Americans tend to live their lives struggling to find happiness, and most believe that happiness is found through wealth, although this idea of happiness is destined to fail. People fight their entire lives to succeed; to reach their ‘ultimate goal’. This goal varies from person to person. These thoughts all come together to be known as the American Dream. F. Scott Fitzgerald uses the concept of fighting for happiness in his writing, particularly in his novel The Great Gatsby.
America’s oppressed can still be stirred to action with the words: “These are the times that try men’s souls” (Paine 637). A soulful person can no longer allow themselves to be subjugated by injustice and evil. A national emergency should not be the only time the people of America feel a stirring of patriotism. Unity should help us through times of threat to our homeland and in discovering ways to ease the hardships of our disadvantaged. America has no room for the “summer soldier and the sunshine patriot” (637).
As stated, without the laborers performing a strike the improvements would just benefit the employers and the employees had to work for every little thing they got. “The strike is apparently hopeless, and must be regarded as nothing more than a rash of resentment by men too ignorant to understand their interests” (Doc. B). This is saying if they are too reckless to realize that they can be replaced by others. Many of the strikes were crushed and just failed.
The novel The Great Gatsby demonstrates the wrong idea people in the 1920s had on the American Dream. The original idea of the American Dream is that each individual can get success and happiness through hard work and determination. However, after WW1 this perception has changed and people started viewing the American Dream only as something materialistic, they only striven for financial success and high social status. Fitzgerald portrays this vision of America through the characters in his novel. Firstly, he shows it through Nick.
Izzo 1 Caitlyn Izzo Professor Stevens English 102 4 March 2012 Views of the “American Dream” The “American Dream” is something all of us as Americans aim or hope to achieve everyday of our lives. We all create this ideal life for ourselves in our heads, and while some of us are not willing to work for it, many of us are and hope our hard work and determination pays off in the future. The “American Dream” is a major theme in the famous novel by Arthur Miller, Death of a Salesman. Throughout the course of the story, we realize that the main character, Willy Loman has blind faith in what he perceives to be the “American Dream.” To Willy Loman, the “American Dream” is being a well-liked, personally attractive business man whose hard work and success has earned him the material comforts, or the “finer things” in life. Unfortunately, his preoccupation with the superficial qualities of attractiveness and popularity is at odds with a more realistic and rewarding perception of the “American Dream,” and this identifies that hard work without complaints is the key to success.
Willy Loman was 'caught-up' in this American Dream. It causes business to develop in the world. Capitalism and also the profit motive and competitive instinct, makes Willy have a weakness in his personality. This weakness was caused by a combination of business pressures. Willy wants to prove himself through successes a salesman, but as he fails, his own life destroys him.
One’s first interest is self-preservation, but “Lockean self-interest proves to be inseparable from service to others.” (West, 2008, p. 594) Locke also speaks of Biblical principles where a man born free must work for himself and not live off the labor of others. Men have duties as well as rights and one of those duties is that of citizenship, or civic duty. (West, 2008) This is a point missed by many Americans today. With today’s fast-paced and hectic life style, many are just trying to survive the day-to-day grind. Every American is equal under the law and they can all quote you their rights, but many do not realize that political participation and civic involvement are a duty and not an option.
These various experiences force Changez to battle with his identity, his previously solid perception of himself is uplifted when he forcibly tries to live the American dream and is rejected. Throughout all these encounters of rejection and confusion Changez’s reluctance towards being used as an American weapon builds, tipping him over the edge back towards his roots. The ambitious Changez is enamoured by the American dream, his what seems to be ideal job and girl within his grasp he is far from reluctant to neglect his values. His “hunger” for success allows Changez to gain “money and status” in the form of a job at Underwood Samson, his willingness to ignore the poor and give to the greedy are far from his upbringing with a “poor boy’s sense of longing”. Seduced by this he is eager to accept the benefits of his job.
This novel is a great novel to give an example on how reality is to people even the high class. Through the discussion of the passage, poem and scholarly article will show how the path towards the American Dream can turn into a negative or positive outcome in a person’s life. Theme When Mr. Fitzgerald wrote “The Great Gatsby,” he described the actions of the human society. In a certain way, not only did he describe and critic the high class but also the lower class, which ended up critiquing the American Dream. The American Dream was a idea give to believe that a human being should pursue being happy, wealthy, and loved which has cause any human being to go in search for this idea.
In his books he wrote “property” instead of “happiness”, until Thomas Jefferson replaced property with happiness, because happiness is a more general pursuit then property is. I would say that the american dream is to an extent, the same as the pursuit of happiness. Because it’s all about improving the quality of life. However it can only be achieved through hard work and dedication, like Chris Gardner in the movie. As an individual you can feel that you deserve success in life as much as you want, but if you are not willing to work for it, you will never achieve it.