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On the one hand the novel "The Great Gatsby" is about the American Dream which had its origin in the 19th century with the opening of the American West. It is based on the idea that everbody no matter which background can achieve success by hard work and optimism."The Great Gatsby" is a novel about what happened to the American dream in the 1920s, a period when the old values made to the dream had been corrupted by the vulgar pursuit of wealth. The characters are Midwesterners who have come East in pursuit of this new dream for money, fame, success, glamour, and excitement. Tom and Daisy must have a huge house, a stable of polo ponies, and friends in Europe. Gatsby must have his enormous mansion before he can feel confident enough to try to win Daisy. Fitzgerald didn't criticize the American Dream itself. He criticized the corruption and the consequences of this ideal.
On the other hand Gatsby is a symbol for the whole American experience. Two classes are shown in the novel "The Great Gatsby". The rich people are represented by Jay Gatsby, Tom and Daisy Buchanan. The human relationships in this society are superficial, they do not feel anything for each other. They feel superior to the working-class, men feel superior to women. Real friendships are very rare. Nick and Gatsby are the exception of the rule.The best example for this superficiality is Tom. Daisy's husband represents the brutality and moral carelessness of the established rich. He has no scruples.The life of the working-class is shown by the Wilsons, Myrtle and George. In the novel the two classes get in contact because of the relationship between Myrtle and Tom. They are speaking a different kind of English. Their brutality is physical (George kills Gatsby), while the upper class uses psychological brutality (Tom hates Gatsby too, but he uses George to kill him).
Language and Style
The so called "Jazz Age" is reflected in Fitzgerald's novel. It was a time of jazz and dancing, of the "modern" women who smoked and drank and of a romantic night-life.
The novel is told from the view of a first person narrator, from Nick's view.
Fitzgerald called "The Great Gatsby" a novel of "selected incident". Fitzgerald\'s stylistic method is to let a part stand for the whole. For example, he has three parties stand for the whole summer and for the contrasting values of three different worlds. He also presents small scenes of dialogue to represent what is happening at each party.
He also uses many images for example "godlike" eyes, the car as a symbol of wealth, the green light for Gatsby's dream and many colours like white for Daisy and Jordan or grey for Wilson and his area.
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