The Great Gatsby: Blog 14

     As I finish The Great Gatsby, I think about the character of Jay Gatsby, as a whole, and what he represents.  I believe that author F. Scott Fitzgerald, overall, wishes to express his own personal view of "The American Dream" through the story of Gatsby.  Fitzgerald concludes the novel with the quote, "Gatsby believed in the green light, the orgastic future that year by year recedes before us.  It eluded us then, but that's no matter- to-morrow we will run faster, stretch out our arms farther....And one fine morning-" (Fitzgerald, 180).  Moreover, the narrator, Nick, explains that Gatsby believed in the green light and what came with it.  Gatsby's green light was his ultimate desire, what he aimed for, and unfortunately, was unreachable.  "The American Dream", defined as being the traditional social ideas of the United States, such as equality, democracy, and material prosperity, has gone to society's head and, in most cases, leads to the downfall of many.  Because of this misunderstood idea of  "The American Dream", many have created a new definition of happiness and success.  In The Great Gatsby, success is based on my money and material possessions.  I assume that F. Scott Fitzgerald creates this idea to show that greed has taken over the mind of Americans and, like with Gatsby, will get us no where.