Scott Fitzgerald, is about the corruption of the American Dream, and the downfall of those who try to reach its goals. The attempt to capture the American Dream is a theme in many novels. The novel shows that the 20th century is a wasteland and a corruption of the original idealistic American Dream of the past. Many people could say that the American Dream was about working hard or doing something to get what they want whether it is wealth, fame, love, or happiness. Jay Gatsby is the main figure of the novel that tries to capture his "American Dream". .
In The Great Gatsby, for Jay, the dream is that through wealth and power, he can gain happiness. To get this happiness Jay must return to the past and relive an old dream. In order to do this he must have wealth and power. Jay Gatsby, the central figure of the story, is one character who longs for the past. He devotes most of his adult life trying to recapture it and, finally, dies trying to do so. In the past, Jay had a love affair with Daisy Buchanan. Knowing he could not marry her because of the difference in their social status, he leaves her to get wealth to reach her high standards. Once he gains this wealth, he moves near to Daisy, "Gatsby bought that house so that Daisy would be just across the bay," (Fitzgerald 83), and throws wonderful parties, hoping that she would show up at one of them. He does not attend his parties but watches them from a distance. When he does not see her, he asks around if anyone knows her. .
Soon Gatsby meets Nick Carraway, a cousin of Daisy, who agrees to set up a meeting, "He wants to know.if you'll invite Daisy to your house some afternoon and then let him come over, "(Fitzgerald 83). Gatsby's dream symbolizes the larger American Dream where they all have the opportunity to get what they want. Those who try to attain the American Dream without honesty are doomed to have their dreams remain unattainable or to have the dream become meaningless due to their dishonesty (like Jordan's cheating takes the meaning out of her 'wins').
