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Post by anewman98 on Feb 8, 2016 0:57:02 GMT
Even with a quick read of the Great Gatsby, it is impossible not to pick up on Fitzgerald’s use of irony to convey the American Dream.
First of all, the way the setting is laid out is ironic. West Egg contains less fashionable people with hopes of achieving the American Dream, while East Egg contains those who, in theory, have already achieved the American Dream. It is ironic that these two locations with two very different types of people are so close. This allows people to travel back and forth from the Eggs, or symbolically, between the American Dream. Daisy has the wealth and social status of the American Dream, yet she travels to West Egg to visit Gatsby. Nick is working towards the American Dream, yet he easily visits East Egg often. What is Fitzgerald trying to say about the stability of the American Dream with this ironic setting placement?
Secondly, it is ironic that Nick Caraway is our first person narrator. He is said to be nonjudgmental and value-free, but we quickly learn this is not true. He makes judgments about Gatsby’s secrets, Tom’s scandals, and even Daisy’s love life. This ironic judgment gives readers an inside view of the American Dream as it really is – corrupt and untrustworthy. Why does Fitzgerald use such an ironic narrator? What does Nick’s point of view tell us about the real American Dream?
In my opinion, it seems like the ironic setting and narrator show how the American Dream is corrupt or even untrue.
Any other signs of irony?
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pditzler
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I'm here to analyze literature and be a cool kid, and I'm all done being a cool kid.
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Post by pditzler on Feb 8, 2016 1:31:13 GMT
I believe Fitzgerald also uses irony by having Tom and Daisy involved in affairs. I suppose he did this to prove that the luxurious and glamorous life they have achieved isn't enough to keep the two happy with their marriage. Neither especially cares for their daughter, although the American Dream also often involves caring for your family and not merely providing for them. Tom looks for an affair away from his empty marriage to Daisy, and Daisy finds actual love with Gatsby. Fitzgerald could also be emphasizing that those two actually failed the American Dream, if they did not earn their money but instead inherited it, and if they can't have a successful family. Fitzgerald could have a cynical view towards the American Dream, much like Arthur Miller in Death of a Salesman, by suggesting that the American Dream isn't all that it's made to seem like. Gatsby ends up miserable as well despite his financial success, when he ultimately loses Daisy to Tom and doesn't have someone to love.
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Post by anewman98 on Feb 8, 2016 2:30:14 GMT
Good points Peter, I like how you mentioned caring for family and not just providing. The American Dream typically involves family, so it is ironic that family is not shown in Gatsby. I wonder if Fitzgerald is trying to make a statement about neglecting real life responsibilities for unattainable dreams.
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Post by colleenstrohlein on Feb 8, 2016 2:51:50 GMT
Alli, I completely agree with you, and I think Fitzgerald uses loads of irony to try to prove his point about the nonexistence of the American dream. I believe the main source of irony is appearance vs. happiness. Each of the main characters who seems to have their life together is not actually fulfilled. Gatsby longs for an old love, Tom always needs a mistress and is not satisfied in his marriage, and even Daisy reveals to Nick before she reunites with Gatsby that she is depressed. On the other hand, Nick, who doesn't have much money is happy with his life, and the same goes for Myrtle and George(before he found out about Tom). By showing that you can't both look and feel happy Fitzgerald shows that the idea of the "American Dream" is not possible.
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Post by jesswang on Feb 8, 2016 6:02:33 GMT
While I don't think that the American Dream is in any way untrue or nonexistent, as the goal of attaining it is truly a driving force in many Americans' lives, I think Fitzgerald uses irony to show the corruption and the selfishness of the wealthy. This irony is seen in Gatsby himself, whose personal version of the American Dream revolves around getting Daisy back. After years of almost stalker-like tendencies, Gatsby succeeds in winning Daisy's love again. But, through the thoughts of Nick, we see that Gatsby is still not satisfied and begins to question his obsession over Daisy for the past five years. This causes him to want even more than just her love; he wants her to divorce Tom. What started out as a yearning for her affection turns into a want for the destruction of her family. This irony proves that the rich are never satisfied. Once they get what they want, they just want even more. As a result, the American Dreams of the wealthy can never be satisfied because their selfishness drives them to endless desire, and sometimes even to dire consequences like death (in Gatsby's case).
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pavansuresh
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Post by pavansuresh on Feb 8, 2016 21:10:17 GMT
The American Dream is portrayed very ironically in Gatsby - totally agree with you guys there. However, I think you forgot to mention the shirt incident - where Daisy cries over Gatsby's shirts. Not only does this show how Daisy's goals have changed (first she was with Gatsby, then changed her affections to Tom, but then shifted back to Gatsby. I think this shows that Daisy, even though she has supposedly achieved the dream, is not happy with her lot in life even now. You can see from this how the "American Dream" is not fixed for each person: Daisy seems to think it involves money (the only two guys she gets with are both ultra-rich and she only goes back to Gatsby when he gets money.
Do you think that Daisy is a symbol of irony of the American Dream?
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SHEs FCUKIGN DEAD TO HER fRIE
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Post by SHEs FCUKIGN DEAD TO HER fRIE on Jun 15, 2018 21:05:29 GMT
FUOCK
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