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Destruction of the American Dream - Coggle Diagram
Destruction of the American Dream
The Green Light
"[H]e stretched out his arms toward the dark water. . . . I . . . distinguished nothing except a single green light, minute and far way. . . . When I looked once more for Gatsby he had vanished."
In this story the green light symbolizes the impossible nature of the American Dream as Gatsby tries to reach out to Daisy, but his dream was destroyed
"Possibly it had occurred to him that the colossal significance of that light had now vanished forever. Compared to the great distance that had separated him from Daisy it had seemed very near to her, almost touching her. It had seemed as close as a star to the moon. Now it was again a green light on a dock. His count of enchanted objects had diminished by one."
Gatsby admits to Daisy that he stands and reaches out to her through the green light, and he believes that she loves him back just to be heart broken and betrayed.
The Valley of Ashes
There are said to resemble the eyes of God by George. Then poster is fading because people are losing touch with god and therefore destroying their own dreams.
"This is the valley of ashes—a fantastic farm where ashes grow like wheat into ridges and hills and grotesque gardens; where ashes take the forms of houses and chimneys and rising smoke and, finally, with a transcendent effort, of men who move dimly and already crumbling through the powdery air."
"But [Doctor Eckleburg’s] eyes, dimmed a little by many paintless days under the sun and rain, brood on over the solemn dumping ground."
This quote explains how the men in the city are depressing as their dreams have already bee crushed by the system. Most of them moved to New York for money and love but the impossible nature of the American Dream is shown through the sadness of these people lives.
Love and Marriage In the 1920's
Nick starts to fall in love with Jordan even after hearing that she is dishonest, and that it contradicts with his beliefs of the truth.
In the 1920's divorce was frowned upon and un-heard of, so in this book Daisy can't leave Tom because she doesn't want to ruin her social status. This shows how people destroy their own dreams because of their representation of themselves.
Daisy and Tom: Tom destroys his own dream by cheating on his wife, and Daisy leads on Gatsby the whole story until she lets him go at the end.
George and Myrtle represent the destruction of the American Dream because George believes that they are madly in love, but in reality she is just cheating on him and hiding her feelings.
Loyalty and Passion
Tom will forever seek what he doesn't have and there for he will never settle and appreciate what he has. This destroys the classic American Dream.
Gatsby believes that if he tries hard enough then he can achieve anything, but the destruction of his dreams come when he is shot by George and realizes that Daisy refused to love him, and his dreams were lost.
"I felt that Tom would drift on forever seeking, a little wistfully, for the dramatic turbulence of some irrecoverable football game."
"There I was, way off my ambitions, getting deeper in love every minute, and all of the sudden I didn't care."