The Illusion Of The American Dream - 946 Words

The Illusion of the American Dream 954 Money can not buy happiness, relationships, or life meaning. Multiple people in society base the success and meaning of a person’s life on the amount of money they possess. In The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, most characters make decisions based on how it will affect their wealth and reputations. One of the main characters, Daisy Buchanan, chooses money and status over others, even if it hurts her and the people around her. Daisy’s character reveals the illusion and emptiness of achieving the American Dream through her loss of love, her increased immorality, and her carelessness. Daisy Buchanan represents the wealth and high status of the American Dream, but her image comes with a price. According to John F. Callahan, the author of The Illusion of a Nation: Myth and History in the Novels of F. Scott Fitzgerald, â€Å"Fitzgerald’s scrutiny of the American dream is sharp—and pointed directly at the heart of Am erican ideology. The dream itself is ambiguous, contradictory, romantic in nature, and undeniably beautiful while at the same time grotesquely flawed.† (Callahan). Callahan explains that from the outside looking in, the American Dream appears to be magical, untroubled, and charmed. Fitzgerald reveals in The Great Gatsby that the American Dream is really an illusion that leaves all its seekers empty and dissatisfied. Fitzgerald’s character, Daisy, shows that the people who pursue the American Dream are blinded by the fact thatShow MoreRelatedIllusion Or Dream : The American Dream1170 Words   |  5 Pages Illusion or Dream The American dream is a fluctuating ideology that motivated and took charge of many generations from the construction of this country. Until current day, People always need something that would help them set life goals and work hard for them their entire life. Up till now, there are not two people who can agree on the definition of the American dream, yet most of the Americans began to believe that this dream is just an illusion. Many Americans want to achieve the American dreamRead MoreThe Illusions Of American Dream1448 Words   |  6 Pages The illusions of American Dream also presents in â€Å"all men are created equal† in the declaration. As xxx states, it is very clear that â€Å"the white, Protestant landowners was responsible for deciding who keep a voice in the new government, but not the people†. When the country grows and their descendants gradually allow other people (from different races or countries) join the community, and give them equal rights to these â€Å"outsiders† to what they think fit. Human will naturally tend to protect theirRead MoreThe Illusion of the American Dream Essay727 Words   |  3 Pagesstruggle to get to America, believing the ancient tale of the American Dream, convinced that they will finally make it big in this land of riches. But they find out it is not like that. The American dream is the idea held by many in the United States of America that through hard work, courage and determination one can achieve prosperity. In itself, the American Dream is an illusion. In Merriam-Webster’s dictionary, an illusion is defined as ‘a misleading or deceiving image presented to theRead More Illusion of the American Dream in Death of a Salesman and The Glass Menagerie756 Words   |  4 Pages The American Dream is what all Americans strive to achieve. It is the illusion of prosperity and happiness. The American Dream consists of three different elements, money, sex, and power. The plays â€Å"Death of a Salesman† and â€Å"The Glass Menagerie† are about families who strive to achieve the American Dream. These plays are a lot alike and they have more similarities than differences. In America, money can get you many places in society. In both plays, money plays an essential element. In â€Å"TheRead MoreEssay on The Great Gatsby: American Dream or American Nightmare?1739 Words   |  7 PagesFitzgerald, The Great Gatsby The American Dream, a long standing ideal embodies the hope that one can achieve financial success, political power, and everlasting love through dedication and hard work. During the Roaring 20s, people in America put up facades to mask who they truly were. In The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald conveys that the American Dream is simply an illusion, that is idealist and unreal. In the novel, Gatsby, a wealthy socialite pursues his dream, Daisy. In the process of pursuing DaisyRead MoreReality And Illusions : The Great Gatsby By F. Scott Fitzgerald1211 Words   |  5 PagesReality and Illusions Struggling with the separation of reality and an illusion, the characters in The Great Gatsby lived lives of deceit, which were not all as fabulous as they may have appeared. Jay Gatsby, Daisy Buchanan, and Jordan Baker were just a few examples of people, who were seemingly flawless and content, but truly they were lost, chasing after a dream they could never grasp. Jay Gatsby was a man obsessed with a dream of love and wealth. In his mind, Gatsby created an unattainable illusionRead More Illusion Verses Reality in Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller 972 Words   |  4 PagesIllusion Verses Reality in Death of a Salesman by Arthur Miller  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Death of A Salesman, by Arthur Miller, is a play that tells the story of a traveling salesman, Willy Loman, who encounters frustration and failure as he reflects on and experiences his own life. Willys quest for the American Dream leads to his failure because throughout his life, he pursues the illusion of the American Dream and not the reality of it. His mindset on perfection, his obsession with success, and his constantRead MoreEdward Franklin Albee IIi : The American Dream, And The Goat, Or Who Is Sylvia?1313 Words   |  6 PagesENG3U0 Research Essay Edward Franklin Albee III is an American playwright mostly known for his works such as Who s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, The Zoo Story, The American Dream, and The Goat, or Who Is Sylvia? Albee is perceived to be a leader in the creation of the American absurdist drama theatrical movement. Specifically, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? Opened on Broadway the same month the world was facing heated nuclear tensions between Soviet and U.S. powers during the Cuban Missile CrisisRead MoreHistory of America Mirrored in American Literature751 Words   |  3 PagesThe history of America is mirrored in American Literature. The American dream, the idea of equality and being able to achieve anything you wanted, meant that millions of immigrants moved to America. America claims to be a country which enables everyone to have equality and freedom however in the texts we can see it is rather a Capitalist and individualist country. The paradox of America can be seen through the fact that th e Statue called freedom was built by slaves. The inequality can also be seenRead Moreâ€Å"The American Dream has become a death sentence of drudgery, consumerism, and fatalism: a garage800 Words   |  4 Pagesâ€Å"The American Dream has become a death sentence of drudgery, consumerism, and fatalism: a garage sale where the best of the human spirit is bartered away for comfort, obedience and trinkets. Its unequivocally absurd.† –Zoltan Istvan. In both This Side of Paradise and This Beautiful and Damned, F. Scott Fitzgerald comments on the corruption of the American Dream. Throughout the beautiful text and prose of his first and second novels, respectively, Fitzgerald mocks the ghastly nightmare the American