THE FALL OF AMERICAN DREAM IN F. SCOTT FITZGERALD'S THE GREAT GATSBY

The American dream is an ideal that has been present since American literature onset. Typically, the dreamer aspires to rise from rags to riches while accumulating such things as love, high status, wealth, and power on his way to the top. The dream has had variations throughout different time periods, although it is generally transformed into a materialistic vision of having a big house, a luxury car and a life of comfort. In the past century, the American dream has increasingly focused on material items as an indication of attaining success. In The Great Gatsby, Jay Gatsby is a high aspirant person who started out with no money but only a self-made plan for achieving his dream. He is so blinded by his luxurious possessions that he does not see that money cannot buy love or happiness. This research paper focuses on the elements how a dream can become corrupted by one’s attention on acquiring wealth, power, and expensive things.