furnishes Nick with more information about the mysterious Gatsby and his struggle to climb the social ladder. Nick meets Gatsby’s father, Henry C. Gatz, a “solemn” and “helpless” old man who believed his son had a bright future. Mr. Gatz also discovers and shares with Nick records of Gatsby’s self-improvement routines, saying: “Jimmy was bound to get ahead.” In addition to shedding light on Gatsby’s character, the final chapter also demonstrates just how alone Gatsby really was in life. Although Nick contacts many of Gatsby’s acquaintances as he organizes the funeral, almost no one shows up to pay respects. Daisy, who has run away with Tom, doesn’t even bother to send flowers or a note. The only person to appear, aside from Nick and Mr. Gatz, is Owl Eyes, who concludes the funeral with words that sum up Gatsby’s tragic life:

 “The poor son-of-a-bitch.”

Word count:- 2039

Reference:- 

Mathenge, Michael. “The Theme of Love Marriage in Fitzgeralds the Great GATSBY20190926 51414 2t0b1e.” Academia.edu, 26 Sept. 2019, https://www.academia.edu/40447921/The_Theme_of_Love_Marriage_in_Fitzgeralds_The_Great_Gatsby20190926_51414_2t0b1e.

“Research Paper: The Great Gatsby: The American Dream - Andrea Sciortino Professor Steinbrink AWR 201.” StuDocu, https://www.studocu.com/en-us/document/the-university-of-tampa/writing-and-research/research-paper-the-great-gatsby-the-american-dream/6699129.

Sparknotes, SparkNotes, https://www.sparknotes.com/lit/gatsby/themes/#:~:text=The%20Hollowness%20of%20the%20Upper%20Class&text=In%20the%20novel%2C%20West%20Egg,in%20social%20graces%20and%20taste.