Contradictions in the Great Gatsby Essay - 1623 Words

Contradictions in the Great Gatsby They were known as the roaring twenty’s because the economy at the time was through the roof and people were partying all over the place. At the time there was a prohibition on the manufacturing and sales of intoxicating drinks. Since a lot of people did not feel like drinking gin they made in their bathtubs all the time, there was a huge market for organized crime. Organized criminals catered to the needs of the drinking public by illegally supplying them with liquor and made a fortune doing it. Even with all the crime in the jazz age, it will still be remembered for its glittering lights and unbridled romance. This just goes to show that life is filled with contradictions. Even with all the†¦show more content†¦Gatsby tries to chase the American Dream, yet his idea is tarnished. He throws parties to try and fit in with the socialites and his idea of the American Dream is doomed because he tries to buy his way into a society that will never accept him. On the other hand, the East Egg is snobbishly superior towards everyone else. This place also feels like heaven; immortal. Tom and Daisy Buchanan are a part of the East Egg society. East Eggers have inherited their wealth and dwell on the traditions of high class society. They did not work for their money so they do not appreciate it the way West Eggers do. Like the West Eggers, East Eggers have not obtained the American Dream either. Tom is rich and has a beautiful wife and on the outside it looks like he has the perfect life. The only problem is that he cheats on his wife with a woman that lives between East Egg and West Egg, Myrtle Wilson. Myrtles husband loves her, but she is a money chaser. She says, I thought he was a gentleman . . . but he wasnt fit to lick my shoe . . . he borrowed somebodys best suit to get married in . . . (Fitzgerald 39) She couldnt appreciate the fact that her husband was working hard to provide for her. She just wanted money and found it in a relationship with a married man. Here Fitzgerald shows the other side of the American Dream. Myrtle has the love but not the money, andShow MoreRelated Examine the contradictions in The Great Gatsby, including its narrative2958 Words   |  12 PagesExamine the contradictions in The Great Gatsby, including its narrative styles. The novel moves on two levels: Fitzgerald makes you see the magic and romance of Gatsbys vision of ideal love, dazzling the eye with wealth; yet, at the same time, the narrator pulls us down to earth revealing the immorality, waste and corruption of those who surround Gatsby and cause his death. Examine the contradictions in The Great Gatsby, including its narrative styles. 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The authors use their main characters, Hester, Dimmesdale, Gatsby, and Daisy, in their respective works to present these themes. The action in both novels revolves around unfaithfulness, its effects on the characters, and the results of committing adultery, which prove to be antipode from one novel to the other. These antithesesRead MoreGreat Gatsby Scarlet Letter Essay690 Words   |  3 PagesJason Bello AP English March 22, 2000 The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne and The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald are two novels, which address similar themes with completely opposite resolves. The authors use their main characters, Hester, Dimmesdale, Gatsby, and Daisy, in their respective works to present these themes. The action in both novels revolves around unfaithfulness, its effects on the characters, and the results of committing adultery, which prove to be antipode fromRead MoreThe Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald1127 Words   |  5 Pagestrue in the text you have studies and how has the author sought to influence their readers.† Introduction The extent to which ones opinions and views can be altered without them even noticing is impeccable. F. Scott Fitzgerald, the author of ‘The Great Gatsby’, explores the ways in which one can influence a person’s thoughts in such a minute way that they themselves don’t even realise it. He, as a writer, is â€Å"communicative in a reserved way†. This leaves the readers perspective altered to believe whatRead MoreThe Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald1036 Words   |  5 Pagesis seen as nothing but bloodshed. However, for many this allows them to shine in a way that they could not back at home. In The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, it is placed in the post war era. Gatsby, one of the main protagonists, is a war hero that fought in World War I. World War I is important to The Great Gatsby due to how integrated it is to the past of Gatsby and F. Scott Fitzgerald. In the beginning, Fitzgerald had many people in his life that played an influential part in his literaryRead MoreEssay On Owl Eyes In The Great Gatsby1085 Words   |  5 PagesThe Great Gatsby written in 1925 was a novel that expresses F. Scott Fitzgerald’s concerns for the direction that America was headed in during that decade. During the novel he repeatedly gives examples of the contrast of the economic classes; the thriving upper class in extravagant living conditions while the lower class lives in filth like â€Å"fields of ashes.† To criticize the American upper class during the nineteen twenties, F. Scott Fitzgerald uses vivid imagery in his revelation of Gatsby’s facade