Table of Contents
The Great Gatsby takes place during the roaring twenties, a time where the economy grew into a consumer society. This caused dramatic changes socially and politically. The 1920s was a time of the prohibition, flappers, and the increase of mass production and development of luxurious items. This was viewed as a time of a widespread of rebellious behavior because the norms of society had been challenged. During the 1920s, many people in the U.S. had extra money to spend on consumer goods due to the growth in the economy. Fitzgerald writes about the conflict that erupted during to the 1920s. Also, in The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald uses the themes of materialism, appearance vs reality, and corruption of the American dream to portray how American society in the 1920s was corrupted by the illusion of attaining the American dream.
Gatsby shows off expensive, materialistic things, such as cars and clothing, to impress others. After graduating college Nick decided to go move to a home in the East Egg so he could learn more about business. Nick’s new neighbor, Gatsby, threw many extravagant parties, and very few people were officially invited to his parties, but he left his doors open for everyone: “There was music from my neighbor’s house through the summer nights. In his blue gardens men and girls came and went like moths among the whispering and the champagne and the stars” (Fitzgerald 39.) Many people came to his party as a way of escaping or forgetting about their problems by enjoying the alcohol and the entertainment. They thought having money and going to parties would make them happy because it would help ease way their problems, but everything must come to an end.
Daisy’s friend, Jordan, tells Nick about Gatsby’s reasons for throwing so many lavish parties. Jordan says that,“‘I think he half-expected her to wonder into one of his parties, some night…’” (Fitzgerald 79). Gatsby thought the more money and parties he had the happier he would be because Daisy will one day come, and he will have his chance to win back her heart.
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Also, Gatsby was determined to obtain more items in hopes of finding happiness. Since the start, Gatsby was never pleased with what he had because he always wanted more. In the book, Gatsby shows off his new car to Nick: “Everybody had seen it. It was a rich cream color, bright with nickel, swollen here and there in its monstrous length with triumphant hat-boxes and supper-boxes and tool-boxes, and terraced with a labyrinth of wind-shields that mirrored a dozen suns. Sitting down behind many layers of glass in a sort of green leather conservatory, we started to town” (Fitzgerald 64).
Gatsby’s rich cream color car symbolizes how he was putting on a show to prove to everyone how wealthy he really was. The color of his car, yellow, is represented as fake because the color yellow the symbolized the wealthy who had to worked for their money. Which was considered a replacement for gold; gold represented those who had inherited all their money. Fitzgerald makes sure to mention the car was seen by everyone to show that Gatsby took pride in his fortunes and wanted everyone to know that he was rich, so if word would get around to Daisy, she would know that Gatsby would be able to take care of her.
Later in the book, Gatsby finally gets to meet Daisy for tea at Nick’s house. The day of Daisy’s visit, Gatsby starts planning for her arrival by sending many flowers to Nick’s house and getting men to Nick’s lawn. Then Nick notices that, “An hour later the front door opened nervously, and Gatsby, inn a white flannel suit, sliver shirt, and gold-colored tie, hurried in” (Fitzgerald 84). Fitzgerald uses silver and gold to describe Gatsby’s outfit because those colors symbolize money. Gatsby is dressing to impress Daisy, and to prove to her that he could make her happy. The theme of materialism was used to show people were lost sight of pure happiness because of their greediness and desire of having the American dream.
Nick begins to realize Gatsby is trying to appear to be something that he is not in reality. When Nick was living next to Gatsby he realized that, “Sometimes they came and went without having met Gatsby at all, came for the party with a simplicity of heart that was its own ticket of admission” (Fitzgerald 41). Gatsby also through those parties as a way of paying for people to respect him for his wealth, so he could see Daisy again. It appeared that many of individuals enjoyed Gatsby since they came to his parties and delighted in all the excitement he put on, but in reality no one came to Gatsby’s funeral since they never truly cared about Gatsby or cared to introduce themselves to him: “‘nobody came… ‘they used to go there by the hundreds.’” (Fitzgerald 174-175).
