The “Great Gatsby” is a man who knows what he wants. He is relentless in his pursuit for Daisy, the love of his life, and is determined to become the man he dreamt of being as a little boy. Many believe that his sense of hope and his determination make him great. But can a man who abandoned his parents and lied about his past, a man who mettles with crime and chases after a married woman really be “great”? I believe “The Great Gatsby” is not-so-great after all.
James Gatz is the son of poor farmers from the mid west. He never accepted who he was or where he came from. “His parents were shiftless and unsuccessful farm people- his imagination had never really accepted them as his parents at all (98)”. James is set on realizing the American dream. He wants to be one of the elite, and so lies about his past in order to be accepted. He changes his name and instead of acknowledging his true parents, the now Jay Gatsby kills them off in his made up life. Gatsby also lies about his new life, especially when it comes to the attainment of his wealth. If someone can’t accept who they really are then I don’t believe they deserve the title of “great”.
No one really knows who Gatsby is, except that he’s rich and knows how to throw elaborate parties. Gatsby claims to be an Oxford man who inherited his wealth, but he did not come about his wealth through honest means like he says; he and Meyer Wolfsheim, a known felon and very close friend of his, “…bought up a lot of side-street drug-stores [in] Chicago and sold grain alcohol over the counter(133).” To me it is not only Gatsby’s involvement in the criminal world that furthers him from being great, it is also the fact that he took the easy route to achieve his dream, the American dream, instead of working hard and building himself up. This in turn became the easier, dishonest route to winning Daisy’s love.
Gatsby claims that everything he has done has been for Daisy. He became wealthy so that he could be good enough for her, he bought his mansion to be closer to her, and he threw the gigantic parties with the sole purpose of, hopefully, luring her in. He makes himself out to be a selfless romantic, but in reality he is selfish. In the five years that they have not seen each other Daisy married and had a child, yet Gatsby continues to try to win her love back, not caring that he is ruining a family. His belief that he can repeat history is also selfish. He wants Daisy to be the same girl he met five years ago. Even after saying”… she doesn’t understand. She used to be able to understand (109),” Gatsby still insists that he will”…fix everything just the way it was before (110).” Gatsby is so blinded by what he wants that he doesn’t take Daisy’s feelings into consideration.
Strong values, honesty, and selflessness are all part of a “great” man, and were all lacked by Mr. Gatsby. “The Great Gatsby” is a title that attempts to hide the truth, for Jay is not-so-great.
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