Achieving The American Dream In The Great Gatsby

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In The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Jay Gatsby ultimately ended up achieving the American Dream even though he didn’t fulfill his personal goal of marrying Daisy. The American Dream is loosely defined as a belief that anyone, no matter their social standing, can obtain success in society through equal opportunity. Gatsby is seen with vast riches and high social standing yet his dream of marrying Daisy never happens.
Throughout the novel, it’s shown that Gatsby has gained social status and money established by his lavish parties. Since he had accumulated so much he was considered to be from the upper crust and people from all over looked up to him because of his success. Many would consider him to have fulfilled the American Dream even though they wouldn’t have known his true humble beginnings. While many thought Gatsby threw the …show more content…
“Your wife doesn’t love you,” said Gatsby. “She’s never loved you. She loves me.”...”She only married you because I was poor and she was tired of waiting for me. It was a terrible mistake, but in her heart she never loved anyone but me!” (130). This quotation ties together the American Dream and Gatsby’s goal of marrying Daisy. If Gatsby had achieved the American Dream sooner or was just richer, he would have married Daisy from the start but Tom had swooped in after Gatsby had attained the American dream.
In the end of The Great Gatsby, Gatsby is shot while is his extravagant swimming pool and dies. Even though he had amassed great riches and had people coming from all over to go to one of his parties, he wasn’t fulfilled without Daisy. Gatsby was in the crème de la crème achieving the American Dream yet he couldn’t get what he wanted more than social mobility or wealth, Daisy. He died having achieved the American Dream but not his own personal dream of marrying

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