Great Gatsby Essay

It is impossible to judge a person by their actions without understanding variables such as personal values, and social attitudes of the time which may have led them to certain decisions. Likewise characters in F. Scott Fitzgerald's cynical novel The Great Gatsby must also be understood within the social context. The 1925 novel explores characters that have lost themselves, while trying to find happiness through materialistic possessions. This is displayed by the eventual growth of the narrator Nick Carraway where he rejects the corrupt norms of society instead of staying complacent. Throughout the book, Fitzgerald critiques the American Dream by portraying it to be corrupt and nothing but a figment of one's desperation to live a life of luxury. The book is set in the Roaring Twenties, where people, eager to forget the war were rejecting traditional religious values, instead adopting hedonistic lifestyles, influenced by the war. In order To escape memories of the horrors of the war people wanted to live exorbitant and carefree lifestyles. Thus with the American economy thriving, people went wild trying to chase the dream and the supposed happiness it afforded. They created a facade of their success by throwing unaffordable lavish parties and indulging in increasing materialistic desires motivated by the rise in industrialisation. Women tasting liberating freedom for the first time were also defying social conventions and committing overt actions expressing their sexuality. My knowledge of the jazz age, rise in consumerist culture and the changing role of women in 1920's America creates a context for understanding the representation of irresponsible behaviour and moral corruption explored in The Great Gatsby.

In The Great Gatsby the time period of the Roaring Twenties is used to display the reckless jubilance of the American people. The era saw increased freedom due to the economic boom,leading people to rapidly disregard their traditional values for hedonistic values. Especially eager to forget the anguish and heartache the war had forced onto them, no one gave any thought to the consequences of their debauchery. This rise in hedonism led people to become irresponsible, as shown by Jordan who refused to be more careful while driving and claims," I am careful...well other people are...it takes two to make an accident". This blatant disregard for real life consequences displays how people had disassociated themselves from reality as they were constantly surrounded by the pretence of it. This also exposes the errors in hedonism as they display little or no concern for those around them. Through this dialogue,Fitzgerald foreshadows Myrtle's death which is caused by Daisy's irresponsible driving. He emphasises that there are harsh real life consequences to their brash immature acts that they cannot take back. However, no one seemed to care for the reality of the aftermath as "men and girls came like moths" to Gatsby's parties unable to stay away from the glitz and glamour they afforded. Through the simile, Fitzgerald criticises that although the parties seem like harmless fun, it will eventually hurt them, comparable to moths who fly to their doom disillusioned by the same excitement of the bright light. Here Fitzgerald emphasises the importance of thinking one's actions through as careless pursuits of hedonism will eventually destroy them. However people had forgotten about responsibilities as they expected to be exempted from real life consequences. Myrtle at a whim decides to and buys a pet, but rapidly forgets about the big commitment she made. While she parties, the abandoned dog suffers "looking with blind eyes" and "time to time groaning faintly. This immediate neglect portrays the reckless jubilance Americans acted with, as self-satisfaction always came first. The emotive language displays the mistreatment of the dog, accentuating people's disregard for consequences as Myrtle easily forgets the responsibility she undertook. These actions exposed the degradation of social values in 1920's America and enabled me to realise the consequences of action without thought. The characters all commit superficial acts, thinking there are no consequences. However, every action has an equal and opposite reaction to which someone must pay for, which in this society is dominantly the poor and the weak, exposing the flaws of 1920's American lifestyle.

The 1920's industrial revolution saw machines rapidly replace labourers, leading to increased production capacity. The increased availability of domestic products led to heightened consumerist culture and sequentially materialistic values in American households. Althoughthey possessed copious amounts of goods meant to make them happy, Fitzgerald presents the opposite by displaying the futility and hollowness

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