The American Dream is seen as a source of hope for a triumphant life with no downfalls and equal opportunities to achieve, but it turns out to be very deceitful. It is in fact only designed to keep people motivated and working continuously. It may seem achievable on the surface but the closer you get to succeeding, the further away your desired dream drifts. In The Great Gatsby, F Scott Fitzgerald reveals the novel by using a variety of literary devices. The settings, West Egg, East Egg and the Valley of Ashes are all introduced to the readers to portray The American Dream. Fitzgerald tells the story of a whimsical billionaire, Jay Gatsby. The famous Gatsby’s life revolves around one long wanting desire, to be reunited with Daisy Buchanan. This Piece of American fiction refers back to the harsh accusation of the “idea” of the American Dream. The novel is a tragic love story, but only on the surface. In fact the book is commonly perceived as constant cynical critiques on The American Dream.
Anyone who was thought to be living The American Dream was happy and finally content with their lives. Although according to Fitzgerald, he presents this desired dream as a ‘trap’, commenting on how it is a living myth. However West Egg residents were not so lucky. No matter how wealthy or how deserving you were, attaining or even achieving The American Dream was impossible to them. Fitzgerald uses the setting of West Egg in the novel to help critique and dissect The American Dream whilst at the same time, exposing the reality of American society. We learn from Fitzgerald’s critiques that West Eggers are disadvantaged and cannot seem to overcome the social barriers between each egg, which is supposedly holding them back from succeeding.The two Eggs represent the difference between “old money” and “new money”. Each suburb is enormously wealthy, the only difference is how they gained their money. East Eggers are the established privileged bunch who were lucky enough to inherit their money. West Egg holds the self made wealthy residents that worked for their money and strive to be accepted by the upper class. The narrator of the novel, Nick Carraway states, “I lived at West Egg, the– well, the less fashionable of the two”. His brutally honest opinion of his home shows that even the residents know they are disadvantaged and the harsh fact that they will always be one step behind their competing egg. Tom Buchanan, an East Egg opinionated citizen, quotes “Everyone in West Egg is a bootlegger.” Tom’s brutal judgement on this setting shows all East Egger’s look down on the hardworking, self achieved people of West Egg and that there will always be a social barrier between the two suburbs.
Many residents in West Egg have lived in poverty or had an afflictive lifestyle before fully succeeding, Jay Gatsby is one of these people. Gatsby overcomes his poor, unfortunate childhood to gain a magnificent amount of wealth money. Despite all this, he still isn’t approved of by the “old money” East Egg crowd. When Nick reflects on Gatsby, he quotes that he “paid a high price for living too long with a single dream.” Everything he had been through since he met Daisy was to obtain the ultimate status symbol, so it was no wonder Gatsby’s obsession for her grows. The price of the dream is the loss of his true self and ultimately death, he died for her.
Being lucky enough to be born into East Egg, where all the “old money” people live, is supposedly the American Dream. However, East Egg highlights the falseness of this dream. The residents of East Egg may seem to be living their best life, but Fitzgerald’s use of setting, helps us see past this wall of camouflage the upper class hold. The author’s utility of illuminating literary devices and critiques allows us to perceive how far from perfect their lives are. East Egger’s have all inherited their money from generations before them, Tom and Daisy Buchanan live in “a cheerful red−and−white Georgian Colonial mansion, overlooking the bay.” They are privileged residents who live a very prestigious life.
To achieve the quest of The American Dream, you need to be well known, wealthy, and obtain love in your life. Considering the citizens of East Egg have already achieved this through their inheritance, it’s logical that they are much more suitable for the dream compared to the people of West Egg. Living in East Egg is an accomplishment to the outsiders. It is a statement announcing that you have finally made it and it can not get any better than this. The lifestyle of the people of East Egg seems to be luxurious and glamorous, but that is only on the surface. All the people of East Egg have had to pay a high price to be where they are today. Their scandalous lives are maintained by lies, full of secrets and hidden murders making them shallow, numb and self absorbed. Their feelings are backed up by money and their only relationships are based on materialism.
Fitzgerald develops the social and money differences in the novel, allowing us to become familiar with one of the book’s themes. No matter how much money the people of West Egg have, they will never be accepted by the elite upper class. “Across the courtesy bay the white palaces of fashionable East egg glittered along the water…” The people of West Egg are always aware and familiar with what they are missing out on. With Fitzgerald using the adjective “glittered”, this highlights how East Egg is bliss and a luxurious fantasy. West Egg sits across the bay of water, staring straight at their lifelong dream to be a resident. They are constantly reminded of the great magnificent lifestyles others are living and what they could have had. The less fortunate people of West Egg work continuously and earn money to hopefully one day be able to live in East Egg and be accepted by the old money crowd. Revealing the irony that it will not make them happy.
In-between West Egg and New York City lies the Valley of Ashes, located on a stretch of road that is created by the disposal of manufactured ashes. This bleak crumbling place also represents the American dream and announces the falseness of that dream.My final critique on The American Dream is The Valley of Ashes. This rejected land highlights failure, it showcases a defect in the American Dream. The Valley of Ashes symbolizes a prison, something people cannot retreat from. Once they are in, they are in for good. The Valley of Ashes is impossible to escape, illustrating that the American Dream is impossible to achieve, just fabricated, impossible fantasy.
“This is a valley of ashes – a fantastic farm where ashes grow like wheat into ridges and hills and grotesque gardens where ashes take the forms of houses and chimneys and rising smoke and finally, with a transcendent effort, of men who move dimly and already crumbling through the powdery air.” This describes the brutal atmosphere of The Valley of Ashes and allows you to feel what it’s really like to be living there. Remains of lost souls scattered around, already dead yet still alive. The disposed ashes represent the remains of an object. This is where the lower class people live, where the rich people come to dump their ashes.
“Men who move dimly and already crumbling through the powdery air” – this snippet of the quote above shows the shocking image of turning regular humans into “ash grey men”. The Valley of Ashes reveals the dark side of the glamorous lives the American society lives in that no everyone can see. The two eggs are perceived to be living the American Dream through the people living in the Valley of Ashes where West Egg residents only think that East Eggers can attain this dream. This shows the power of lower and upper classes. The reality seeping place is hidden by a thick coat of ashy texture that covers another side of the American society. The lower class inhabit this ghastly area of land and often miss out on the so called equal opportunity to succeed. They are left in the dust with hopelessness, nearly forgotten and hidden away. It’s a place of growth, but not a positive one. Since The Valley of Ashes is known to be in a buried concealed land, this shows how American society is ashamed of it. Meaning the more fortunate people, such as the residents of West or East Egg, want The Valley of Ashes to literally disappear.
The failure of the American Dream is a clear theme throughout Fitzgerald’s novel. West Egg, East Egg and The Valley of Ashes help provide evident critiques on this notorious dream and showcase the reality of the hidden American society. These settings challenge our perception of the American Dream and making us, as the readers, question ourselves and what we want from our own lives: an illusion established from a blissful ideal lifestyle based on materialistic emptiness, or to gain the courage to determine what we value and live a life true to this. No one can achieve the American Dream and money can’t buy happiness. On the surface it may look like some fortune people of America are living a perfect desired life, however Fitzgerald’s prominent use of literary devices highlights how they are truly living a far from perfect life.
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