Chances are you read (or Sparknoted, let's be honest) "The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald in your junior high or high school English class. It is considered to be a classic and one of the greatest works by an American author. Perhaps you saw the novel just as an assignment to be read and looked forward to browsing your phone instead, but I was fascinated by this story. I still find myself thinking about it more than any other novel I have come across after reading it over two years ago.
There’s just something about Gatsby’s story I find compelling and interesting. Maybe going to a high school prom themed after it or seeing the movie with Leonardo DiCaprio cast as Gatsby—with an impeccable style—made me appreciate Fitzgerald’s story more. It is a deceptively dark novel full of deeper meaning underlying the lavish celebrations and fancy clothes that fill the pages. In the end, it is about Fitzgerald portraying the withering of the American dream, with Gatsby himself representing America.
Jay Gatsby is a man of great wealth and is known in popular culture for the large parties he throws at his mansion near New York city during the Roaring 20s. In having these celebrations, he is attempting to lure a long lost love he had named Daisy, who in the novel lives close to him in his New York estate. He lost her five years prior to the start of the novel, and it’s his greatest desire to be with her and have her love him again. Originally, he was a poor farm boy turned officer who fell madly in love with the rich, beautiful Daisy. World War I called him away to fight and Daisy learned in time that Gatsby wasn’t as wealthy or powerful as she believed him to be. Eventually, the two of them do reunite in the novel, but time has changed them too much and Gatsby dies without ever fully winning her back.
The driving point of this story is Gatsby’s attempt to cover up the shame he has of his poor past as he reinvents himself through his wealth and status. In doing so, Gatsby does not possess an adequate self knowledge. He has an immature grasp on the reality of his situation. The vision he has for his future is a grand one that is rooted in his romantic past with Daisy, but he is blinded by illusion. He does not realize how time has changed him and Daisy. She does not necessarily want what he wants as he searches to fulfill his sense of self worth, pride, and romance. Ultimately the vision he has for his life is too great, which causes him to lose touch with his reality. Gatsby was trying to live out his vision of the American dream, but finally his fantasies caught up to him and killed him.
This story makes me think about what the American dream truly is. It’s the national character of the United States that believes life should be better, fuller, and richer for everyone, made possible by hard work and equal opportunity for success. In a way we all are like Gatsby, striving for a vision of how we want our lives to be filled with monetary and social success in the future. We as students are living that dream out by going to college, which we can view as a building block to that end goal. As young adults, it can be difficult to know what that end will really be. Is it material gain, a high status, or a beautiful spouse? These are all normal and good to strive for, but sometimes strong emotions or past experiences can give someone an unchecked desire or too much hope that these things will turn out in a particular way. This makes it possible to be chasing after something that could only be a fantasy. When you dream, you are making yourself vulnerable.
Another important point I feel The Great Gatsby teaches is that no one person can completely satisfy your every desire for happiness. Gatsby sees loving Daisy as the ultimate fulfillment of his hopes and dreams which places an unfair expectation on her. This lays an unstable foundation for their relationship in the novel, a relationship that crumbles away by the story’s end. When you find love in your life, it can be tempting to think that person will complete your happiness in life. Gatsby’s story teaches that isn’t so.
The important lesson I take from The Great Gatsby is to not let your own illusions kill you. Perhaps the best way to happiness is by recognizing and accepting the reality you’re in, while having realistic hopes for the future.
What “Daisy” are you working towards and dreaming of?
