The Great Gatsby: Jay Gatsby AiLi Lim Olivia Russell Martine Acanfora

Connection to Roaring Twenties  The Great Gatsby was a novel written by F. Scott Fitzgerald during the Roaring Twenties.  It was a criticism of that time period  Jay Gatsby represented the wealthy lifestyle of the 1920’s.  Jay Gatsby was a “new egg”  New egg were the wealthy that obtained wealth through work rather than through inheritance.

Rumors of Gatsby  “…he’s a nephew or a cousin of Kaiser Wilhelm.”  “….he was a German spy during the war.”  “…he killed a man who had found out that he was nephew to Von Hidenburg and second cousin to the devil.”  “…he didn’t live in a house at all, but in a boat that looked like a house and was moved secretly up and down the Long Island shore.”

What Gatsby says about himself  He was the son of some wealthy people in the Middle West (San Francisco) who are all dead now.  Brought up in America, but educated in Oxford  All his ancestors were educated there so it was a family tradition  Lived like a rajah in all the capitals of Europe like Paris, Venice, and Rome.  Participated in war and was promoted to be a major and even obtained a medal

Gatsby’s Real Background  His real name was James Gatz  He changed his name to Jay Gatsby at the age of 17  Born in North Dakota in a poor family  Went to a small Lutheran college of St. Olaf for 2 weeks  Dan Cody employed Gatsby to work for him on his yacht  While he was in the army during WWI, he met Daisy and fell in love with her.  After he returned to America from war, Gatsby started to work for Wolfsheim in the criminal business  He received most if his fortune there

Appearance  Young man with tanned skin and short hair that was trimmed everyday  Around thirty years old  Flamboyant style of dressing  Caramel colored suit  White flannel suit, silver shirt, and gold-colored tie  Pink suit

Personality  Formal speech (ex: Old sport)  Loyal to those he loves  Persistent  Kind-hearted, charming, and generous  Naïve and idealistic  As a boy, he made resolves to improve himself

American Dream Theme  The American dream—an individual can achieve success regardless of family history or social status if they work hard enough  Goal: To achieve happiness  Jay Gatsby represented the American dream  He grew up in poverty, but grew up to be a millionaire  Epitome of a self-made man (though he did not obtain the money through honest means)  However, Fitzgerald also used Gatsby to show the corruption of the American Dream in the 1920s  Desire for money and worldly pleasures overshadowed the true values of the dream o Elaborate parties represented the greed, material excess, and unrestrained desire for pleasure  Gatsby was blinded by his dream of wealth, status, and success and it led to his demise 

Occupation and Wealth  Throughout Gatsby’s life, he has strived to obtain wealth through numerous jobs.  Janitor  Worked for Dan Cody as steward, mate, skipper, secretary, and even jailor  After the war, he worked with Wolfsheim  Bootlegger—illegally selling alcohol  Gatsby obtained his an enormous wealth through criminal activity rather than honest work. One could question if the end justify the means. Gatsby’s American dream was accomplished through criminal actions.

Gatsby’s Relationships  Daisy Fay  Fell in love with her  Lied about his family background to her  Left for war and came back to only find out that she married Tom  Attempts to win back Daisy’s love  Takes the blame of killing Myrtle when it was really Daisy  Daisy doesn’t even attend Gatsby funeral  Nick Carraway  Befriended Nick in order to get closer to Daisy  Became good friends in the end  Nick acknowledges Gatsby as the most morally “good” person of all the characters  Only friend who went to his funeral

Gatsby’s Relationships  Tom  Negative relationship between each other because of their mutual love for Daisy  Tom ruins the possibility for Daisy to love Gatsby when he mentions Gatsby profession as a criminal  Tells Wilson that Gatsby “killed” his wife leading to Gatsby’s death  Meyer Wolfsheim  Met Gatsby after the war and gave him a job  Gatsby’s crime partner  However, Wolfshiem neglects to go to Gatsby’s funeral o Their relationship was purely out of business than out of friendship

Connection to today’s world  Like Gatsby, everyone strives to obtain the American dream. We have goals that we want to achieve, though some may be more difficult to accomplish than others.  The dream may be different than its 1920’s counterpart; however, the underlying theme is still the same.  Modern day celebrities can be compared to Jay Gatsby  Oprah Winfrey, J.K Rowling, Jay-Z  They all started out in a poor background, but through hard work, they became successful

Sources  Emin Tunc, Tanfer. "The Great Gatsby: The Tragedy of the American Dream on Long Island's Gold Coast." In Bloom, Harold, ed. The American Dream, Bloom's Literary Themes. New York: Chelsea Publishing House, Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. BLTTAD009&SingleRecord=True (accessed May 3, 2012).  Putnam, LuElla. "the American dream." McClinton-Temple, Jennifer, ed. Encyclopedia of Themes in Literature.. New York: Infobase Publishing, Bloom's Literary Reference Online. Facts On File, Inc. ETL0004&SingleRecord=True (accessed May 3, 2012).  Celebrities-Who-Started-With-Nothing.aspx