Hollow Dreams In The Great Gatsby

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Hollow Dreams After World War I, financial and social opportunities were substantial for anyone willing to work hard. This lead to people pursuing dreams of wealth, which they thought would lead to pleasure. Illegal activities such as “bootlegging” were very common, as well as gambling, like when the 1919 World Series was fixed. Little did they know, these dreams wouldn’t lead them to happiness. In Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, he uses characterization to suggest that chasing hollow dreams leads only to misery. One character whose empty dream leads her to misery is Myrtle Wilson. In chapter two, at the party in Tom’s apartment, we learn that Myrtle is dissatisfied with her husband George. When asked why she married him, Myrtle says that…show more content…
In the beginning of the story, Gatsby is introduced as a character that is very wealthy. He lives in a mansion that is an “imitation of some Hotel de Ville in Normandy” with “more than forty acres of lawn and garden” (5). Though it is apparent to Nick that Gatsby is rich, he is still unsure of how he got his money. We soon find out that Gatsby was very poor in his younger years, as that is the reason why Daisy left him and married Tom, a wealthier man. Eventually Gatsby meets Dan Cody, the man who ultimately inspires him to pursue his dream of winning Daisy back. Gatsby is influenced by Dan’s criminal activity, as it is what led to his wealth. This is seen when a young Gatsby looks up at Dan’s yacht that “represented all the beauty and glamour in the world” (100). Gatsby thought that by becoming rich, he would win Daisy back. He was wrong. While his wealth led him closer to Daisy, he never won her back. He wants “too much” (132). His desire to have it all, the money, class, power, and Daisy, no matter the cost, has corrupted his spirit. His past is filled with illegal activity and cheating, and there is nothing he can do to erase it. He tries of course, by saying he “came into a good deal of money” when his family from “San Francisco” in the “Middle West” died (65). But Nick instantly sees right through this, as San Francisco is obviously not in the Middle West. Later, Tom, after some research, exposes this to Daisy to show her the kind of man Gatsby actually is. After finding out the truth about Gatsby’s past, Daisy is convinced to end things with Gatsby, ultimately shattering his life dream with her and leaving him with nothing but stolen money and a corrupted
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