Jay Gatsby’s early stages in life are nothing more than “a penniless young man without a past” (156). His past continuously haunts him throughout his rich, extravagant life and his search for Daisy. By continuously lying to himself and to others about such facts as being “an Oxford man,” Gatsby tries to hide behind his money and his wealth. To Gatsby, his past is his only characteristic that sets him apart from the rich, yet it is also the only characteristic which he cannot change with determination, nor with money. To satisfy Daisy’s desires for money and status, Gatsby willingly commits to bootlegging so he can quickly rise up to power. Tom Buchanan on the other hand, is “a national figure, one of those

Tom and Gatsby, standing on two complete opposite ends of the American dream, represent how the society has corrupted this dream to nothing more than the desires for materialism. What once was a vast, limitless goal for all to achieve and strive for, has now shriveled down to nothing more than the wants and needs of the people who possess this material wealth. The once pure meaning of this dream has forever been lost in the modern society. Those who believed in it, never tasted its sweetness, and yet those who possessed it, never learned to appreciate its beauty.

Wealth is not simply a sign of status, it is sign of dignity, of pride, of fame, of character and of love. This is the mindset for Tom and Gatsby and is what drives them to do many of the things that they do. Both Tom and Gatsby view their money as the key to everything they want to achieve in life. Gatsby feels shame in even meeting Daisy, the love of his life, before he has enough money to present himself as someone influential and unusually rich. To Gatsby, Daisy’s love is not seen as a goal of the heart, but rather, it is seen as a financial one. Daisy, who represents a typical rich, upper-class female, was the one who put this “price tag” on her love

Some topics in this essay:
Tom Gatsby, Tom Buchanan, Jay Gatsby’s, Daisy Tom, , Gatsby Daisy’s, Daisy Furthermore, Gatsby Fitzgerald, tom gatsby, american dream, Myrtle Gatsby, Scott Fitzgerald, tom gatsby view, desires materialism, gatsby view, dreams goals, gatsby tries, tries money, tom buchanan, daisy tom, american society,