They just stressed about themselves and what was convenient for them. While Nick was attending one of Gatsby’s party he recognizes Jordan. Jordan and Nick went in search of finding Gatsby. When searching for Gatsby, they came across his library where they saw, “A stout, middle age man, with enormous owl-eyed spectacles, was sitting somewhat drunk on the edge of a great table, staring with unsteady concentration at the shelves of books… ‘Absolutely real—have pages and everything. I thought they’d be a nice durable cardboard. Matter of fact, they’re absolutely real. Pages and— Here! Lemme show you’” (Fitzgerald 45).
When Owl eyes said he thought the books were cardboard he was implying that Gatsby was just putting on a show, and Owl eyes saw through Gatsby’s lies because he knew that in reality Gatsby doesn’t read any of the books he has, making the rumors that Gatsby appeared to be an Oxford man false. Throughout most the book, Gatsby was known as a rich man and was said that he came from a rich family.
Since so many people know of Gatsby some become skeptical of what they heard about Gatsby, and some even spread rumors about him. Nick figures out the truth about Gatsby’s background which was that, “His were shiftless and unsuccessful farm people—his imagination never really accepted them as his parents at all” (Fitzgerald 98).
Everyone was blinded by Gatsby’s lies that most actually believed that he came from a rich family and was a Oxford man, but in reality he came from a poor farm family and never graduated as an Oxford man. The theme of appearance vs. reality was used to show how easily manipulated or naïve people were of believing that they could live the American dream, a perfectly happy life with no complications or worries.
Gatsby was searching for the what he thought was the American dream. Gatsby believed with having Daisy he would become a happy, wealthy man. The life he has always been dreaming about. At one of Gatsby’s parties, Gatsby ask if Nick would invite Daisy over to his house for tea, so Gatsby could see daisy again. When Gatsby sees Daisy at Nick’s house he gets nervous because so much time between them has been lost. Gatsby was so nervous that he leaned his head back on the clock that “luckily the clock took this moment to tilt dangerously at the pressure of his head, whereupon he turned and caught it with trembling fingers and set it back in place” (Fitzgerald 86).
Gatsby knocking over the clock represents how fragile time is, and the time that slipped away cannot be the same as it once was. The clock represents Gatsby not being able to fix what he once had with Daisy because time broke the relationship they once had, and it is hinting that Gatsby could not successfully have the American dream. Also, later in the book, Gatsby and Daisy headed home together in Gatsby’s car.
On their way home they do not stop for anything and soon everyone knows what had been done: “The ‘death car,’ as the newspaper called it, didn’t stop; it came out of the gathering darkness, wavered tragically for a moment, and then disappeared around the next bend… Myrtle Wilson, her life violently extinguished, knelt in the road and mingled her thick dark blood with the dust… ‘it was a yellow car,’ he said, ‘big yellow car. New’” (Fitzgerald 137 and 139).
The yellow car, which symbolizes money, running over Myrtle represents that money cannot save someone from everything. In fact, it can actually lead to their down fall. This is also foreshadowing Gatsby’s American dream being stopped by any obstacle he cannot be overcome with money. At the end of the book, Nick thinks about Gatsby, after his death: “I thought of Gatsby’s wonder when he picked out he green light at the end of Daisy’s dock.
He had come a long way to this blue lawn, and his dream must have seemed so close that he could hardly fail to grasp it. He did not know that it was already behind him, somewhere back in that vast obscurity beyond the city where the dark fields of the republic rolled on under the night.” (Fitzgerald 180). Gatsby hoped for reaching the green light, American dream, but no matter how close he came he could never obtain is goals of having it all. Nick points out that the American dream of having everything and beginning happy is completely unachievable. The theme of the corruption of the American Dream illustrates how the American dream was never really obtainable due to the desire of wanting more.
Conclusion
With the influx of currency into society caused much turmoil in very day life. Which ultimately lead to the change of society’s norms.
Works Cited
Fitzgerald, F. Scott. The Great Gatsby. New York: Scribner, 2004. Print.
