Not only does Myrtle Wilson's dream die because of the social conditions, but Myrtle loses her life as well.
Nick Carraway is another example of a character who has had his version of the American Dream ruined. After his experiences in the Great War, Nick feels that his hometown in the Midwest is remote "like the ragged edge of the universe". Nick's dream is to get away from the small town Midwest and make lots of money by going East and learning the bond business. Nick moves to West Egg, Long Island, home of the newly rich and their fast paced lifestyle. Nick's dream goes according to plan until he befriends his neighbor, Jay Gatsby. Despite Gatsby's mysterious background, Nick finds himself at Gatsby's extravagant parties night after night. Nick's dream is destroyed because his involvement with Gatsby and the other rich people allows him to see their corruptness. At the beginning of the story Nick says he is "inclined to reserve all judgment" but by the end of the story Nick finds that he can not keep himself from judging these people who are so demoralized. When thinking about the Buchanans, Nick says "they were careless people, Tom and Daisy--they smashed up things and creatures and then returned back into their money or their vast carelessness or whatever it was that kept them together and let other people clean upthe mess they had made. Nicks inner conflict is symbolized by his affair with Jordan Baker. Nick is attracted to Jordan's liveliness and sophistication, yet at the same time he is repulsed by her blatant dishonesty and lack of respect for others. Nick abandons his dream and returns to the Midwest, which symbolizes morals, saying that "after Gatsby's death the East was haunted for [him] like that, distorted beyond [his] eyes' power of correction." Nick is a character whose dream dies as a result of the wastefulness and carelessness of the rich.
Jay Gatsby is the primary example of a character that has his dream die at the hands of society.
